
Clare Ashdown
Handles shareholder, partnership and earn-out disputes for founders and family businesses across the Midwest. She prepares every case for trial and settles most of them from that position, usually well before a jury is picked, and she will tell a client early when a claim is better dropped than pressed any further.
clare.ashdown@marchbankoakes.exampleBackground
Clare leads the business litigation practice and has tried more than twenty commercial cases to verdict in state and federal court.
She defended the buyer in Halvorsen v. Ridgeline Holdings, an earn-out dispute that turned on how revenue was booked after closing.
Clients hire her for judgment as much as advocacy: she is quick to identify the two issues that will decide a case and to ignore the rest.
Illustrative matters
Illustrative examples. Past results do not predict future outcomes.
“Clare told us on the first call which part of the claim was worth pursuing. That call shaped everything that followed.”
Dana WhitcombeHead of LegalIllustrative client feedback.

Business Litigation8 min read
Documents beat speeches, most of the time
The case you can win is rarely the one you describe at the start. It is the one your records will support.
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Fraud6 min read
The true price of an emergency asset freeze
Getting the order is the cheap part. The bond and your own disclosure duty should decide whether you ask for one.
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Arbitration7 min read
An award you can't collect
Getting paid should shape an arbitration from day one. Ask where the money is before you ever file a demand.
Read this note
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