The Waeckerle Law Team
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Sara Waeckerle
With widespread experience in criminal law, Sara brings a wealth of experience and a strategic approach to every case. After earning her Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Wyoming School of Law, Sara served as a law clerk in South Dakota’s Fourth Judicial Circuit, which covers counties in west and northwest South Dakota. Sara is one of the only, if not the only, law clerk who was asked to work for the Fourth Circuit judges a second year. Now that she is in private practice, she enjoys regularly trying cases in front of the judges for whom she used to clerk.
Sara focuses on misdemeanor and felony-level criminal defense and post-conviction relief.
Lora Waeckerle
Lora combines skill in civil litigation with a commitment to achieving the best outcomes for clients. After earning her Juris Doctorate degree with distinction from the University of Nebraska in 2018, Lora clerked for South Dakota Supreme Court Justice Janine M. Kern for two years, where she researched issues, analyzed legal claims, and drafted opinions for some of South Dakota’s most complex cases. Following her clerkship and before joining Waeckerle Law, Lora was an Associate for the Rapid City firm Thomas Braun Bernard, and Burke, LLP.
Lora's emphasis is in personal injury, wrongful death, business litigation, property law, construction disputes, insurance bad faith, and general civil litigation.
Lora has been recognized as a Super Lawyers Rising Star since 2022, which is a peer designation awarded only to a select number of accomplished attorneys in each state. The Rising Stars selection process takes into account peer recognition, professional achievement in legal practice, and other factors.
Ryan Walno
Ryan is a tenacious advocate who protects his client's interests as if they were his own. He has handled a broad variety of cases at every level of South Dakota's legal system, from minor traffic incidents to high level felonies. Whether your case is in magistrate court or before the South Dakota Supreme Court, you can trust that Ryan will give it the attention it deserves.
After earning his Juris Doctorate degree, Ryan worked for a law firm in Spearfish, South Dakota for several years before joining Waeckerle Law, Prof. LLC. He was recognized as a Super Lawyers Rising Star for criminal defense in 2024, which is a peer designation awarded to only a select number of accomplished attorneys in each state.