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On the campaign trail, J.B. Van Hollen complained often that the Wisconsin Department of Justice had unfairly targeted a cranberry farmer in a lawsuit alleging the farm was polluting a Sawyer County lake.
Van Hollen cited the 2004 lawsuit as an example of the mistaken priorities of Democratic Attorney General Peg Lautenschlager. He vowed to pull the state out of the "frivolous" litigation if voters elected him attorney general, which they did on Nov. 7.
What Van Hollen, a Republican, didn't mention was that he was employed by the private law firm that was representing the cranberry farmer in the pollution lawsuit.
Cranberry grower William Zawistowski's attorney is Ron Ragatz. Ragatz, like Van Hollen, works in the environmental law section of the DeWitt, Ross & Stevens law firm in Madison. Another attorney at the firm, Jacob Westerhof, also worked on the case, court records show.
Van Hollen, who was a U.S. attorney, did not respond to requests for comment Wednesday. A spokesman said the attorney general-elect hadn't done any work on the case.
DeWitt Ross has another connection to cranberry growers. Two other lawyers from the firm - Jordan Lamb and Ronald Kuehn - are registered lobbyists for the Wisconsin State Cranberry Growers Association and four other agricultural groups that had sought unsuccessfully to join the suit on behalf of Zawistowski.
Westerhof, currently on a medical leave, and Lamb also are listed as working with Ragatz and Van Hollen in the environmental section at the firm's Capitol Square office.
Darrin Schmitz, a spokesman for Van Hollen, said he has no conflict of interest since he didn't work on the litigation....