On the Job
Attorney Mason Higgins’s Practice
Attorney Mason Higgins is an associate in Stafford Rosenbaum’s Madison office. His practice focuses on representing businesses, individuals, financial institutions, and municipalities through civil and bankruptcy disputes involving contracts, financial instruments, property rights, riparian rights, and intentional or alleged misconduct. Mason is eager to assert and defend his clients’ rights—especially in the courtroom.
Prior to joining Stafford Rosenbaum, Mason was a member of the bankruptcy and creditors’ rights subgroup at an Amlaw 200 firm. There, he gained valuable experience litigating on behalf of national financial institutions and corporate clients in bankruptcy cases and adversary proceedings. During law school, Mason worked as a law clerk at a boutique bankruptcy firm and honed his advocacy skills with two litigation-focused legal clinics: the Criminal Appeals Project and the Constitutional Litigation, Appeals, and Sentencing Project. These experiences taught him the importance of helping quickly and staying creative.
Some of Mason’s notable successes include:
- Winning summary judgment dismissing a claim for unjust enrichment seeking approximately $1.7 million by successfully demonstrating that the plaintiff had unclean hands and was not entitled to equitable relief;
- Securing relief from the automatic stay on behalf of a national lease equipment financer in numerous bankruptcy cases from Delaware to California and leveraging that relief to consistently win favorable settlements;
- Representing a corporate client who came in the door facing default judgment in the Southern District of Florida through a successful motion to vacate its default and to a favorable settlement that saw the client pay only pennies on the dollar compared to the plaintiff’s original demand; and,
- Discovering arrearages in the six-figures amongst a utility client’s books while reviewing those records in connection with a different matter and pursuing those amounts against out-of-state entities until paid in full.
Mason serves as a Captain (Civil Affairs) in the United States Army Reserve. He is also a member of the Legal Studies faculty at Madison College, where he teaches legal research and civil litigation to post-baccalaureate and paralegal students, and an adjunct professor at the University of Wisconsin Law School, where he teaches trial advocacy. Mason brings his military attention to detail, his passion for service, and the sum of his experiences to Stafford’s Litigation Team.
Mason’s Court Admissions
- State of Wisconsin
- U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin
- U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Wisconsin
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin
- U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
Mason’s Education
- University of Wisconsin Law School (J.D.)
- President, Mock Trial Program
- Southern Illinois University (B.A., Criminology and Criminal Justice, Spanish, and Music, magna cum laude)
Mason’s Honors and Recognitions
- The National Black Lawyers Top 40 Under 40 Honoree (2025, 2026)
- Habush Habush & Rottier Outstanding Trial Advocacy Award, 2022
- Ray and Ethel Brown Award for Character, Leadership, and Service, 2021
- Susan Steingass Second-year Outstanding Trial Advocacy Award, 2021
Mason’s Community Involvement
- Wisconsin Association of African-American Lawyers, Treasurer
- Madison College Legal Studies/Paralegal Program, Advisory Board
- Dane County Bar Association Pro Bono Trust Fund, Trustee
- Madison Ballet, Board of Directors
- Make Music Madison, Board of Directors
