Like many university students who have experienced issues with their landlords, Chad Buehler was no exception.

Buehler attended undergraduate school at UW-Madison, where he often faced frustrating issues with his landlord.

According to Buehler, his landlord often gave him just six hours notice for a showing when most leases call for at least 24 hours to allow students to clean up.

For Buehler, frustration was the furthest action taken until he became a lawyer. Now, he helps students at UW-Whitewater with similar issues.

Each semester, Whitewater Student Government provides a lawyer for students looking for legal advice. Buehler began coming to campus in 2006 when WSG decided his services would benefit students.

Buehler, along with a partner, opened a law firm in Jefferson last August, Buehler & Olsen Law, LLC.

“Student housing is where you tend to have the problems,” Buehler said. “That’s what I mostly see on campus here. It’s the landlords who seem to feel that they can walk all over the students.”

Buehler handles a lot of landlord tenant issues such as mold, security deposits, roommates not paying rent, and landlords entering without notice. He also handles municipal violations such as underage drinking tickets, OWI, noise violations and furnishing alcohol to minors.

Chad Neerhof, university services director of WSG, said WSG feels students should be well-educated about their options and rights when facing legal situations.

Since he runs his own law firm, Buehler can go to any county in Wisconsin, but he typically practices in Jefferson, Walworth, Rock, Dodge and Dane counties.

Mistreatment by law enforcement seems to be a recurring topic in Whitewater, Buehler said. Some students claim authorities threaten them if they don’t answer certain questions.

“I don’t know if it’s just because they’re students … but I get a lot of complaints about certain officers not really holding cordial conversations,” Buehler said.

After police broke up several house parties this year, Neerhof organized a group session in a lecture hall to allow students to have their questions about drinking tickets answered by Buehler. More than 50 students attended the session.

“I always invite students to follow up with me,” Buehler said. “It doesn’t have to just be a one-time thing. I am here for the students.”

Buehler encourages students interested in law school to talk to him about what it’s like and what they should do to prepare.

Students interested in meeting with Buehler should call the Career and Leadership Development desk at 262-472-1471 to set up an appointment.

“A lot of students don’t know the procedures on how to handle citations or a landlord issue,” Buehler said. “When they come speak to me, most students walk out feeling a lot more relieved and less stressed than when they came in.”