Rhame & Elwood Attorneys at Law, located on Willowcreek Road in Portage, is filled with talented, community oriented individuals that are passionate about the work that they do. Attorney Scott McClure, who became an associate at Rhame & Elwood in 2001, certainly fits that description.
McClure graduated from La Porte High School in 1994 and Indiana University in 1998 before attending DePaul School of Law. He started clerking at Rhame & Elwood during his second year of law school, before latching on full time after graduating in 2001.
“I had wanted to be a lawyer for quite a bit of time,” McClure said. “This gives you a unique opportunity to be in a position where you can help people.”
During his career, McClure has practiced criminal law, wills, trusts and estates, civil litigation, municipal law and family law. Currently, he splits most of his time between criminal law and government law. He represents the Porter County Council, Porter County Plan Commission and Porter County Board of Zoning Appeals. He previously served as the Portage Assistant City Attorney, Trustee’s Attorney, on the Portage BZA, on the Portage Police Merit Board and as the President of the YMCA Board of Directors.
“For years, Rhame & Elwood has always had a devotion to community service,” McClure said. “I think that, along with providing high quality service, is the formula to stand out within the community.”
When he is not in his office or feverishly working on a case, McClure can probably be found at his family’s Christmas tree farm in La Porte County. For the last three years, he has spent his spare time with his father and brother-in-law refurbishing a turn-of-the-century dairy barn. This year, the farm opened up for the first time and has been a success.
McClure said his favorite aspect of his job as an attorney is being able to help people. He pointed out that the majority of clients are “just regular people that make mistakes and need help.”
“The successes that we get are sometimes small and personal. It is great having somebody who truly appreciates the work that you have done for them and they take advantage, in a good way, of the things that you’ve done,” he said. “Those are the things that keep you coming back. Being able to have a connection with a client who has made a mistake and being able to have them come to grips with the issue and take the necessary steps in their life to make sure that it doesn’t happen again and to help them evaluate their life.”
McClure said his most touching success story occurred in his first year with a law license when he was collaborating with Rhame on a case. They went to the old county jail to meet with a young man who was addicted to heroin.
“It was my first real interaction with someone who was truly in the grips of that particular addiction,” McClure said. “We were able to work out what was a wonderful opportunity for the young man. He was able to go down to the Southern United States and go through a rehab program and if he did that successfully, then he had the opportunity to turn his life around.”
Over five years later, McClure received a phone call from the man.
“He was doing wonderful,” McClure said. “He was sober and had actually become a contractor down south. He had really turned his life around. Those are the type of things that stick with you because you really feel like you made a difference in an individual’s life.”
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3200 Willowcreek Rd
Portage, IN 46368
Phone: 219-762-0494