William J. Maakestad

During much of my professional career as an academic, I also served as a legal consultant on corporate criminal cases in the U.S. and beyond. I was fortunate to have been able to work on such landmark cases as the Ford Pinto corporate homicide prosecution in Indiana, the Film Recovery Systems corporate murder case in Illinois, and the Herald of Free Enterprise ferry disaster case in London, England. Though now retired, occasionally I am called upon to discuss issues related to holding business corporations and executives criminally liable; for example, I was recently invited to Abuja, Nigeria, where I presented a workshop on American corporate and white collar law to Nigerian attorneys, business men and women, and government officials.

Among other interests, I am chair and a founder of the Al Sears Jazz Festival in Macomb, Illinois, and also a member of two musical groups: The Jim Betts Trio (jazz) and The Usual Suspects (country/roots).