Each decision has to be the best one for your business – there is no universal right answer.
Contact: P /612.604.6444E /[email protected]
Administrative Contact: Mary Gibbons P /612.604.6559E /[email protected]
Education
William Mitchell College of Law, J.D., magna cum laude, 2002
Indiana University, B.A., Political Science & French, honors notation, 1996
Bar Admissions
Minnesota, 2002
Wisconsin, 2024
U.S. District Court, D. Minn., 2003
U.S. District Court, E.D. Wis., 2024
U.S. District Court, W.D. Wis., 2024
U.S. Court of Appeals, 8th Cir., 2012
U.S. Court of Appeals, 9th Cir., 2014
Ho-Chunk Nation, 2021
There’s a perception of litigators as being argumentative to a fault, thriving on confrontation. While I can certainly hold my ground – and do on issues important to my clients – it’s not always in the best interest of their businesses to pound a path to the courtroom.
My clients come to me when they have a problem that they need to solve, whether it’s deciding whether to sign a vendor contract, or whether to enter into litigation with a former employee. It’s important to get details right on the front-end to avoid repercussions later, which means really getting to know my clients’ businesses inside and out.
When it comes to litigation, I guide my clients through the difficult and sometimes emotional process. Your business is your baby, and it can be natural to feel that it’s being attacked when being sued for breach of contract, perhaps, or if a former employee has stolen trade secrets. But motivation can’t be dictated by personal animosity, and I help my clients take the emotion out of a naturally fraught process, to find the answer that’s right for their business.
For some closely held businesses, I serve as outside general counsel, acting as a sounding board for their day-to-day issues. In this capacity, I love being able to work with my clients as a partner in their businesses, being able to connect them with the experts at the firm that can address a specific issue, and save them the cost of maintaining an internal legal department.
One of the first cases I ever tried to verdict was on behalf of a large U.S. company that manufactured wooden yachts. I was given the opportunity to truly co-chair the case with my mentor, an incredibly seasoned and well-respected trial veteran. Even as a young lawyer, he and our client trusted me to take the case and run with it, including traveling to Turkey to depose the owner of the company we were suing. After two years of fierce litigation on both sides, we won a $10 million jury verdict in federal court. I had a very worthy opponent, too, which made it an even sweeter victory.
I represent a wide range of companies and develop a deep understanding of their businesses, which run the gamut from large publicly held corporations, to thoroughbred horse trainers, to small family-owned businesses, in industries such as craft wineries and distilleries, financial institutions, insurance companies, manufacturing and transportation companies. I place a special emphasis on business-to-business litigation, which includes a wide array of disputes ranging from simple breach of contract and breach of warranty, to manufacturing defects, to insurance claims, in state and federal court, as well as in arbitration.
Benchmark Litigation 2016-2024
I represent businesses in defending against employment lawsuits, including matters involving employee-related discrimination, retaliation, harassment and whistleblower claims. I also represent companies in initiating litigation against former employees and their new employers for breach of non-solicitation and non-compete agreements, as well as counseling high-level executives on negotiations of severance agreements.
Benchmark Litigation, 2016-2020
Litigation – Labor and Employment, 2022-2024
I bring more than 18 years of my own business and employment litigation experience to my mediation practice. My approach to mediation is the same as with my own clients and cases – be prepared, listen and be creative. I understand and appreciate the complex nature of the neutral process – not only the subject matter but also the emotional aspect that may be present.
2013-2023
Top 50 Women, 2014-2019, 2023
Top 100, 2018
Twin Cites Business Magazine, 2020
Benchmark Litigation, 2016-2024
Benchmark Litigation, 2013-2015
Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, 2013
Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, 2011
Minnesota Super Lawyers®, 2009-2012
Minnesota Lawyer, 2008
Litigation – Labor and Employment, 2022-2024
Fellow
Board of Directors, 2023 - present
Mentor, 2005-2012
Board of Directors, 2016-2018
Secretary, 2017-2018
Board of Directors, 2016-2017
Board of Directors, 2010-2013
Marketing Committee, 2010-2013
Member, Women's Leadership Council, 2009-2013
Co-Chair, Women's Giving, 2013-2014
Co-Chair of Membership, Women United, 2014-2017
Trustee, 2013-2017
Member, Governance Committee, 2010-present
Chair, 2014 and 2015 Beastly Ball
Chair, July 2019-present
Vice Chair, July 2017-June 2019
Trustee, 2017- present
Board of Directors, 2013-2017
Co-Chair, Programs Committee, 2014-2016