Winthrop & Weinstine, P.A., Announces New Board of Directors

MINNEAPOLIS — January 15, 2021. Winthrop & Weinstine, P.A., is pleased to announce that David Aafedt has been re-elected to the Board of Directors, and Thomas Kettleson and Anton Moch have been elected to the Board. Members of Winthrop & Weinstine’s Board of Directors each serve a three-year term, with elections occurring on a rolling basis. The Board members for 2021 are:

Tammera Diehm, President
David Aafedt
Jeffrey Ansel
Thomas Kettleson
Anton Moch
John Stern
Todd Urness
Dean Willer

David Aafedt, in addition to serving on the Board of Directors of the firm, also serves as the Chair of the firm’s Regulatory, Government Relations and Intellectual Property practice groups. Prior to joining Winthrop, he was an Assistant Attorney General with the Minnesota Attorney General’s office, where he served as counsel to the Minnesota Department of Commerce and the Minnesota Department of Health, and represented the State of Minnesota, the Governor, the Attorney General, and various state agencies in business and consumer litigation, investigations and market conduct examinations, and civil enforcement proceedings. David was also heavily involved in numerous Attorney General audits and consumer investigations pursuant to the Office’s consumer, non-profit, and charitable organization oversight. Since joining Winthrop & Weinstine, David’s practice mirrors his practice while at the Attorney General’s Office. He uses his extensive experience to advocate on behalf of his clients in a wide range of settings in all 50 states, including state and federal regulatory matters, business, consumer and non-profit litigation, as well as state and federal investigations, market conduct examinations, and unclaimed property audits.

Thomas Kettleson focuses his practice on commercial lending matters, representing financial institutions in connection with construction and real estate lending, M&A transactions and other commercial financing transactions including revolving lines of credit, term loans, asset based loans, and other complex secured transactions. Tom is involved in all aspects of the lending process, from structuring financing transactions to documenting, negotiating and closing financing transactions. He has extensive experience representing financial institutions with debt workouts, debt restructurings, foreclosures, and collections. He has also represented and advised businesses, developers and institutional clients on a variety of corporate, commercial financing and commercial real estate matters varying in both size and complexity.

Anton (Tony) Moch’s practice is focused on representing community and mid-size banks, working with them as a partner to find creative, practical solutions, and to allow them to focus on running their businesses. He advises on any legal issue banks encounter, from banking-specific issues like governance and regulatory issues, bank mergers and acquisitions or chartering a bank, to aspects that impact any business organization, like market opportunities, capital issues and structure, employment issues, intellectual property, benefits, succession planning or litigation disputes. He also counsels banks on technology related issues, including Fintech partnerships and relationships as well as helping banks with third-party vendor agreements and negotiations, including data processing agreements, electronic banking agreements and payment systems.

Winthrop & Weinstine, P.A., Announces New Shareholders and Managing Associates

MINNEAPOLIS — January 6, 2021. Winthrop & Weinstine, P.A., is pleased to formally announce that Shawn Alexander, Katherine Johnson, Justin Markell, Robert Singleton and Cody Zustiak have been promoted to shareholders, and Ian Rubenstrunk has been promoted to managing associate.

Shawn Alexander focuses his practice on tax credits and affordable housing. He has experience drafting and negotiating commercial leases, construction agreements, handling title and survey review, and working with local government and state and regulatory agencies regarding zoning and regulatory compliance. He coordinates deals between developers, investors, title companies, lenders, and other parties involved in a transaction.

Katherine Johnson represents clients in varying types and sizes of real estate transactions, including acquisitions and sales of commercial real estate, leasing, land use, and environmental matters. A portion of her practice also involves representing tax-exempt organizations, including formation, governance and application for tax-exempt status with the Internal Revenue Service.

Justin Markell primarily represents renewable energy developers, contractors, lenders, and investors, in all aspects related to project development, financing, construction, and operation. Prior to joining the firm, he was Director of Transactions at one of the world’s largest independent renewable energy companies, where he managed land acquisition, permitting, and other development efforts across the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic.

Robert Singleton represents for-profit and non-profit developers, housing authorities, investors, borrowers and lenders in tax credit real estate transactions, primarily involving Low Income Housing Tax Credits, Historic Tax Credits and New Markets Tax Credits. He also has experience with bridge lending and commercial lending. Prior to joining the firm, he worked as an associate at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, where he gained valuable experience assisting clients in the areas of state and local tax and international tax.

Cody Zustiak assists individuals and entities with health law, in matters such as responding to complaints by a regulatory board, audits, and proposed discipline against a professional license. With years of experience at the Attorney General’s office, he understands the process of administrative law, including at the Office of Administrative Hearings and Fair Hearings before the Minnesota Department of Human Services, and uses that process to his clients’ advantage.

Ian Rubenstrunk‘s experience in Creditors’ Remedies and Bankruptcy primarily focuses on foreclosures, receiverships, bankruptcies, and litigation involving financial transactions. In the foreclosure space, he has represented banks and other lenders in connection with commercial foreclosures of a variety of property types, both in and out of court. He has been involved in many receivership matters, both on behalf of the lender seeking their appointment, as well as serving as counsel to the receiver and assisting the receiver in its duties. In the bankruptcy context, he has represented a wide variety of constituents including landlords, secured lenders, lessors, asset buyers, preference defendants, and unsecured creditors.