Alumni Notes 2021

• Tracie Porter, LW'94, was appointed as an at-large circuit judge for Cook County, Ill. by the Illinois Supreme Court.
• Alan Ostergren, LW'97, was named one of the Des Moines Register's "15 People to Watch in 2022." Alan is an attorney at Alan R. Ostergren, P.C. and President and Chief Counsel of The Kirkwood Institute.
• Natalie deRegnier, LW’21, has joined Harrison, Moreland, Webber & Simplot, P.C. in Ottumwa, Iowa as an associate attorney.  She will practice primarily in general civil litigation.  
• Heidi S. Nebel, LW'92, has been appointed by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce to the prestigious United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) Patent Public Advisory Committee (PPAC). Heidi is managing partner of McKee Voorhees & Sease in Des Moines.
• Rajee Harris, BN '10, LW '13, BN '13, has joined Principal Global Investors as Chief Operating Officer, Real Estate Operating Company Investments. 
• Luke North, LW'20, has joined The Williams Law Firm in Sunrise Beach, Mo. as an associate attorney. 
• Jennifer Chavez-Rivera, LW'20, has joined BrownWinick Law as an associate attorney. 
• Casey Ficek, LW'17, has joined Delta Dental of Iowa as Government Relations Manager. 
• Katelyn Gatzke, LW'21, has joined Neighborhood Law Group in West Des Moines as an associate attorney. Her emphases include Criminal Defense, Family Law, and Juvenile Law.
• Jane Landretti, LW'04, has joined Stafford Rosenbaum LLP, as a partner in the Madison, Wisc. office. Jane's practice is primarily focused on environmental law.
  
• Bennett MacDougall, LW'97, has joined Provident Bank, a leading New Jersey-based financial institution, as senior vice president, general counsel of Provident Bank and Beacon Trust Company and deputy general counsel of Provident Financial Services, Inc. MacDougall is based in the bank’s Iselin administrative headquarters and is responsible for overseeing all legal affairs of the Bank and its subsidiaries, in addition to providing advice to the Executive Leadership Team on all matters of law and policy.
• Alec Osland, LW'19, was recently honored with Legal Assistance of Olmsted County's (Minn.) 2021 New Volunteer of teh Year award. Alec is an attorney at Wagner Oehler, Ltd., in Rochester, Minn.
• Bradley Adams, LW'21, won the White River Writing Competition sponsored by the Vermont Journal of Environmental Law. Bradley's article, "A Catastrophe in Full Bloom: Analysis of the Federal Government's Response to Gulf Hypoxia," will be published in an upcoming volume of the Journal.
• Elizabeth Van Arkel, LW'12, was recently invited to join the Iowa Access to Justice Commission by Chief Justice Susan Christensen of the Iowa Supreme Court. Elizabeth is a shareholder in the Immigration Department with Dentons Davis Brown.
• Matthew Gilbert, LW'14, LW'15, has been named to the Board of Directors of the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Cedar Valley.
• Tina Yin Sowatzke, PH'16, LW'18, joined Fredrikson & Byron's Des Moines office as an associate in the Patents, Life Sciences, Intellectual Property and Advertising, Marketing & Trademark Groups. 
• Logan Brundage, LW'21, joined Ahlers & Cooney as a member of the Government Law Practice Area. He works closely with cities, counties, and other governmental entities in the exercise of their powers and in litigation.
• Thomas Bush, LW'20, joined Shuttleworth & Ingersoll in Cedar Rapids. His practice practice focuses on business law, real estate law, estate planning, and mergers and acquisitions.
• Clark Butler, LW'21, joined Whitfield & Eddy Law as an associate attorney in the firm's litigation practice group.
• Adam Brewster, LW'21, has accepted a position as Civil Rights Specialist for the Iowa Civil Rights Commission.
• Rachel Morgan, LW'21, has joined the Trial Division of Grefe & Sidney, PLC as an associate attorney.
• Sam McMichael, LW'21, has joined Grefe & Sidney, PLC as an associate with the Trial Division.
• Karin Derry, GR'97, LW'07, has been named the new chair of the Des Moines Area Community College Paralegal Program.
• Raymond Starks, AS '16, BN '16, LW '19, has accepted the position  of Attorney Advisor at the U.S. Small Business Administration.
• Tess Pocock, LW'19, has joined Fredrikson & Byron's Des Moines office as an associate attorney. 
• Alex Dornacker, LW'21, has jouined Hopkins & Huebner, PC, as an associate attorney. He will will practice primarily in the employment and municipal law group.
•  The Hon. Sarah E. Hennesy, LW'94, has been appointed chief judge of Minnesota's Seventh Judicial District.
• Stacy L. Ritchie, LW'98, was recently appointed as a district court judge in Iowa Judicial Election District 5A.
• Johnny Taylor Jr., GR ’91, LW’92, was recently ranked #3 on the Hardcover Business List and is an overall Wall Street Journal Bestseller for his book Reset: A Leader’s Guide to Work in Age of Upheaval. Taylor is President and Chief Executive Officer of the Society for Human Resource Management.
• Blake Hanson, LW'15, is the 2021 recipient of the Iowa Defense Counsel Association's Rising Star Award. Hanson is an associate attorney with Bradshaw Law Firm's litigation division.
• Thomas Leahy, LW'02, has been named interim president of Mercy College of Health Sciences. Leahy was most recently vice president of business and regulatory affairs and has been with Mercy College for nearly 12 years.
• Sharayah Owens, LW'21, has accepted an associate position at Ackley, Kopecky & Kingery LLP in Cedar Rapids. Her practice will focus on real estate transactions, estate planning, and business law.
• Nawi Ukabiala, LW'11, was recognized as a 2021 Rising Star by the International Institute for Conflict Prevention & Resolution. Nawi is a litigation associate with Debevoise & Plimpton in New York.
• Angel West, LW'97, has been named to Benchmark 2021's Top 250 Women in Litigation, a distinction she has consistently achieved since 2012. Benchmark's Top 250 Women in Litigation highlights the most distinguished women across the U.S. in the world of litigation. Angel is currently the only woman recognized from Iowa. Angel recently joined Maynard Cooper Gale as a Shareholder in the Litigation Practice.
• Jonathan Swaim, LW'13, has joined Dentons Davis Brown in Des Moines as an associate. Jonathan will work with clients on transactional and securities matters. 
• Kailey Blazek, LW'16, has joined Dentons Davis Brown as an immigration associate. 
• Anna Mallen, LW'19, has been named to the West Des Moines Chamber of Commerce Leadership Academy. The program brings together a cohort of community, business, and non-profit leaders and includes experiential learning, critical thinking, and a community impact project. Anna is an associate attorney with Whitfield & Eddy. 
• Krystle Campa, LW'07, has joined the Des Moines office of Fredrikson & Byron, PA, as a shareholder. Krystle will practice in the areas of renewable energy and real estate. 
• Benjamin Nielson, LW'20, has joined Shuttleworth & Ingersoll, PLC, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He represents financial institutions and business creditors in all manner of insolvency and bankruptcy-related matters. Ben recently completed a one year judicial clerkship with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Iowa.
•  Blaine Woodson, LW'20, has joined Pricewaterhouse Coopers as an associate in the M&A Tax Group. Blaine will work out of PwC's offices in Manhattan, New York.
• Tirzah R. Roussell, LW'19, has joined the Bradshaw Law Firm as an associate. She will practice in the Bankruptcy and Reorganization Practice Group.
• Tyler R. Smith, LW'16, GR'16, has joined the Bradshaw Law Firm as an associate. He is a member of the firm's litigation and appellate law practice groups.
• Sarah E. Wilson, LW'17, has established Sarah E. Wilson Law Firm, PLC, in Ankeny, Iowa. Her practice focuses on adoption, surrogacy, and assisted reproductive technology law.
• Ross Curnow, LW'17, has joined BrownWinick Law in Des Moines as an associate. Ross brings a business transactional practice to the firm where he specializes in residential and commercial real estate, as well as regulatory compliance in Iowa’s casino and gaming industry.
• Nate Borland, LW'13, has joined the Employment law team at BrownWinick Law in Des Moines. His primary area of expertise is in labor and employment law, including counseling, investigations, and trial practice.
• Gene Nassif, LW'18, has joined Shindler, Anderson, Goplerud & Weese P.C. in West Des Moines, IA. Gene is also a co-founder of Obtainium Whiskey, Bettendorf, IA.
• Torey Cuellar, LW'14, has joined the Marshall County Attorney's Office as Assistant County Attorney. Her focus is on the prosecution of felony domestic violence, stalking, and sex abuse criminal cases on behalf of the State of Iowa.
• Alex Reid, LW'16, has joined Miami University of Ohio as Director of Athletic Compliance.
• Kyle Liske, LW'12, has joined Arkema as assistant general counsel.
• David Morain, LW'06, was named city attorney for Jefferson, Iowa. David is an owner attorney of Hoyt & Morain Law Firm in Jefferson.
• Valerie Foote, LW'12, has joined the West Des Moines office of Hupy and Abraham, S.C., P.C. She will be representing Iowan clients in a variety of personal injury matters.
• Alecia A. Meuleners, LW'13, has been named a member attorney at Whitfield & Eddy Law in Des Moines, Iowa. She is active in the firm's Real Estate practice group.
• Kayla Sproul, LW'19, has joined Bradshaw Law as an associate. She will work with Bradshaw's business & corporate law practice group. 
• Gage Meyers, LW'20, has accepted a position as of counsel with Incubate IP in Chicago. Incubate IP offers patent, trademark, copyright, and other intangible asset legal protections for startups.
• Jenna Kirsch, LW'17, has been hired as an attorney at the Federal Election Commission in Washington, DC.
• Corrin Hatala, LW'15, has joined American Equity as senior corporate counsel.
• Ashley Beisch, AS'13, LW'16, has joined the Johnson Law Office in Ogden, Iowa.
• Ashley Frazier, GR'19, LW'19, has accepted a position as claims counsel with Adventist Risk Management in Washington, DC.
• Chelsey Knapp, LW'20, is a law clerk with the United States Distric Court, Southern District of Iowa.
• Michael Bousselot, LW'09, has been named as the new director of the Iowa Department of Management. Bousselot previously served as chief of staff for Governor Terry Branstad.
• Beth Coonan, LW'02, has joined Davis Brown Law Firm as a shareholder attorney in the Labor and Employment and Immigration Departments.
• Carolyn Gunkel, BN'01, LW'06, has been promoted to counsel at Faegre Drinker. Carolyn is a litigator who represents and advises clients on critical legal and business issues in Faegre Drinker's Des Moines office.
• Michael J. Carroll, LW'04, has been elected partner at Fagre Drinker. Michael practices in the firm’s product liability and mass torts practice group in the Des Moines office. 
• Krystal Mikkilineni, LW'13, has been named a shareholder of Bradshaw, Fowler, Proctor & Fairgrave, P.C., Des Moines. Krystal practices primarily in the areas of bankruptcy law, business law and corporate law.
• Timothy J. Casey, LW’90, secured a verdict on 12/18/20 for a client in the amount of $1.693 million. Brought under Arizona’s Adult Protective Services Act, the case is believed to be the only civil trial which took place in Arizona state courts during the 2020 pandemic. Tim recently joined Beus Gilbert McGroder PLLC, a Phoenix law firm with a national practice concentrating in high-stakes business litigation, real estate, and catastrophic personal injury and wrongful death.