〚 1975 〛
Retired Ahlers & Cooney attorney James “Jim” Hanks received the American Bar Association’s 25th Annual Jefferson Fordham Lifetime Achievement Award. The award honors accomplished practitioners in varied practice areas associated with state and local government law.
〚 1978 〛
Longtime Senate staffer Susan Keith was announced as a member of the staff roster for the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, & Forestry in preparation for the 2023 Farm Bill. Keith works on commodities, crop insurance, credit, trade, and CFRC issues.
〚 1979 〛
Jaki Samuelson received the Iowa Organization of Women Attorneys Arabella Mansfield Award. The Arabella Mansfield Award recognizes outstanding women lawyers in Iowa who have promoted and nurtured women in the legal profession.
〚 1983 〛
Lowell V. Stortz was named a 2022 Minnesota ICON by Finance & Commerce and Minnesota Lawyer. The ICON Award recognizes accomplished individuals with proven success throughout their career within Minnesota’s business and legal communities.
〚 1984 〛
Hon. Lucy J. Gamon was appointed to the Washington State Bank’s Board of Directors. She retired as district court judge of Iowa’s 8A Judicial District in 2023 after 30 years on the bench.
〚 1987 〛
James Larson joined Hepler Broom LLC as attorney of counsel. Larson is a real estate and commercial litigation attorney focusing in the areas of property development, sales/acquisitions, leasing, title insurance defense, and other real estate litigation.
〚 1988 〛
Hon. CJ Williams published his fourth and fifth books titled Sentencing Advocacy: Principles and Strategies and How Not to Rob a Bank and Other Stories from 20 Years as a Federal Prosecutor. Williams is a district judge on the United States District Court for the Northern District of Iowa.
〚 1989 〛
Chief Justice Susan Christensen appointed Henry Latham II as chief judge of the Seventh Judicial District. Judge Latham previously served as assistant chief judge. He was appointed to the bench in 2013.
〚 1990 〛
Stephen R. Baird was selected to receive the 2022 Distinguished Alumni Award from the University of Iowa College of Pharmacy. Baird is a shareholder at Greenberg Traurig, LLP in their intellectual property and technology practice in Minneapolis.
〚 1991 〛
U.S. President Biden appointed Lonnie Johnson to the Presidential Advisory Commission on Advancing Educational Equity, Excellence, and Economic Opportunity for Black Americans.
〚 1992 〛
Susan Oliver and Jake Felderman (03JD) were selected to join the faculty at the inaugural Nuclear Verdicts Defense Institute. They guided experienced defense attorneys on their path to becoming certified Nuclear Verdicts Defenders.
〚 1993 〛
The Illinois Supreme court appointed David Navarro to the Illinois Court of Appeals. In 2021, Judge Navarro was appointed chief judge in the pre-trial division, where he played a significant role in the preparations for eliminating cash bail under the provisions of the Safe-T Act.
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds appointed Patrick Smith a district judge in Judicial Election District 5C. Smith previously served as an attorney for Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company.
〚 1994 〛
Steven Grubbs was featured in an article by the Daily Iowan, reflecting on his time at Iowa and highlighting his journey from the Iowa House of Representatives to founder and CEO of VictoryXR, a company bringing virtual reality to education.
〚 1995 〛
The Los Angeles Superior Court appointed Sergio C. Tapia an assistant presiding judge.
〚 1996 〛
Jay Byers was named the 25th president of Simpson College. Byers received his undergraduate degree from Simpson College and served as a member of the board of trustees since 2012. He previously served as the president and CEO of the Greater Des Moines Partnership.
Dean C. Eyler was recognized by the World Trademark Review as a Global Leader in Private Practice in 2022. Eyler is a partner at Lathrop GPM, where he represents clients in intellectual property and complex commercial disputes.
〚 1998 〛
Bridget Penick was appointed to the 2022-2023 Iowa State Bar Association’s Ways and Means Committee. Penick is a shareholder at Fredrikson & Byron in Des Moines.
〚 1999 〛
Theresa E. Corona was promoted to deputy general counsel, corporate at Ecolab. Corona has served more than 11 years at Ecolab, starting her tenure in 2012 as a senior attorney.
McCeil Johnson was selected to participate in the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges Institute for Leadership & Governance in Higher Education.
〚 2000 〛
Lionel Weaver joined Faegre Drinker as counsel in the firm’s government and regulatory practice in Chicago. His experience includes artificial intelligence and algorithms, and other technology-driven areas of law, including cybersecurity, data privacy, and information governance.
〚 2001 〛
John Ruan IV, chairman of Ruan Transportation Management Systems, joined the board of directors for the University of Iowa Center for Advancement.
〚 2002 〛
Justin Page was featured in an article by the Minnesota Lawyer about his work representing people with disabilities, and his ability to bring a new perspective to the Minnesota Commission on Judicial Selection as its newest member.
〚 2003 〛
David Funkhouser III was named office managing partner of Spencer Fane’s Phoenix office. He has been a partner at the firm since 2018, providing clients with counsel in complex commercial litigation matters.
〚 2004 〛
Anne West Burmeister was named to the Iowa Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2023. She is the first rowing athlete inducted into the Hall of Fame. She was the first All-American in program history and was a top 10 finalist for the 1998 NCAA Woman of the Year.
Iow Gov. Kim Reynolds appointed Michael Carpenter a district judge in Judicial Election District 8A. Carpenter previously served as an attorney at Gaumer, Emmanuel, Carpenter & Goldsmith, P.C.
Hon. Paul Kraus was sworn in as judge for Ottawa County Michigan’s Fifth Circuit Court. Judge Kraus will serve in the Family Division of the Circuit Court and his docket includes adoptions, child neglect/abuse cases, juvenile delinquency, divorce, and other domestic matters.
〚 2005 〛
Elizabeth Chiarello published her second edition of The Food, Beverage and Cosmetics Law Review. Chiarello’s practice at Sidley Austin LLP focuses on the defense of companies in class action, products liability, mass tort, toxic tort, and other complex litigation matters.
Amanda Hamilton started a new position as assistant attorney general at the Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia. She previously served as a senior antitrust correspondent at The Capital Forum and an attorney in the Office of the General Counsel for the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
〚 2006 〛
Tara Eberline became partner-in-charge for Foulston Siefkin LLP’s Kansas City office. Eberline has chaired the firm’s Kansas City-area employment and labor/litigation practice since 2021.
Shawn Gibbs accepted a new position with Sage Therapeutics as vice president, corporate counsel. Sage Therapeutics is a Boston-based biopharmaceutical company developing therapies to better treat brain health disorders.
Eugenio Mollo Jr. joined the full-time faculty of the University of Toledo College of Law. Mollo started as an adjunct professor to teach immigration law courses and will now join the Legal Clinic as a clinical assistant professor of law.
〚 2009 〛
The Iowa Attorney General appointed David Faith as deputy attorney general for agency counsel at the Office of the Attorney General of Iowa. Faith previously served as a judge advocate for the Iowa Army National Guard.
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds appointed Kristen Formanek to district associate judge in Judicial Election District 5C. Judge Formanek formerly served as an assistant Polk County attorney and an assistant Story County attorney.
Justin Grad was promoted to associate general counsel for Amazon Web Services. He began his tenure at Amazon as corporate counsel for Kindle in 2014.
Michelle Ramirez of Sidley Austin was named to Bloomberg Law’s 40 Under 40. The award recognizes the outstanding accomplishments of early career lawyers nationwide. Her practice area focus is products liability.
Lanny Zieman was appointed by the Iowa Attorney General to run the state Office of the Consumer Advocate. The consumer advocate represents consumers and the public in matters dealing with gas, electricity, telecommunications, and other utilities, including in proceedings before the Iowa Utilities Board.
〚 2010 〛
Kiri Somermeyer was named executive director of the Corporate Institute at the University of Minnesota Law School. Somermeyer teaches in the Business Law Clinic and oversees the Corporate Externship Program and Independent Field Placements.
〚 2011 〛
Kaitlin Cswaykus was promoted to partner in Thompson Coe’s Dallas office. Cswaykus’ practice focuses on health care litigation.
Nabilah F. Irshad joined Brandwatch as chief legal and people officer, where she leads the legal, privacy, compliance, risk, and people functions.
Sarah Pierce started a new position as policy analyst for United States Citizen and Immigration Services. She previously served as senior counsel, border and immigration for the U.S. Senate’s Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee.
〚 2012 〛
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds appointed Tyler Buller a judge on the Iowa Court of Appeals. Previously, Judge Buller prosecuted criminal trials and appeals as an assistant attorney general at the Iowa Department of Justice.
Bryce Carlson started a position as assistant inspector general at the City of Chicago Office of the Inspector General.
Lindsey Guerrero was awarded the Iowa Bar President’s Award for her service in protecting Iowa’s land title system. Guerrero represents lenders, developers, purchasers, and sellers in commercial real estate transactions with Nyemaster Goode.
〚 2013 〛
Nicholas Chamis was promoted to senior counsel at Foley & Lardner LLP’s Dallas office. His practice focuses on estate planning, transfer tax planning, estate and trust administration, and other wealth planning issues.
〚 2014 〛
The Iowa Attorney General hired Daniel Barnes as deputy attorney general for consumer protection. He will represent the state by overseeing cases involving consumer fraud.
〚 2015 〛
Sarah G. Raaii was promoted to partnership at McDermott Will & Emery. Raaii focuses her practice on employee benefits and matters related to health care reform, data privacy and HIPAA compliance, executive compensation, and health and welfare, 401(k), 403(b), and pension plans.
〚 2017 〛
Kathryn Reynolds assumed a new role as president/commissioner of Northwoods League Softball. She has had a distinguished career in sports administration and leadership, most recently as director of player development for the University of Iowa women’s basketball team.
〚 2019 〛
Derek Huish joined Quinn Emanuel’s Salt Lake City office. Huish’s practice focuses on complex commercial and intellectual property litigation.
Abraham Sotelo started a new position at K&L Gates’ Kansas City office as a member of the Power practice group. His practice focuses on energy transactions, including developing, buying, selling, and investing in renewable energy projects.
〚 2022 〛
Elizabeth Estey was approved as the new Jefferson County Assistant Attorney. She previously served as a member of the Fairfield City Council and has worked as an attorney for Disability Rights Iowa.
Von Briesen & Roper S.C. welcomed Denisha A. Renovales as an associate in the firm’s Milwaukee office. Renovales is a member of the business practice group where she focuses on corporate law, mergers and acquisitions, and transactional matters for business, health care, and nonprofit organizations.
Brian White was named vice president and general counsel of Wake Forest University. Reporting directly to the president, White will become the principal legal officer for the university, leading its Office of the General Counsel and providing advice and counsel to the university on all significant legal matters.
Angelica Hernandez recently received a Presidential Citation from the 2022 State Bar of Texas President Sylvia Borunda Firth. She was the co-chair of the State Bar Convention held in Houston.
Shaping the Future of Iowa Law
We recognize the incredible time, talents, and treasures provided by the Iowa Law School Foundation (ILSF) to help us achieve our goals and drive Iowa Law forward. The board is led by Maja J. Eaton (84JD); alumni members are listed below.
• David W. Alberts (91JD)
• Robert “Andy” Andersen (76JD)
• Elizabeth R. Boyd (87JD)
• Craig A. Cook (89JD)
• Jeff W. Courter (87JD)
• Dave Day (77JD)
• H. Mitchell D’Olier (71JD)
• Renee Dotson (06JD)
• Angela L. Fontana (89JD)
• Kelly M. Hnatt (89JD)
• Terry A. Jacobs (81JD)
• Lonnie Johnson (91JD)
• Mary K.W. Jones (93JD)
• Douglas P. Kintzinger (86JD)
• Cynthia Lande (10JD)
• Darrel A. Morf (69JD)
• Abhay M. Nadipuram (13JD)
• Karin Nelsen (93JD), Vice President
• Timothy Ray (94JD))
• James G. Sawtelle (91JD), Secretary
• Jeffrey A. Scudder (06JD)
• S. Lata Setty (91JD)
• William Smith (71JD)
• Tina B. Solis (97JD)
• Leena Soni (92JD)
• Mark Steffensen (92JD)
• Annette G. Stewart (04JD), Treasurer
• Lowell V. Stortz (83JD)
• Gary J. Streit (75JD)
• Joel S. Telpner (83JD)
• Winnie Uluocha (18JD)
• John F. Wicks (98JD)
• Amy Taylor Wilson (09JD)
• Gretchen Wolf (02JD)
• Robert E. Youle (76JD)
2023 College of Law Alumni Awards
Congratulations to the 2023 Alumni Award winners! The annual alumni awards recognize those who have made significant achievements in their careers and in their service to the College of Law.
Read more about this year’s winners at law.uiowa.edu/awards.
• Carroll Reasoner – Alumni Achievement Award
• Hon. CJ Williams – Alumni Service Award
• Abhay Nadipuram – Emerging Leader Award
• Alison Guernsey – Iowa Law Review Award
We’d love to hear from you. Please share your news with us at law.uiowa.edu/alumninotes.