Minnesota Lawyer
Bar associations are critical for lawyers to expand networks and cultivate the profession. Yet most associations are only as valuable as the effort and time put in by members.
Tara C. Norgard, shareholder at Carlson Caspers, understands this notion, dedicating more than a decade of her career to leadership roles in the Minnesota Chapter of the Federal Bar Association. In 2017, she served as the president of the local FBA chapter and was also appointed to chair the national FBA’s Special Task Force on Diversity & Inclusion. In addition to her FBA responsibilities, she co-founded Carlson Caspers’ committee of diversity and inclusion.
With a practice almost exclusively federal, Norgard focuses on complex litigation with an emphasis on patents and trade secrets.
The effect of Norgard’s leadership in Minnesota has not gone unnoticed. In 2017, the Minnesota FBA chapter earned a national “Chapter of the Year” award, and local membership engagement swelled.
Yet, despite Minnesota’s strong, inclusive and welcoming traditions, Norgard recognizes that achieving diversity in the legal profession requires a continued effort: “As lawyers, we must relentlessly pursue equal justice under law. That bedrock principle requires each one of us to remain keenly focused on diversity and inclusion in all parts of our judicial system. I am grateful to be part of a profession — and greater community — that is so deeply committed to ensuring that all humans are treated with dignity, respect and equality.”
