Bar Buzz: Six in running for 6th District bench

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Six finalists have been named for a pair of judgeships in the state’s 6th Judicial District.

The state’s Judicial Selection Commission named the batch of finalists on March 26.

Three are vying to replace District Court Judge  Shaun R. Floerke, who resigned in December to take over a philanthropic foundation. He successor will chamber in Duluth.

The other three are competing to replace the retiring District Court Judge Mark M. Starr. His replacement will chamber in Hibbing.

Duluth post

Finalists for the slot on the Duluth bench are:

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  Robert Barnes, a partner at McCarthy & Barnes, P.L.C., who practices in the areas of personal injury, professional and premises liability, insurance and arbitration/mediation. He is certified as a civil trial specialist by the Minnesota State Bar Association.

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  Amy Lukasavitz, an assistant St. Louis County Attorney whose caseload includes juvenile delinquency, truancy and estate-recovery matters. She previously was an assistant 6th District Public Defender and CHIPS parent attorney for St. Louis County. She has an extensive background in restorative justice and treatment courts.

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  Shawn Pearson, an attorney who represents parents in child protection matters in northern Minnesota. He is trained as a mediator and handles a variety of employment discrimination matters in state and federal courts. Previously, he practiced at Mansfield, Tanick & Cohen and Barnes & Thornburg, as in-house counsel for General Mills and as assistant general counsel at Essentia Health.

Hibbing post

Finalists for the Hibbing job are:

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  Hannah Forti, an attorney at the Prebich Law Office in Hibbing and at the 6th District Public Defender’s Office. She represents clients in family law, criminal law, real estate, estate planning and civil litigation, and also serves as a qualified neutral and mediator. She serves on the Northern St. Louis County Mental Health Court and the Iron Range Domestic Violence Committee.

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  Bhupesh Pattni, an attorney at Trenti Law Firm and the 6th District Public Defender’s Office. He represents clients in civil litigation, family law, probate, real estate and felony offense matters. He also is a team member on the Iron Range Mental Health Treatment Court and has performed juvenile justice work, representing children in the foster care system and in delinquency and truancy proceedings.

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  Jaclyn Simon, managing Partner at Sellman, Borland & Simon, is an assistant 6th District Public Defender and a qualified early neutral evaluator and mediator. She handles criminal defense, family law, mediation, municipal law, real estate, probate and civil litigation. Previously, she was a CHIPS parent attorney for Northern St. Louis County and an associate attorney with both Sellman Law Office and the Law Office of James Perunovich.

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