Minnesota Lawyer

Shelli Haag is a law office jill-of-all-trades.

As daughter of Vietnamese immigrants who came to the U.S. in the mid-1970s, Chau Espenson was a natural fit for her current role as program manager in strategic initiatives, for the U.S. Bank Law Division’s legal operations team, a newly developed position.

In her 36 years with Dorsey & Whitney, Nancy Fraser has taken on a number of challenging tasks to help maintain the successful, day-to-day operation of one of Minnesota’s largest law firms.

In 2008, Greene Espel’s accounting manager resigned suddenly and moved out of state. Laura Broomell, the firm’s COO, called Karen Deneen, a former colleague.

By her own admission, Marina Davis is a stickler for detail.

As Legal Clinic Program Coordinator at the University of St. Thomas School of Law, Kerry Conboy is among a team of three staff members responsible for providing administrative support to all 14 legal clinics at the school.

Legal assistant Tonya Cooper wears a number of hats at the St. Paul City Attorney’s Office.

We are pleased to announce the 2021 Up & Coming Attorneys and Unsung Legal Heroes. All of the Up & Coming Attorney honorees are in their first decade of practice. Unsung Legal Heroes come from several categories.

Their stories are truly inspirational. Even as they work in a profession that can demand the billable hours, and the often-grueling preparation of legal research, client communications and attention to detail, these professionals never lose track of motivation, passion and vision.

Since 2008, Jessica Detko has been one of Fish & Richardson’s most in-demand paralegals — especially now that she’s part of a four-person post-grant specialty team.