Minnesota Lawyer

As a native of tiny Elkton, S.D., Aaron Myers understands that the needs of small businesses are different from those of big corporations. He has developed his practice at Barnes & Thornburg to meet those needs, whether they involve intellectual property, copyright, patent or general litigation matters.

In 2006, Andrew Muller had a relatively rare experience: starting a new law firm in partnership with his father. Muller and his father, Noel Muller - a former Grey Plant Moody partner - formed Minneapolis-based Muller & Muller.

There are many avenues into the law, but Nathan Marcusen followed his nose. Marcusen grew up on a cattle ranch and small-grain farm in western North Dakota. He enjoyed farming but was sidelined early by seasonal allergies.

Adam Maier, an attorney practicing in Leonard, Street and Deinard's banking and financial services area, is in his comfort zone when he is under pressure and negotiating deals.

Returning to her hometown of Ely in northern Minnesota to practice law was never Kelly Klun's plan. Her father, Larry, had purchased a law practice there in 1979, and Klun grew up helping around the office. Her plan was to become a lawyer and practice in the Twin Cities.

If Mark Johnson's law practice has a certain philosophical tinge to it, it's no accident. A native of Alaska, Johnson moved to the lower 48 to attend college at Purdue University, where his ambition was to become a philosophy professor. After a stint of teaching as a graduate student, he decided to take a turn toward law school.

As an associate in the trial group at Dorsey & Whitney's Minneapolis office, Laura Hammargren gets to not only practice law but also indulge her first love: writing.

Andrea Gothing confesses she was "a bit of a geek growing up." But that fascination and proficiency with science and technology ultimately has served her, and especially her clients, well.

As a paralegal, Lara Glaesman assisted attorneys in both environmental and bankruptcy cases, and she definitely preferred the former because the latter "was just about dollars." She changed her mind later, however, while interning for bankruptcy Judge William Houston Brown in Memphis as a law student.

Just in case law school didn't work out, Britt Gilbertson majored in business as an undergraduate at Augsburg College.