Karen worked with clients who had considerable and usually complicated finances. She is also a Rule 114 qualified mediator in Minnesota. With more than three decades of practice, Karen maintained an objective stance to even the most highly charged and emotional scenarios without losing focus on or compassion for her clients and their goals. Karen was known both inside and outside of the firm as a responsive problem-solver who sought to support cost-effective resolution, when possible, as opposed to costly litigation. However, if litigation was needed, Karen was also a skilled courtroom advocate for her clients.
Over the course of her career, Karen served as a trusted attorney representing family law clients with substantial and varied private business holdings in areas such as commercial real estate, technology, community banking, finance, manufacturing and a wide variety of personal service industries. She assisted public company business executives, including those from Fortune 100 companies, regarding executive compensation, vested and unvested stock options, restricted stock interests, deferred compensation, and a variety of other qualified and non-qualified employee benefit plans.
In addition, Karen assisted clients in navigating complicated tax issues and in developing strategies related to property division, child support and spousal maintenance in family law cases. She was skilled in marital and non-marital property claims in marriage dissolution matters and in prenuptial and postnuptial agreements, as well as in negotiating to settlement, and litigating when necessary, a substantial number of multimillion dollar and high-stakes marriage dissolution matters.
A fellow of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, Karen also serves as a moderated settlement conference referee and as a Hennepin County financial early neutral evaluator.
Professional and Community Involvement
Fellow, American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers
Member, American Bar Association
Member, Minnesota State Bar Association
Member, Hennepin County Bar Association
Honors
Chambers and Partners, High Net Worth Law, Family/Matrimonial, 2021
The Best Lawyers in America, 2012-2018, 2020, 2022-2023
Minnesota Super Lawyers, 2003-2022; Top 50 Women in Minnesota, 2013-2016; Top 100 Women in Minnesota, 2005-2009; and Top 100 Attorneys” in Minnesota, 2005, 2014 and 2015
Martindale-Hubbell, AV Preeminent; Bar Register of Preeminent Women Lawyers
Hennepin County Bar Association Family Law Section, 2018 Professionalism Award