Section: In Practice
43 results
In Practice Winter 2025
For Sean Grimsley, ’00, and Eric Olson, ’00, Co-founders of an Impact Litigation Firm, Their Partnership Began at Michigan Law
When Sean Grimsley, ’00, and Eric Olson, ’00, started their impact litigation firm in September 2023, they had the loftiest of goals: to chart a path that would allow them to make a difference in the world. Two years after founding Denver-based Olson Grimsley, they are realizing that goal by taking on several cases that support the public interest through plaintiff-side litigation.
In Practice Winter 2025
Her Own Experience with Infertility Motivates Alexis Cirel, ’03, to Advocate for Better Surrogacy Laws
Alexis Cirel, ’03, a partner at Schwartz Sladkus Reich Greenberg Atlas LLP in New York City, spent years advocating for new surrogacy laws in New York and Michigan. Her dedication to the issue is rooted in her own experience with infertility in the early 2010s.
In Practice
Growing a Global Game with D.C. United
Jason Levien, ’97, is co-chairman and CEO of D.C. United, a Major League Soccer team, which he and a group of investors acquired in 2012. He works alongside fellow Michigan Law alumnus Chris Burtley, ’15, who joined the team in 2023 and serves as his chief of staff and the team’s vice president of strategy.
In Practice
Aisha Elmquist, ’07: Everyone Has the Right to a Seat at the Table
Throughout history, many Americans with disabilities have been denied fundamental rights like attending school, holding jobs, and choosing homes. However, for as long as these inequalities have persisted, advocates for disability rights have fought back—including Aisha Elmquist, ’07, who leads a state government program in Minnesota that is tasked with helping those with disabilities live their best lives.
In Practice
In-House at Medline: Much More Than Counseling and Dispute Resolution
In 2021, after working as general counsel for medical supply firm Medline for 22 years, Alex Liberman, ’89, had covered a large spectrum of corporate legal work, from dispute resolution to compliance issues. But that year, he had the opportunity to participate in a leveraged buyout—a professional experience he describes as transformative.
In Practice
John Tepedino, ’04: Restitution for Victims of Madoff’s Fraud
When John Tepedino made a career transition into bankruptcy litigation, one of his clients had a connection to one of the largest financial frauds in history: Bernard Madoff’s investment firm.
In Practice Winter 2024-2025
Nina Ruvinsky, ’13: Historic Fraud in a Nascent Market
When fraud charges against Sam Bankman-Fried jolted the financial world in December 2022, it capped several frenetic weeks of work for Nina Ruvinsky, ’13. She and her colleagues at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, in parallel with counterparts at the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and the Securities Exchange Commission, had brought a complex, first-of-its-kind case, which involved more than $8 billion stolen from Bankman-Fried’s FTX cryptocurrency exchange.
In Practice Summer 2024
Faizah Malik, ’11: Fight for Housing Justice
Faizah Malik, ’11, managing attorney of housing justice at Public Counsel in Los Angeles, is working to address the housing and homelessness crisis in Los Angeles.
In Practice Summer 2024
Alan Alexander, ’11: Building a Lower-Carbon Energy Sector
Alan Alexander’s work on energy transition projects—including those focused on producing more-sustainable fuel for airplanes—involves collaborating with investors and clients in the energy sector to upgrade existing plants and invest in the research and development of renewable fuels and other low-carbon energy sources.
In Practice
Kristin Johnson ’03: Protecting Consumers by Policing Crypto Markets
As one of five members of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, a sister agency to the Securities and Exchange Commission, Kristin Johnson and her colleagues are charged with regulating US derivatives markets. As such, they oversee the creation and enforcement of rules to prevent fraud and manipulation in the markets they supervise—including crypto.