Lauranzano, Michael C.

Dawn Van Tassel is a trial lawyer in Maslon's Business Litigation and Labor & Employment Groups, serving clients involved in complex commercial and employment disputes. She represents clients ranging from individuals and small-business owners to global corporations throughout all stages of court proceedings, administrative actions, and privately arbitrated disputes. Her industry experience includes large-scale retailers, medical device, pharmaceuticals, wholesale distribution, manufacturing, and professional services firms.

Dawn's experience spans a wide breadth of litigation and employment matters, including trying cases to judges and juries in federal and state courts, defending employers against charges before the EEOC and state departments of human rights, successfully representing clients in participatory hearings before administrative bodies, trying cases in private arbitration proceedings, and appearing before the appellate courts in Minnesota and elsewhere. She also maintains a robust local-counsel practice, guiding out-of-state lawyers and clients through the intricacies of Minnesota's state and federal courts.

Dawn's passion is evidence; when she isn't busy putting her experience to work in the courtroom, she enjoys writing and lecturing on hot topics in evidence and civil litigation practice. She also served for many years as an adjunct professor at William Mitchell College of Law, coaching and lecturing on trial practice, legal research and writing, and appellate advocacy.

Dawn received her law degree from the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law (Boalt Hall). She earned her bachelor of arts, summa cum laude, from Augsburg College. Dawn is licensed to practice in the state and federal courts of Minnesota, the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Eighth and Eleventh Circuits, and the U.S. Supreme Court.