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Mary
Vasaly Becomes 90th President of the Hennepin County Bar Association
Minneapolis (06-29-08):
--
Mary Vasaly
becomes the 90th president of the Hennepin
County Bar Association (HCBA) July 1. Vasaly is a
partner with Maslon Edelman Borman and Brand where her
practice focuses on appeals and civil trials, including
probate and trust litigation and non-compete
agreements. She is a fellow of the American Academy of
Appellate Lawyers and has appeared in cases before the
Minnesota Court of Appeals, Minnesota Supreme Court,
Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the United States
Supreme Court.
A Minneapolis native, Vasaly
completed both her undergraduate and law school years at
the University of Minnesota. Following graduation, she
immediately began employment with the Maslon law firm,
where she has practiced for twenty-four years.
Vasaly has an extensive
record of service in the legal community in addition to
her four-year track to the HCBA presidency, and she
remains active in the Hennepin County, Minnesota State,
and American Bar Associations, as well as Minnesota
Women Lawyers, where she was president during 2006-07.
She has been named a fellow of the American Bar Foundation,
an honor limited to one-third
of one percent of lawyers licensed to practice in each
jurisdiction, and she received the Minnesota State Bar
Association’s President’s Award in 2006. She was named
an “Attorney of the Year” by Minnesota Lawyer in
2003. She has served as an adjunct
faculty member at the University of St. Thomas and
University of Minnesota law schools. In addition, she
gives of her time for pro bono service through the HCBA,
Volunteer Lawyers Network, and the Children’s Law
Center, for which she was awarded the Ramsey County Bar
Association pro bono award in 2005. In addition to her
activities in the legal community, Vasaly has served as
a member of the City of Eden Prairie’s Board of
Adjustments and Appeals and currently sits on the City
of Edina’s Zoning Board.
Vasaly and her husband,
Mike, have three adult children. In her personal time,
she enjoys ballet dancing, yoga, tennis, and travel.
Vasaly has identified major
challenges facing the legal profession and the
community, such as inadequate funding of the judicial
system and the public defenders’ office, and the
difficulty of preserving fair and impartial courts at a
time when judicial elections are becoming increasingly
negative, partisan, and expensive. She believes that
lawyers will work together to solve these problems,
because public service is ultimately immensely
satisfying and part of a long tradition of lawyers
serving the community. Vasaly notes: “I think the
greatest current challenge for any bar organization
comes from the changing nature of the practice of law
and its effect on lawyers’ ability to volunteer to serve
organizations and individuals in need. However, once a
person does volunteer, he or she tends to become
‘hooked’ on the experience because of the many rewards
that come from public service.”
Vasaly’s broad experience
with and passion for the profession predict a busy and
productive year for the association and its 8,000
members.
Also serving on the
2008-2009 Executive Committee of the Hennepin County Bar
Association are:
Christopher Morris,
President-elect, Bassford Remele
Courtney Ward-Reichard, Treasurer,
Halleland
Lewis Nilan & Johnson
Jewelie
Grape, Secretary, ELCA Board
of Pensions
Sonia Miller-Van
Oort, Past
President, Flynn, Gaskins &
Bennett
Sarah
Dunn, New Lawyers
Section Chair, Robert Half Legal
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hcba:ceh:080625 |
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