Robins Kaplan Firm Members Recognized by Minnesota Lawyer

Robins Kaplan is pleased to announce the attorneys that have been named to the Minnesota Lawyer 2021 “Up & Coming Attorney” list, and paralegal Ann Potter and Legal Administrative Assistant Dawn Van Alstine have been recognized as “Unsung Legal Heroes.”

The prestigious “Up & Coming Attorney” award is given to a few select lawyers within their first 10 years of practice based on their excellent and distinguishing performance. According to Minnesota Lawyer, winners are chosen based on professional accomplishment, leadership service to the community and the profession, or achievement as in-house counsel. “Unsung Legal Heroes” is an award reserved for Minnesota’s most talented and dedicated legal support professionals. This award honors law firm employees who have constantly gone above and beyond the call of duty, often behind the scenes.

A registered patent attorney with experience counseling clients on cross-border intellectual property and technology disputes, Shui Li began her career as a chemist at the University of Minnesota where she researched anti-cancer agents based on nucleic acid analogs. Shui's practice primarily focuses on patent licensing and litigation, including Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) and International Trade Commission (ITC) proceedings. Shui serves on the Twin Cities Diversity in Practice Board, a group dedicated to leading the way in diversity and inclusion initiatives in the legal field. In the wake of the death of George Floyd, TCDIP has continued to work towards dismantling the systems that lead to racial oppression and build an anti-racist future. Shui was also recently appointed to the Law 360 Fintech Editorial Board. In this role, she uses her experience in law and technology to provide editorial direction on legal news and analysis on the technology of financial services including cryptocurrency such as bitcoin, financial blockchain products, and internet banking, among other technologies.

Jessica Gutierrez’s practice includes intellectual property and technology litigation. Over the past two years, she has focused primarily on complex copyright litigation. Jessica has represented clients in district court and before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. She also has experience preparing and prosecuting patent applications, conducting freedom to operate analyses, drafting non-infringement and invalidity opinions, and preparing licensing agreements. Jessica is also highly committed to assisting others in our community through pro bono legal work. She and another Robins Kaplan attorney recently secured an order for protection in a highly contentious pro bono case, and successfully defended the order after the opposing party appealed the case. She also gives back to the legal community through volunteer work, including as a coach for the International Patent Drafting Competition Team at St. Thomas School of Law.

Seth Zawila is an attorney in the firm’s Medical Malpractice and Personal Injury Group. Over the past three years, Seth has been involved in large settlements and a successful appeal among numerous other positive client outcomes. Seth’s largest client recovery to date was his representation of a woman who was injured during a surgical procedure, which resulted in an injury to her spinal cord with quadriplegia and severe ongoing pain. Seth and his colleagues secured a settlement on behalf of the woman for $2,500,000. Seth is also active in pro bono work, including helping achieve an order for protection for a woman who was abused by her husband. His work in the legal community includes serving on the Civil Litigation Committee of the Minnesota State Bar Association, membership in the Minnesota Association for Justice and the Hennepin County Bar Association, and serving as Vice President of the American Constitution Society Twin Cities’ Chapter.

For a complete list of Up & Coming Attorneys and Unsung Legal Heroes, click here.