Fredrikson & Byron attorney Lousene M. Hoppe was named a member of the 2019 class of Fellows, participating in a landmark program created by the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity (LCLD) to identify, train, and advance the next generation of leaders in the legal profession. Fredrikson attorney Gauri S. Samant was named a member of the 2019 class of Pathfinders, an LCLD program designed to train high-performing, early-career attorneys in critical career development strategies including leadership and the building of professional networks.
Hoppe is a white collar defense attorney who represents corporations and individuals accused of health care fraud, financial or tax crimes, and other criminal cases at both the state and federal levels. Her practice includes foreign corruption practices act investigations and due diligence, false claims act (FCA) litigation, investigations of alleged regulatory or licensing violations, attorney ethics consulting, and related commercial litigation matters.
Samant represents clients throughout all stages of federal, state and local tax disputes and litigation. Her practice focuses on resolving disputes and advising clients through tax controversies. Samant’s experience includes resolving and litigating sales and use tax disputes, Minnesota corporate income and franchise taxes, federal and international disputes, state individual income tax, and real and personal property taxes.
Founded in 2009, LCLD is a growing organization of more than 300 corporate chief legal officers and law firm managing partners who are personally committed to creating a more diverse and inclusive legal profession. The Fellows Program, which has trained more than a 1,600 mid-career attorneys since 2011, is one of LCLD’s most important initiatives. The Pathfinder Program is now in its fourth year as a full-scale program, having been piloted in 2015 among a select number of LCLD Member law firms and corporations. It is an initiative that has filled a gap in LCLD programming, targeting junior associates and the youngest members of corporate law departments. According to LCLD President Robert J. Grey, Jr., the LCLD Fellows Program offers participants “a year-long, in-depth program devoted to relationship-building, in-person training, peer-group projects, and extensive contact with LCLD’s top leadership and the best teachers in the business,” and the Pathfinders program provides members “intensive in-person training, online experiential learning, and opportunities to network with peers and esteemed LCLD Fellows in small group gatherings.” For more information, visit www.lcldnet.org.
Fredrikson & Byron is a 275-attorney law firm based in Minneapolis, with offices in Bismarck, Des Moines, Fargo, St. Paul, Saltillo, Mexico, and Shanghai, China. Fredrikson & Byron has a reputation as the firm “where law and business meet”. Our attorneys bring business acumen and entrepreneurial thinking to work with clients, and operate as business advisors and strategic partners, as well as legal counselors. More information about the firm is available at www.fredlaw.com. Follow us on LinkedIn and on Twitter @FredriksonLaw.