Swanson named a top 10 lawyer

Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson has been named one of America’s top 10 lawyers for 2009 by Lawyers USA, a Dolan Media company.

Swanson, who shared the honor with (among others) U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, was praised for “leveling the playing field for consumers in 2009. The publication cited Swanson’s lawsuit against the National Arbitration Forum, the country’s largest arbitrator of consumer credit disputes, noting that she “toppled the dominant player in debt arbitration in the country and changed the face of consumer credit card arbitration overnight.”

“Consumer attorneys hailed Swanson’s work as the finest piece of lawyering in consumer practice in years,” Lawyers USA said.

Three people have been selected as finalists for a Minnesota Sixth Judicial District trial court bench vacancy in Duluth.

The finalists, recommended by the Commission on Judicial Selection and accepted by Gov. Tim Pawlenty, are Gary W. Bjorklund and Dale O. Harris, both assistant St. Louis County attorneys, and Michael W. Lien, a solo-practice attorney in Duluth.

The commission received seven applications for the vacancy, which occurred with the retirement of District Court Judge Gerald C. Martin in October.

William R. Pederson has been reappointed to the Minnesota Workers Compensation Court of Appeals by Gov. Tim Pawlenty.

Pederson, of Minneapolis, has been a judge on the court since 1998. He was a co-founder, shareholder and managing partner with the Pustorino, Pederson, Tilton and Parrington law firm in Minneapolis and previously worked for other local law firms.

The court consists of five judges, all appointed by the governor. Judges serve six-year terms and earn $127,213 a year.

Five newly elected members of the Prairie Island Indian Community Tribal Council have been sworn into office.

The new members are Victoria Winfrey, president; Allan Childs II, vice president; Edward Buck, secretary; Johnny Johnson, treasurer; and Ronald Johnson, assistant secretary-treasurer.

The tribal council is the governing body of the Prairie Island Indian Community, which has more than 800 members. The new officers were elected in November to two-year terms.

Jon C. Stone has been appointed to the Minnesota Board of Barber Examiners by Gov. Tim Pawlenty.

Stone, of Detroit Lakes, has been a self-employed barber in Detroit Lakes since 1997. He is also an emergency medical technician for St. Mary’s Emergency Medical Services and a deputy sheriff with the Becker County Sheriff’s Auxiliary.

Stone was appointed to the four-member board as a master barber member.

The city of St. Paul has created a police chief examining committee as the first step in hiring a replacement for retiring Chief John Harrington.

The process of hiring a new chief, who will serve a six-year term, is outlined in the St. Paul city charter, which calls for the City Council to appoint a committee.

Co-chairs of the 22-member committee will be St. Paul City Attorney John Choi and Denise Harris, executive director of North Minneapolis Meals on Wheels.

Committee meetings will begin in February after required public readings at City Council meetings, a public hearing and a six-week recruitment period for candidates. The committee will hold two community meetings in late February to solicit input from residents on what they want in a police chief.

Semifinalist interviews will be held in March and April, and the committee will recommend five finalists to Mayor Chris Coleman, who plans to nominate the next chief in late May. Harrington’s term ends on June 30.

Mike Landy has been reappointed to the Metropolitan Airports Commission (MAC) by Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty.

Landy, of St. Cloud, is CEO of Landy Properties of St. Cloud, CEO of Cake Candy and Wedding Supply Co. Inc. of Waite Park and a talk show co-host in St. Cloud.

He has been a member of MAC since 2002 and is chair of is management and operations committee. He was reappointed as a member representing key airport systems outside the Twin Cities.

The commission is made up of 15 members, including 13 appointed by the governor.

Betsy L. Wergin has been reappointed to the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (PUC) by Gov. Tim Pawlenty.

Wergin, of Princeton, has been on the PUC since August 2008. She previously owned and operated a variety of small businesses and held finance and accounting positions for a number of companies, and served in the Minnesota Senate from 2003 until 2008.

The PUC is made up of five commissioners, each of whom earn $88,448 a year.

Cynthia Bauerly, a native of St. Cloud, has been elected vice chair of the Federal Election Commission. Bauerly was originally appointed to the regulatory agency by President George W. Bush in May 2008.

She is a graduate of Concordia College in Moorhead and previously worked for the Minneapolis law firm of Fredrickson and Byron. Bauerly also served as policy director for U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar’s (D-Minn.) successful 2006 campaign.

Her Capitol Hill resume includes a stint as legislative director for Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y.