2026 Minnesota City Attorneys Annual Conference Presenter Bios

Jason Kuboushek

Jason Kuboushek has been with Iverson Reuvers since its inception in 2001. His practice involves helping clients throughout Minnesota. This includes cities, counties, townships, individuals and businesses. He has handled numerous trials and appeals involving individual owners, contractors, subcontractors, and design professionals. 

Melissa Manderschied

Melissa Manderschied has been the city attorney for Bloomington since 2016. Prior to serving Bloomington, she was a shareholder at Kennedy & Graven. Manderschied worked for the Metropolitan Council and was an AmeriCorps VISTA before attending law school. 

Ruben Dominguez-Matheis

Ruben Dominguez-Matheis is the outreach coordinator with the Minnesota Office of Cannabis Management (OCM). He joined OCM in October 2024 after previously working at an engineering firm as a communications coordinator.  

Ryan Russell

Ryan Russell is the legislative coordinator with the Minnesota Office of Cannabis Management (OCM). He has been at OCM since November 2024 after working at the Minnesota Senate for almost two years. 

Amanda Karras

Amanda Karras is the executive director and general counsel of the International Municipal Lawyers Association (IMLA). In this capacity, Karras oversees IMLA’s governance and staff. Karras also oversees IMLA’s legal advocacy efforts with the U.S. Supreme Court, Circuit Courts, and state appellate courts by reviewing and evaluating requests for IMLA’s amicus assistance, advising the legal advocacy committee regarding potential amicus cases and their significance to local government, coordinating case strategies with IMLA’s amicus authors, and drafting and revising amicus briefs. Karras has authored numerous amicus briefs including at the Supreme Court merits and petition stage as well as in federal circuit courts. Additionally, Karras leads a number of working groups for IMLA on emerging issues. Karras has also co-taught a course on local government law at George Washington University Law School. Prior to joining IMLA, Karras worked in private practice in Boston, focusing on employment law and litigation, first with Ropes & Gray, LLP and later with Hirsch Roberts Weinstein LLP. Karras received a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Colby College and earned her Juris Doctor from Suffolk University Law School, graduating magna cum laude. Karras served as an articles editor for the Suffolk University Law School Law Review. Karras is admitted to practice in Massachusetts, the U.S. District Court for Massachusetts, and the U.S. Supreme Court.

Ryan Zipf

Ryan Zipf joined the League of Minnesota Cities Insurance Trust (LMCIT) in 2005 and serves as the managing counsel for LMCIT’s in-house litigation department. He represents municipalities in civil litigation with a focus on defending police liability and personal injury claims. Zipf received a law degree from the University of Minnesota Law School, a Master of Strategic Studies from the United States Army War College, and an undergraduate degree from Saint John’s University (MN). He also served in the Army and Army Reserves for more than 30 years before retiring in 2020.   

Farah Famouri

Farah Famouri is an attorney with Minneapolis litigation boutique Greene Espel PLLP. Famouri is a dedicated advocate for clients in both the public and private sectors, guiding them through every stage of litigation. Famouri brings valuable expertise in the state court system, having clerked for four judges on the Minnesota Court of Appeals. She draws on this experience and her exceptional research and analytical skills to defend clients’ interests and advance their strategic objectives. Famouri earned her J.D. from the University of Wisconsin Law School, where she received the Mary Kelly Quakenbush Memorial Award for the Most Outstanding Student Note for her writing on free speech in the U.S. and U.K.

Julie Liew

With more than 20 years of communications experience, Julie Liew serves as the communications & events director for the League of Minnesota Cities, where she leads the organization’s communications and events strategies — including social media, website management, marketing, and media relations — and supports cities across Minnesota with their own communications efforts.

Before joining the League, Liew was the communications director for the Coalition of Greater Minnesota Cities and previously worked in New York City as an editor for American Lawyer Media. Earlier in her career, she worked as a reporter for the Bemidji Pioneer and the Mesabi Daily News. She holds a bachelor’s degree in communications from Bemidji State University.

Liew lives in St. Paul with her husband and four cats, all of whom excel at crisis communications when the food bowl is empty.

Jana O’Leary Sullivan

For over 20 years, Jana O’Leary Sullivan has been representing cities and other public entities in employment matters. Sullivan currently works at Kennedy & Graven advising clients on employment and labor matters, providing engaging workplace trainings including on the First Amendment and social media, conducting workplace investigations, and representing clients in arbitration and other proceedings. Before that, Sullivan worked at the League of Minnesota Cities, representing cities in employment litigation as well as advising and conducting training.   

Kevin Toskey

Kevin Toskey is an assistant city attorney for the City of Bloomington, working with the City’s Community Development and Parks and Recreation departments. He works mainly in the areas of land use, code enforcement, contracting, and parks/natural resources issues. He joined the City of Bloomington in 2022 after working as a research attorney for the League of Minnesota Cities. He has helped advise parks and recreation staff during the preconstruction and construction phases of Bloomington’s first Construction Manager at Risk Project, an approximately $100 million Community Health and Wellness Center, funded by a local option sales tax.

Michelle Weinberg

Michelle Weinberg is shareholder at Kennedy & Graven and primarily practices in the area of construction law and litigation. She represents and advises clients in matters concerning construction claims, design defects, real estate and land use, environmental law, and other complex legal and regulatory issues. She has experience in all phases of the litigation process in both state and federal courts. 

Joseph L. Sathe

Joe Sathe is an attorney at Kennedy & Graven practicing primarily in the area of general municipal law. In recent years, Sathe has worked with many of the firm’s clients on cannabis and hemp regulation implementation. Prior to joining Kennedy & Graven in 2019, Sathe worked for the State of Minnesota in the Office of the Governor and then at a state agency. While attending Mitchell Hamline School of Law, Sathe served as the first Thomas L. Grundhoefer Local Government Extern, working with the League of Minnesota Cities, the City of Minnetonka, and Kennedy & Graven. 

Scott College

Adam Martin

Wade Erickson

Brian Rubenstein

Matthew Foli

Matthew Foli is an expert title examiner and the senior examiner and legal counsel for Guaranty Commercial Title. Before joining Guaranty Title, he was a deputy examiner of titles at Hennepin County and, prior to that, an attorney at Campbell Knutson. 

Corrine Heine

Corrine Heine is an attorney at Campbell Knutson and previously served as the city attorney for Minnetonka. She has represented cities for several decades and is a frequent presenter on real estate, open meeting law and data practices topics. 

Charles Ramstad

Charlie Ramstad serves as city attorney for Detroit Lakes, Callaway, Sebeka, Park Rapids, Walker and Barnesville, and is a past president of Minnesota City Attorneys. The law firm of which he is a principal represents 11 municipalities located in Becker, Clay, Otter Tail, Hubbard, Cass, and Wadena counties. He is a real property law specialist certified by the Minnesota State Bar Association.  In addition to 36 years of municipal law, Ramstad practices in the areas of real estate, real estate litigation, and probate law. In his spare time, he enjoys Nordic and alpine skiing, cycling, and camping.

Dylan Ramstad Skoyles

Dylan Ramstad Skoyles graduated from the University of North Dakota in 2016. After graduation, Ramstad Skoyles worked as the planning and zoning supervisor for Becker County where he gained experience administering county planning, zoning, and subdivision. In 2022, Ramstad Skoyles graduated from the University of South Dakota Knutson School of Law. He works in Detroit Lakes at Ramstad, Skoyles, & Bakken, where his main areas of practice are real estate, planning and zoning, criminal law, municipal law, and probate and estate planning.

Dr. Faisal Kaleem

Dr. Faisal Kaleem is a distinguished professor in the department of computer science and cybersecurity at Metropolitan State University, where he leads a high-impact team of faculty, graduate students, and undergraduate researchers working on defense-focused cybersecurity initiatives. With more than 25 years of experience as an educator, researcher, and cybersecurity strategist, Dr. Kaleem brings deep expertise in technical leadership, curriculum development, and applied research. 

He holds a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Florida International University and is nationally recognized for his contributions to cybersecurity education and workforce development. Dr. Kaleem is the founder and executive director of MNCyber, a statewide initiative positioning Minnesota as a cybersecurity innovation hub. He also played a central role in launching the Metro State Applied Innovation Institute (MSAII) — a cross-sector platform that advances applied research and strategic partnerships with the U.S. Department of Defense and other federal stakeholders. 

Joe Van Thomme

Joe Van Thomme is a shareholder at Eckberg Lammers and a lead criminal prosecutor for our Municipal practice. He handles all aspects of misdemeanor prosecution—from charging through trial, sentencing, and probation violations. In addition to his legal practice, Van Thomme provides foundational training for law enforcement on report writing, courtroom testimony, and mock trials. He authored the Minnesota Firearms Prohibitions Guide and regularly presents on legal issues impacting public safety. He has represented municipalities in dozens of Extreme Risk Protection Order actions since 2024 and was a state editor for the Minnesota ERPO Law Implementation Guide, a publication by the Center for Gun Violence Solutions at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.  Known for his candid communication style and strategic legal approach, Van Thomme is skilled at navigating complex situations to achieve strong results for his municipal clients.

Michael R. Bradley

Michael R. Bradley is a partner of the municipal telecommunications law firm Bradley Werner, LLC. Mike has spent nearly his entire 30+ year career representing local governments on a wide variety of telecommunications and franchising issues. Throughout that time, he has had the privilege of representing many municipal clients continuously. Last fall, Bradley negotiated the first broadband franchise in the State of Minnesota. He has also litigated in support of municipal franchise rights before the FCC, state and federal courts. Bradley is one of a handful of attorneys in the country that has represented local government clients in the formal cable franchise renewal process. Bradley and his firm have represented municipal interests in FCC rulemaking and adjudicatory proceedings such as digital discrimination, broadband, cable franchising, rate regulation, and cable pricing disclosures. Bradley has advised, drafted, and testified on communications legislation in multiple jurisdictions, including the Minnesota Equal Access to Broadband Act in 2024-25. Bradley is a long-time officer, including past chair, of the Minnesota State Bar Association’s Communications Law Section. Early in his career, Bradley assisted the City of St. Paul in obtaining public funding for a new hockey arena and bringing the NHL back to the State of Hockey. Bradley is a graduate of Hamline University School of Law (J.D.) and the University of Minnesota (B.A.). He is admitted to practice before multiple state and federal courts, including the United States Supreme Court. Last year IMLA published his article, “This is the Way: Equal Access to Broadband Through Municipal Franchising,” in Municipal Lawyer.

Eric Kolbeck

Eric Kolbeck is an assistant attorney general and manager of litigation and support services & records division at the Office of the Minnesota General. He uses his specialized knowledge and experience to create technology-based solutions for complex problems. He helps develop case strategy related to the collection, review, and production of information. In the courtroom, he helps his colleagues communicate their theory of the case through exhibits and other visuals. Prior to the AGO, Kolbeck worked for a boutique digital forensics firm specializing in the investigation of trade secret theft and has served as both a testifying and consulting expert witness.

Anya Pavlov-Shapiro

Anya Pavlov-Shapiro is an assistant attorney general and data practices compliance official for the Office of the Minnesota Attorney General.  In this role, she processes data requests and other questions from the public and provides training and consultation for colleagues.  This is the continuation of a data-focused career that began before law school with medical research data management and has included managing document review projects at Robins Kaplan LLP and serving as a court operations analyst for the Minnesota Judicial Branch.  When not fielding questions regarding what, exactly, is public, Pavlov-Shapiro enjoys making the most of Minnesota’s parks.

Andrea Kingbird

Andrea Kingbird (Oglala Lakota) is an attorney currently serving as general counsel for the White Earth Nation in northwestern Minnesota.  The Nation is a tribal cannabis leader that developed, and is continuing to expand, a robust cannabis program.  Her professional experience also includes state criminal prosecution, Indian gaming, and domestic violence intervention and education.  Bar admissions include Minnesota, United States District Court – Minnesota, United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, and White Earth Nation Tribal Court.

Eric Taubel

Eric Taubel came to OCM with experience in legal work at two other state agencies and in private practice. Before joining the OCM team, he was general counsel for the Minnesota Department of Education, where he was responsible for building the agency’s Office of General Counsel from the ground up, and previously was an attorney in the Office of the General Counsel at the Minnesota Department of Commerce. Taubel worked in private practice in Minneapolis before joining the Department of Commerce. Prior to holding the role of director at OCM, he was the general counsel for OCM.