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Ms. Bowman formerly served four years as the Senior Director of Ethics and Professional Practice with the National Society of Professional Engineers. She is the principal of a woman-owned business in civil engineering, dispute resolution, and legal services. She is experienced in boundary law issues, engineering design and forensic analysis, and construction/project management. She is a registered professional engineer, a certified arbitrator, mediator, and Christian conciliator, and a Diplomate of Forensic Engineering. Mrs. Bowman wrote a column for Pennsylvania’s PE Reporter, “Risky Business,” for more than 20 years. Her book, Residential Construction and Remodeling in Pennsylvania: Working with Homeowners and Small Contactors, is going into its second edition. She is a frequent CPE lecturer (law and engineering) for a variety of providers. She received her B.S. degree in Civil Engineering from the University of North Dakota, her M.B.A. degree from Oklahoma University, her J.D. degree from Duquesne University, and she recently completed her certificate in Sustainability Policy from Penn State.

Mr. Devaney chartered and practices in the areas of general municipal law, eminent domain, land-use litigation, and environmental law. Prior to joining Kennedy & Graven in 2016, he volunteered with Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid and WATCH. Mr. Devaney received his B.A. in economics from Reed College. He graduated from the University of Minnesota Law School in 2014. While in law school, Mr. Devaney volunteered with the Asylum Project, helping immigrant women who are survivors of domestic abuse apply for U.S. citizenship. 

Mr. Helfrich has been principal land surveyor with Craig R. Knoche & Associates, P.C. and its successor Koru Group PLLC in the Chicago area for the last 30 years. Mr. Helfrich first picked up a plumb bob in 1971 for Webster & Associates. From tape-and-transit to GPS, mortgage surveys to shopping centers, he has his seal on billions of dollars of commercial, residential and institutional developments and transactions in 23 counties in Illinois together with consulting and managing projects in 15 other states. Mr. Helfrich has enjoyed working with countless prominent developers, attorneys and other professionals in the field and the office. His specialties include real estate law, boundaries and boundary law, easements, rights-of-way and other encumbrances and servitudes, statutory and common-law plats, ALTA surveys, topography, building and site layout, construction- and project-management as well as land development consulting. He has presented classes and co-written manuals with the Illinois Institute For Continuing Legal Education along with classes at the University of Illinois and HalfMoon Education. Mr. Helfrich is a member of the National Society of Professional Surveyors and the Illinois Professional Land Surveyors Association.

Ms. Schwarz works to protect Minnesota’s most vital natural lands. She resolves complex legal issues, reviews title and surveys, drafts legal documents, and collaborates with partners. Ms. Schwarz previously worked as an attorney at the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) where she worked on legal and legislative issues related to the land managed by the DNR. She also coordinated the DNR’s conservation easement stewardship and enforcement programs. Prior to joining the DNR, Ms. Schwarz worked as an attorney in Office of General Counsel at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

Mr. Severson is an MSBA Board Certified Specialist in Real Property Law. Fewer than 3% of all registered attorneys in Minnesota are certified specialists in their field. He focuses his practice in the areas of real estate, business, estate planning, and probate. Mr. Severson can draft the full array of business and commercial documents. He also provides effective litigation services with an aim toward solving the underlying problem. Mr. Severson has successfully tried complex commercial cases involving shareholder disputes and contractual disputes. He has also successfully tried many different types of real estate matters including, but not limited to, land use and zoning matters, easement issues, lake law, municipal law, quiet title, trespass, lot lines issues, water run-off issues, and general neighbor disputes. Mr. Severson utilizes a problem-solving approach in representing large corporations, non-profits, and individuals in business and real estate matters. He is a regular presenter for Minnesota CLE on real estate matters.  He has served on multiple boards for non-profits and governmental entities.

Ms. Walters-Hird drafts and reviews all components of its real estate transactions involved with the conservation of land and shoreline throughout the state. She was previously a litigator for the City of Chicago’s law department where she engaged in civil litigation over environmental matters, fraud, contract disputes, and public utility issues and prosecuted violations of the municipality’s environmental code. Ms. Walters-Hird also has private practice experience focusing on various areas of law including real estate, natural resources, and consumer protection. She earned a J.D. and a Master of Environmental Law and Policy from Vermont Law School and received a B.B.A. from the University of Minnesota-Duluth.

Mr. Weir leads Kennedy & Graven’s eminent domain practice group and practices primarily in the areas of eminent domain, construction, real estate, transportation, utilities, and environmental law. Prior to joining Kennedy & Graven, he worked as an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Washington. In this role, Mr. Weir represented the State Department of Transportation in condemnation cases, bridge strike and other affirmative actions brought on behalf of the state, and a variety of litigation related to public projects and land use.