Overview
Employment Law Strategy
Susan partners with management, in-house counsel and human resources professionals to create practical and effective strategies for resolving employment issues, implementing best practices and minimizing risk. She offers guidance on workplace issues, including Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).
Media Law and Access
As a former journalist, Susan particularly enjoys representing communications and media clients. She has defended libel suits, obtained media access to court proceedings, and counseled publishers on open records requests. In addition, she regularly provides pre-publication advice. Susan currently serves as the Vice Chair of the American Bar Association’s Media, Privacy, and Advertising Law Committee, and she edits the Iowa state law section of the Media Law Resource Center’s 50-state survey, as well as the Eighth Circuit section of the Reporter’s Privilege and Open Courts Compendiums for the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.
Past Experience
Before joining Faegre Drinker, Susan worked as an attorney at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), a bureau within the U.S. Treasury Department, in Washington, D.C., where she advised national bank examiners on the supervision of problem institutions and closure of national banks.Services & Industries
Credentials
Bar Admissions
Iowa
Court Admissions
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Iowa
U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado
Clerkships
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, Hon. Michael J. Melloy, 2013-2014
Education
University of Iowa College of Law
J.D. with high distinction, Iowa Law Review (senior note and comment editor) (2013)
University of Iowa
B.A. in Journalism and Mass Communication, with high distinction (2008)
Experience
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August 2020 1 min readIowa Freedom of Information Council Obtains Police Video Footage Following Fatal 2018 ShootingLitigation
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May 2018 1 min readReporter and Newspaper Win Summary Judgment in Libel and False Light CaseLitigation
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2016 1 min readIngredient Solutions Company Fends off NLRB Injunction SuitFood & Agribusiness Food & Beverage Labor Management Relations Labor & Employment
Insights & Events
Latest
Insights
Other Perspectives
- Media Law Resource Center
Co-author of Iowa law outlines published annually on media privacy and related claims against the media - What Happens in Iowa Stays in Iowa: A Framework for Implementing Changes to State Open Records Laws
98 Iowa L. Rev. 1677, 2013
Leadership & Community
Civic Activities
- American Bar Association Tort Trial & Insurance Practice - Vice Chair of Media, Privacy, & Advertising Law Committee
- State of Iowa Capitol Planning Commission
Firm Leadership
- Faegre Baker Daniels Women’s Forum for Achievement – Leadership Council
Honors
- Best Lawyers® — "Ones to Watch," Communications Law; Litigation – Labor and Employment, 2021
- Faegre Baker Daniels – Pro Bono Honor Roll, 2017-18
- University of Iowa College of Law — National Association of Women Lawyers Award
- University of Iowa — Phi Beta Kappa and Kappa Tau Alpha
- Great Plains Super Lawyers — Rising Stars, Employment Litigation: Defense, 2018-19