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Piyumi M. Samaratunga was admitted to the Minnesota bar in 2002. She received a J.D. Degree from University of Hamline School of Law in 2001. Piyumi also received a J. D. with Honors from Sri Lanka Law College in 1991. Prior to immigrating to the United States, Piyumi served as an Associate Attorney at the law firm of Julius & Creasy in the area of international corporate and transactional law and also acted as a member on the legal team advising the Government of Sri Lanka on the privatization of state-owned industries in Sri Lanka.
She was a Cambridge Commonwealth Trust Scholar at the University of Cambridge in England, where she was awarded a Master of Law degree in 1995. Upon graduation from Cambridge University, she spent time with two law firms in London: Farrar & Co. and Stephenson Harwood, as well as with Baker & McKenzie in Washington DC before returning to Julius & Creasy Sri Lanka. She also worked as a Legal Consultant at Medtronic, Inc., in Fridley, Minnesota working in the Law Department's Corporate Compliance Division as well as Corporate Secretary's Office.
At Felhaber Larson Fenlon & Vogt, Piyumi works with large corporations seeking to attract highly educated foreign nationals. In this capacity, Piyumi ensures each matter is handled with the personal and professional integrity and legal expertise required to successfully relocate top talent to this country. Piyumi’s areas of focus include securing various nonimmigrant classifications including H-1B Professionals (including physicians), L-1A Executives and Managers, Exchange Program students, scholars, trainees, teachers, research assistants, medical graduates ( J-1 Waivers), Canadians and Mexicans entering under the North American Free Trade Agreement (TN), Religious Workers (R1), Entertainers (P), Individuals with extraordinary ability in the arts, sciences, business, athletics, movies, or television (O). Piyumi also focuses on various immigrant classifications including Labor Certification Applications, National Interest Waivers, Multinational Executives or Managers, Immediate Relative petitions and a range of other immigration categories including citizenship.
Education
- Juris Doctor, Hamline University School of Law, St. Paul, Minnesota,
August 2001 - Master of Law (LL. M), University of Cambridge, Cambridge, England, U.K.,
June 1995 - Attorney-at-Law (JD equivalent in Sri Lanka), Sri Lanka Law College, Colombo, Sri Lanka, First Class Honors, December 1991
Bar Admission
- State of Minnesota, 2002
- Sri Lanka, 1991
Awards
- Award Recipient, 25 Women to Watch in the Twin Cities, The Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, May 2012
Representative Experience
- Associate Attorney, Aronson & Associates PA, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA, June 2002 – Oct 2011
- Legal Consultant, Corporate Compliance Office, Medtronic, Inc., Fridley, Minnesota, USA, April 1997 - March 2000
- Associate Attorney, Julius & Creasy, Attorneys-at-Law, Solicitors & Notaries Public, Colombo, Sri Lanka,December 1991 - January 1996
- Member, corporate law division servicing international and local corporate clients
- Member, team of legal advisors to the Government of Sri Lanka, and the Public Enterprise Reform Commission, on privatization of state owned industries; included conducting negotiations and preparation of legal documentation
- Spent time at the following law firms as a visiting attorney assigned to partners and senior partners at each law firm:
- Baker & McKenzie, Washington DC, USA, 1995
- Farrar and Co., Holburn, London, UK, 1995
- Stephenson Harwood, St. Paul, London, UK, 1995
Community Involvement
- United Way Twin Cities
- Board Member
- Member, Governance Committee
-
YWCA, Minneapolis, MN
- Former Board Member
- Former Chair, Nominations Committee
- Former Vice Chair, Public Policy Committee
- Former Member, Strategic Planning Committee
Felhaber, Larson, Fenlon & Vogt, P.A.
220 South Sixth Street • Suite 2200
Minneapolis, MN 55402-4504
www.felhaber.com