Introduction

Melodie is Chair of Fredrikson & Byron’s Corporate and Securities Department. She has almost 20 years of experience in many areas of corporate representation including securities regulation, corporate governance, general corporate and board counseling, investment company and adviser regulation, venture capital and private equity matters, and mergers and acquisitions. Her work often involves public and private financings of equity and debt, general corporate and business planning, board of director consulting, securities and investment regulatory issues, and contract drafting. Melodie advises Fortune 500, mid-cap, small-cap and start-up companies in a broad range of industries as well as underwriters, placement agents, venture and private equity firms and broker-dealers. She is also active in the management at Fredrikson, having served on many firm committees, including her current service as a member of the elected Compensation Committee.

Education

• University of Michigan Law School, J.D., 1990
• University of North Dakota, B.B.A., Management/Accounting, 1987, magna cum laude

Bar Admissions

• Minnesota, 1990
• U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota, 1991

Practice Areas

• Securities, Chair
• Corporate Governance & Investigations, Co-Chair
• Corporate
• Emerging Business
• Private Equity & Venture Capital
• Mergers & Acquisitions
• Investment Management
• Commercial Law

Representative Experience

General Corporate, Securities Compliance and Corporate Governance

• Medtronic, Inc.
• Techne Corporation
• Titan Machinery, Inc.
• Art’s Way
• MakeMusic, Inc.
• Bell Microproducts, Inc.

Transactions

• Titan Machinery in $79 million follow-on offering
• Medtronic in registered offering of $3 billion in senior notes
• Titan Machinery in $96 million follow-on offering
• Medtronic in registered offering of $1.25 billion in senior notes
• Titan Machinery in $58 million initial public offering
• Bell Microproducts in $110 million convertible subordinated notes offering
• Medtronic in $1.9 billion contingent convertible debentures exchange offer
• Bell Microproducts in $110 million convertible subordinated notes exchange offer
• Zomax Incorporated in the sale of the company
• Techne Corporation in its acquisitions
• Techne Corporation in its strategic investments

Selected Publications & Presentations

• Author of a chapter for the Inside the Mind series on the Art and Science of Securities Law
• Chair of and presenter in many local CLE programs regarding securities and corporate governance matters
• Participant in 2010 IPO Boot Camp sponsored by KPMG and NYSE

Professional Activities

• American Bar Association
• Minnesota State Bar Association
• Hennepin County Bar Association
• Public Member of Minnesota State Board of Accountancy

Honors & Distinctions

• Received one of Finance & Commerce 2006 Top Women in Finance awards
• Ranked in Chambers USA; America’s Leading Lawyers for Business
• Listed in the Best Lawyers in America for Securities Law, 2009 Edition