Stoel Rives Elects Six Attorneys to Partnership

Portland, Ore. – Stoel Rives LLP, an Am Law 200 firm, is pleased to announce the election of six attorneys to the firm’s partnership, effective Jan. 1, 2025. The members of the 2025 partner class are in five practice groups – Corporate, Energy, Environmental, Intellectual Property and Real Estate – and are located in three of the firm’s offices – Minneapolis, San Francisco, and Portland, Oregon.

“We are pleased to welcome these exceptional attorneys to Stoel’s partnership,” said Melissa Jones, firmwide managing partner. “Each new partner exemplifies our core firm values through demonstrated practice excellence, the highest professional standards and client service, leadership in the firm, the legal community and influential industry groups, and dedication to community service.”

The six new partners are highly experienced in agribusiness, real estate, manufacturing, natural resources, technology and transportation, and their work showcases the broad and deep bench strength of some of Stoel’s fastest growing practice groups.

The new partners are:

Zachary Davis (Portland, Ore.) – Zachary is a member of the Construction & Design section of the firm’s Real Estate practice group. He advises clients across a range of industries in the development and construction process, from negotiating complex design and construction agreements to resolving high-stakes disputes, including through arbitration and other alternative dispute resolution forums and in federal and state courts. Zachary publishes on current legal issues impacting construction and design and is a regulator contributor to the Stoel Rives Ahead of Schedule blog and other publications. He is a member of a practice group nationally ranked in Best Law Firms®, 2010–2023. He received his J.D., cum laude, from Villanova University School of Law, where he also served as Special Projects Editor for the Villanova Environmental Law Journal, and received his B.A. in Political Science from the University of California, Los Angeles.

Lilly McKenna (San Francisco) – Lilly is a regulatory attorney in Stoel’s Energy practice group, where she counsels clients on state energy policies and regulations. She regularly appears before the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), advocating for clients engaged in rate cases, power procurement proceedings, transportation electrification, distributed energy resource planning, and other policy proceedings, and has appeared pro hac vice before other state utility commissions across the country to advocate for clients in beneficial electrification cases. She has extensive experience guiding clients through complex regulations and navigating utility tariffs. Lilly is a frequent contributor to Stoel Rives’ weekly Energy Regulatory Alert, advising on regulatory developments from the CPUC and the California Energy Commission (CEC), and contributes to the firm’s Renewable + Law blog. She also participates in industry events, recently moderating the “Transportation Electrification” panel at the 2024 California Clean Energy Procurement Summit. Lilly serves on Stoel Rives’ Coaching & Mentoring Committee. She provides pro bono representation in partnership with Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights (LCCR) for clients seeking asylum, and she serves as Vice Chair of the San Anselmo Town Council’s Climate Action Commission. Lilly received her J.D. from the University of San Francisco School of Law, where she served on the editorial board of the USF Law Review, and received her B.A. in Political Science from Middlebury College.

Merissa Moeller (Portland, Ore.) – Merissa is a natural resources attorney in the firm’s Environmental group who specializes in water resources and rural land use law. In her water and natural resources practice, she provides strategic counsel, regulatory compliance, administrative and appellate litigation, and permitting services to clients in diverse industries and advises clients on issues related to water resource development, water rights, water quality, and compliance with fish and wildlife laws. In her land use practice, Merissa represents developers in negotiations and proceedings with local governments and at appellate court levels. She also advises renewable energy developers in the successful siting of projects on agricultural and forest land. Merissa was selected as one of “America’s Leading Lawyers for Business” (Oregon) by Chambers USA (Environment), Associates to Watch, 2024, and is listed among the Best Lawyers®: Ones to Watch in America (Environmental Law, Natural Resources Law), 2021–present. She received her J.D., cum laude, from Lewis & Clark Law School with a Certificate in Environmental and Natural Resources Law and served as Managing Editor of the school’s Environmental Law Review. She received her B.A., magna cum laude, from the University of Puget Sound with Honors in International Political Economy and is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society.

John Pavolotsky (San Francisco) – John is a member of the firm’s Intellectual Property practice group and co-leads the firm’s Privacy, Cyber, and AI practice. His practice encompasses a wide range of areas, including AI, cybersecurity, data privacy, security matters and complex technology transactions. He is a frequent contributor to the firm’s Global Privacy & Security Blog and is the immediate past chair of the California Lawyers Association’s IP Section. John has taught Comparative Privacy Law at the Santa Clara University School of Law and Technology Transactions Law at the U.C. Davis School of Law. He has also guest lectured on technology and privacy law topics at the University of California, Berkeley, Haas School of Business; the University of San Francisco School of Management; and Stanford University; and is a frequent speaker at IP and tech industry conferences and events. John received his B.S. in Animal Physiology & Neuroscience from the University of California, San Diego, his M.B.A., from the University of California, Berkeley, and his J.D. from the University of California, Davis.

Scott Rosenthal (Portland, Ore.) – Scott is a member of the firm’s Real Estate practice group. He represents developers, private equity firms, institutional investors, real estate management companies, and other property owners with the acquisition, disposition, financing, and leasing of apartment buildings, office and industrial buildings, healthcare facilities, and mixed-use properties. He also counsels clients on the development of affordable housing projects using Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, tax-exempt bond financing, state and local financing and equity structuring, and workforce housing initiatives. In addition, he represents a variety of tenants and landlords in office, retail, and industrial leasing transactions. Scott has also served as pro bono counsel representing nonprofits in real estate matters. He was a member of the Portland Metro Chamber’s Leadership Portland Class of 2024, and serves on the Chamber’s Government Affairs Committee. Scott is a board member of the Robison Jewish Home, a non-profit that owns and manages hundreds of rent-regulated apartments in downtown Portland.  He is also a longtime volunteer coach of Lincoln High School’s mock trial team. Scott has been recognized among Best Lawyers®: Ones to Watch in America (Real Estate Law), 2023-present. He received his B.S. from Cornell University, where he was on the Dean’s List, and his J.D., magna cum laude, Order of the Coif, from New York University School of Law.

Mary Sennes (Minneapolis) – Mary is a member of the firm’s Corporate practice group. She counsels clients across a variety of industries on mergers and acquisitions, project financings, commercial transactions, corporate reorganizations and joint ventures. Through her prior experience as senior in-house counsel at a Fortune 10 company, she benefits clients through her practical business advice and in-depth knowledge of day-to-day operational matters. Mary spends a significant portion of her practice counseling clients in the energy development arena, advising developers, owners and sponsors in the acquisition, sale and financing of solar, battery energy storage, wind and biofuels facilities throughout the United States. She also provides pro bono counsel and business advice through her involvement with local nonprofit LegalCORPS. She is a member of Stoel’s firmwide DE&I Committee and the Corporate Associates Training Committee. Mary received her B.A., cum laude, from the University of Notre Dame, and her J.D., magna cum laude, from Mitchell Hamline School of Law (formerly William Mitchell College of Law).