Career Planning Staff
Ramji Kaul, '05, leads the Office of Career Planning and counsels students and alumni on all aspects of the career planning process.
Ramji is a double wolverine, receiving his J.D., cum laude, in December 2004. After graduation, Ramji joined the Chicago Office of Dentons where he was in private practice for more than 10 years. As a partner in the litigation and disputes resolution group, he litigated cases in state and federal courts focusing on complex commercial litigation, catastrophe and major claims litigation, and class action defense. Ramji was the co-chair of his Chicago office summer associate program and participated several times as an interviewer in Michigan's August on-campus interview program.
Lara Finkbeiner, '13, manages career-related public interest programs and advises students preparing for careers in the public interest sector, including government.
Lara is a double wolverine, receiving her J.D., cum laude, in 2013. Prior to law school, she spend a year in Ecuador researching Colombian refugees as a Fulbright scholar, received her B.A. in History with Honors from the University of Michigan, and her M.Sc. in Forced Migration from the University of Oxford. After graduating law school, Lara became an Equal Justice Works Fellow at the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP), where she then became the Deputy Legal Director. While at IRAP, Lara successfully represented dozens of clients and provided training to hundreds of volunteer law students and pro bono attorneys on refugee and immigration law. Lara also worked as a Visiting Clinical Lecturer in Law at Yale Law School prior to returning to serve as the Public Interest Director. Lara's wife, Kylee Sunderlin, '13, is also a Michigan Law grad and was a Soros Justice Fellow and a senior staff attorney at Brooklyn Defender Services' Family Defense Practice. Lara and Kylee are the proud parents of a very smiley toddler and two highly anxious chihuahua/terrier mutts.
Melanie Macey, '09, is an attorney-counselor and focuses on advising students preparing for careers in government and public interest.
Melanie received her B.A. magna cum laude from Haverford College in 2002 and her J.D., cum laude, from University of Michigan in December 2008. Following law school, Melanie focused her career on direct services work and mediation in the Detroit metro area, most recently at the Counsel and Advocacy Law Line, which serves low-income clients from across Michigan. Prior to that, Melanie worked at the Detroit Center for Family Advocacy, where she did problem solving of legal and social work issues with families in Wayne County facing involvement with the foster care system. Melanie is passionate about public service and is excited to work with Michigan students and alumni exploring all the variety and inspiration that government and public interest jobs have to offer. Over the course of her legal career, Melanie has taken time off, worked flexible schedules, and even brought her baby to work and is happy to discuss work-life balance and family considerations. Melanie's husband Ned also a Michigan Law graduate, works in the Legal Department of the United Auto Workers. They live with their three children, one Goldendoodle, and one cat in Royal Oak, where Melanie also serves as an elected City Commissioner.
Anna Nicol is the coordinator for the Geneva Externship Program and advises students preparing for careers in public international law. In her capacity as the Geneva coordinator, Anna places Michigan Law students as externs at leading international, governmental, and non-governmental institutions in Geneva for an academic semester. Anna works remotely from her home in Switzerland.
Prior to joining the Law School, Anna served as the Director of Career Services at Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, D.C. Anna received her JD from Georgetown Law in 1998 and her BA from Boston University in 1992.
Robin Kaplan provides career counseling to alumni and manages the Michigan Law post-graduate fellowship program. Prior to her current role, Robin also served as the Government Advisor, Judicial Clerkship Advisor, and as a private sector counselor.
Prior to joining the Law School, Robin lived in Chicago, where she was the legal compliance officer for a network of nonprofit environmental and consumer organizations, and a staff attorney for an international labor union, where she represented workers in arbitration and mediation settings, and advised the union on policy issues, regulatory matters, and contract negotiations. She also was a legal extern at the MacArthur Justice Center, working on habeas petitions for indigent defendants in capital cases. Before going to law school, Robin was a program officer at a foundation specializing in international and domestic human rights and civil liberties issues and before that as a development staffer for several Chicago area nonprofits. Robin received her JD from DePaul College of Law while working full time at the J. Roderick MacArthur Foundation, and her BA cum laude from Macalester College. She lives in Ann Arbor with her husband and very large golden doodle, and spends her free time texting her (somewhat) grown daughters, reading novels, and getting outside for biking, hiking or skiing (weather permitting).
Greta Trakul is an attorney-counselor and provides career counseling to students and alumni on post-graduate clerkship opportunities.
Greta received her law degree from the University of Minnesota Law School,
cum laude, and her B.A. degree with honors in political theory and constitutional democracy from Michigan State University—James Madison College. After law school, Greta spent two years practicing commercial litigation and bankruptcy/restructuring with Bryan Cave LLP in Phoenix, Arizona. She relocated back to Michigan, where she spent three years in the litigation and eminent domain practice groups at Clark Hill PLC. She then clerked for former Michigan Supreme Court Justice Maura Corrigan. Prior to joining the Law School, Greta also served as the Director of Career Services and Outreach at the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law.
Pyper Alpern, '03, counsels students on all aspects of career planning with a particular focus on the private sector.
Pyper is a double wolverine, receiving her J.D. in December 2002 after receiving a B.A. in Psychology, also from the University of Michigan. During law school, she worked as a law clerk in the University of Michigan's Office of the General Counsel. After graduation, Pyper practiced law in the litigation group at a large Detroit firm and for a small Ann Arbor labor and employment law firm, and managed real estate and labor and employment affairs in-house for a property-management company. Prior to joining the Office of Career Planning at the Law School, Pyper worked in career services for six years at the University of Michigan's Stephen M. Ross School of Business.
Emily Bretz, '11, counsels students on all aspects of career planning including government and private sector careers.
Emily is a double wolverine, receiving her J.D., cum laude, in 2011. Prior to law school, Emily worked at the Manhattan District Attorney's Office. While at Michigan Law, Emily interned at the Washtenaw County Public Defender's Office and spent her 1L summer in Tanzania working for the judicial branch of the UN's International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (which heard cases against those accused of perpetrating the Rwandan genocide and other international war crimes). She spent her 2L summer at Morrison & Foerster in New York, and also worked there following graduation. Emily then clerked for Magistrate Judge James Cott, in the Southern District of New York, and also for Judge Rosemary Collyer, in the D.C. District Court. Immediately prior to returning to the Law School, Emily served for five years in the Civil Division of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, where she handled both affirmative and defensive cases in the areas of civil rights, frauds, environmental matters, torts, bankruptcy, tax, FOIA, employment law, constitutional law, and administrative law. During her time in the SDNY, Emily was involved in attorney hiring and coordinated the summer internship program.
Anne Linder, '06, counsels students on all aspects of career planning with a particular focus on the private sector.
Anne is a proud alum of Michigan Law, receiving her J.D. in December 2005. After graduation, Anne returned home to Washington, D.C. to begin her legal career as an associate at Chadbourne & Parke (now known as Norton Rose Fulbright) where she practiced reinsurance litigation and arbitration. After returning to Michigan, Anne litigated at smaller regional firms, worked as a solo practitioner, and served on the Representative Assembly for the State Bar of Michigan. Most recently, Anne served as the Assistant General Counsel for Orlans PC, one of the largest women-owned law firms in the country.
Shannon Delecki manages numerous OCP events and programs including our on-campus interview programs, employer visits, career fairs, and mentoring programs. Prior to joining the Law School, she served as the Director of Career Services, Director of Student Services and most recently, Dean of Student Life at the Art Institute of Michigan. Shannon holds a B.A.A. in Integrative Public Relations from Central Michigan University.
Tammy Sindlinger joined the office in June 1993. She received her BS in Psychology from Eastern Michigan University in August 1991. Tammy manages the Judicial database and serves as the OSCAR administrator for the Law School, oversees the Career Planning Resource Library, and develops and maintains the Careers website.
Katie Ulivi joined the office in November 2006. She received her BA in General Management from Michigan State University in 2001. Katie facilitates career planning events and handles administrative tasks for OCP.
Karen Parker joined the office in October 2019. She is working on completing her degree in law office administration with a BS in Paralegal Studies. Karen manages the job posting database, in addition to providing administrative support to the OCP staff.