IS US

MICHELLE RAE PINZON ’04

Associate General Counsel Northwell Health

Healthcare is an expansive industry that Michelle Rae Pinzon knows very well. She served as in-house counsel in two different healthcare-related settings before taking on her current role as Associate General Counsel at Northwell Health, New York State’s largest healthcare provider and private employer.

“I offer legal counsel on a range of health law issues with a primary focus on pharmaceutical contracts and pharmacy programs,” Pinzon says. “I love everyone I work with, as well as the legal gymnastics I perform on a daily basis. It’s a great mental workout.” She has that same high praise for St. John’s Law, where, she says, the people made all the difference.

“I came from a dance and an artistic background, so being in law school was quite different from that,” Pinzon explains. “In addition to giving me career guidance, the faculty was invaluable in teaching me the importance of excellent legal writing. On the first day of orientation, a professor asked me how much experience I had with writing. I proudly exclaimed, ‘Oh a lot! I’m a poet!’ She smiled and said I should feel free to visit the Writing Center—which I did, and it truly helped. I was also lucky to have Professor Ruescher my first year. He made legal writing fun to learn, and he pointed out issues without making you feel inadequate.”

Pinzon keeps Professor Reuscher’s light-hearted approach to skill building in mind when teaching her own students as an adjunct professor at CUNY School of Law. Outside the classroom, and beyond the Northwell work day, she enjoys spending time with her family and practicing Capoeira, a martial art developed over 400 years ago by enslaved Africans in Brazil. “It’s an amalgamation of martial arts, dance, music, and acrobatics,” Pinzon explains. “The art form is a great release for me when dealing with daily stresses.”

As Pinzon engages and enjoys life across diverse dimensions, she has wisdom to share with those just starting their journeys in the law. “Soak in everything you’re doing,” she says, adding, “Read every case two or three times, because each time you read, you’ll learn something different. It’s not a chore. It’s a blessing. Learning about the law and becoming an attorney is a true privilege.”

TIM POYDENIS ’11 Partner and Co-Head, Emerging Companies and Venture Capital Practice Holland & Knight

By his own admission, Tim Poydenis is a “wildly addicted” ultramarathon runner. Last summer, he and his fiancée, Catherine, ran the Denali 135, a race covering approximately 131 miles of Alaska’s 135-mile Denali Highway. The two have a few other “ultras” calendared for 2023. “There’s something pretty awesome about going for a long run in the mountains and not having cell phone service,” Poydenis says jokingly.

Given that his downtime consists of epic feats of athleticism and endurance, it’s no wonder that Poydenis has accomplished so much in his 12-year career as a trusted advisor to companies in the technology industry. Today, from his longtime base in Southern California, he is a partner at Holland & Knight and co-head of the firm’s Emerging Companies and Venture Capital Practice.

“I act as outside general counsel and business advisor to a ton of ‘tech’ clients and investors,” Poydenis explains. “Any time a company thinks they need legal help, they reach out to me. Even if their question or issue isn’t in my substantive wheelhouse, I play quarterback for the client and route the matter to one of my many talented colleagues. The coolest feeling is helping a client form a company in year one, attending the company’s first board meeting, and then, years later, sitting in a board room with that same client as they approve the sale of the company.”

Poydenis also works with firm leadership to help grow and scale the practice and group, an entrepreneurial role he finds exciting. “Beyond that, I love working with good people,” he says. “It makes the job so much more enjoyable when you not only get to work with clients that are building, or investing in, awesome tech companies, but also when they’re just genuinely nice people.”

While serving his clients and law firm, Poydenis draws on practical skills he honed in 1L Legal Writing and as a member of St. John’s Moot Court Honor Society. Those skills set a foundation for a gratifying life in the law. “I’m proud of the work I do,” he says. “That’s the simplest, yet most powerful, piece of advice I could ever give to anyone starting out in the profession: Take pride in what you do.”