Thomas S. Deans earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Northwestern University in 1968 and completed a Juris Doctorate degree, graduating Cum laude from the University of Minnesota in 1973. He then joined the Minnesota State Senate as Senate Counsel for five years and represented the Senate Education Committee and the Senate Education Finance Subcommittee. Soon after, he became an attorney at Peterson, Popovich, Knutson & Flynn in 1978. In 1986, he was promoted to vice president of the firm, then named Knutson, Flynn & Deans. He has served as President and managing partner of the firm since 2012.

           

       Mr. Deans has provided legal counsel to the people of Minnesota for more than 40 years. He is legal counsel to several Minnesota school districts and cities. His expertise in law, specifically pertaining to education and school districts, has been flawless. His focus is in the areas of municipal and school finance, reorganization, elections, legislation and school and municipal law.

           

       He served as legal counsel to the Minnesota Senate Education Committee, working on legal and policy research and statutory drafting. He was also a legislative liaison to the Minnesota Department of Education, post-secondary educational systems and various educational organizations. He acts as general counsel to the Minnesota School Boards Association and was largely involved in the legal aspect of the MSBA lobbying team from 1978 through 2011. Mr. Deans also represents the Minnesota Association of Governments Investing for Counties and the Minnesota School District Liquid Asset Fund Plus.

           

       Thomas S. Deans has also served as Bond Counsel for hundreds of Minnesota school district municipal bond and finance transactions. He has represented the bond issuer on hundreds of school district building bond and refunding bond issues and has worked extensively on bond and levy referendum elections, lease purchase financings, certificate of participation financings and tax and aid anticipation borrowings.

           

       Thomas S. Deans acted as primary draftsman of the omnibus education aid bills from 1974 to 1978 and has been involved with other major educational legislation. Mr. Deans has published several papers including: Actions of the Minnesota Legislature, Minnesota Public School District Election Manual, Minnesota Public School District Obligations, Peterson, Popovich, Knutson & Flynn, Minnesota School Boards Association Handbook for School Board Members, Chapters 13 and 14, MSBA Council of School Attorneys Newsletter, MSBA/MASA Policy Services Manual, "Standards and Procedures for Decisions on Education of Handicapped Children," The Hennepin Lawyer.

           

       Mr. Deans is a member of the American Bar Association, Minnesota Bar Association, the Dakota County Bar Association, the National School Boards Association Council of School Attorneys and the Minnesota School Boards Association Council of School Attorneys. He represented the Minnesota School Boards Association at the Minnesota Legislature for 33 years.  Throughout his career, Mr. Deans has been recognized for his professional acumen many times, including being recognized as a Super Lawyer in 2003 and earning the Associate Leaders Award from the Minnesota Association of School Business Officials in 2014.