Minnesota Litigator

News & Commentary

Do not consider the blog to be a substitute for obtaining legal advice from a qualified attorney licensed in your state.

Boylan Order on ESI and Native Production

Electronic discovery (“ESI”= electronically stored information) is a fact of life for almost all civil litigation but there are forces at work (technologically ignorant litigators and unbelievable potential expense for “full-scale” electronic discovery, for example) that limit the scope of such discovery in many cases.  That said, the technological sophistication of trial lawyers increases constantly […]

FBA Luncheon: Mag. Judge Janie Mayeron’s 20/20 Hindsight on Private Practice

The Federal Bar Association November lunch today featured the Honorable Janie S. Mayeron (U.S. Mag. Judge, D. Minn.): “What I Know Now That I Should Have Known (a/k/a Wished I Had Known) Then: The Judge’s Observations (with 20/20 Hindsight) of the Practicing Lawyer.” Judge Mayeron’s address covered five areas of litigation she deals with: Pretrial […]

Is there a right to cheap cheese?

Is there a federal right to cheap cheese? The Dairy Farmers of America might like that formulation of the legal issues in the case brought against it by Killer Whale Holdings, LLC and others. Surely the plaintiffs in this case of alleged market manipulation might want to characterize the case differently — perhaps, can the […]

Bike Battle: LeMond vs. Trek

Greg LeMond and LeMond Cycling Inc. have been battling Trek before Judge Richard Kyle, U.S. District Court, D. Minn., since April of 2008 and Trek now attempts to put an end to the case on summary judgment. LeMond appears to have made a substantial amount of money through his collaboration with Trek, but not what […]

Minn. Supreme Court on Settlement Dispute: A Rare Case of Near Certain Outcome

Farmers bought a “pneumatic grain-moving system” manufactured by Defendant Sukup and sold by Defendant dealer Superior. Apparently the system worked a little too well, going at such a high rate of speed that it damaged the grain, notwithstanding efforts by Superior to help Farmers get the system to work correctly. Farmers litigated and settled with […]

Grantor Grantee Index vs. Tract Index Disconnect — CAVEAT EMPTOR or CAVEAT RECORDER? MN Supreme Court Hears Argument, Nov. 10

In a sale of real property, a mortgage was properly recorded in the grantor-grantee index, but not properly recorded in the tract index in Scott County.  Purchaser hired an abstractor who looked in the tract index, but not the grantor-grantee index. Sellers did not tell purchaser about the Mid-Country mortgage to which the parcel was […]

A Thumb Drive and a Former Employee: The Latest Drama in the Hecker Case

Apparently Dennis Hecker’s former secretary decided to take some documents with her when she left her job working for him and, when served a subpoena by Chrysler Finance, who has a lawsuit against Hecker, she produced the computer files to Chrysler Finance. Now Hecker’s counsel not only wants the files returned, because they were allegedly […]

FRP’s HAMP Action Dismissed

This blog covered the action brought by Mark Ireland and the Foreclosure Relief Project in connection with the federal HAMP (Home Affordable Modification Program) here. News this week: the complaint was dismissed. (Twincities.com article here.) (Wall Street Journal Real Estate Blog here.) Denial of Foreclosure Relief Project Mot Prelim Inj

Fair Isaac Trial, rejected proffer, and when is the duty to preserve documents triggered?

If, hypothetically, your business were devising a business strategy that could, if successful, severely impact if not destroy another business, should you “reasonably foresee” litigation at the outset of implementing that business strategy? A person must preserve documents that the person knows or should know will be discoverable in “reasonably foreseeable” litigation.  In the hypothetical, […]

Judge Schiltz moves things along…

An earlier post highlighted U.S. District Court Judge Patrick J. Schiltz’s pragmatic approach to judging. In another example of what might be called “active judging,” Judge Schiltz issued an order today in a garden-variety Truth-in-Lending rescission case giving the parties clear direction on several varied but specific legal issues that the Court deemed important to […]