Update/Correction (June 29, 2106): On further investigation, with the help of a loyal Minnesota Litigator reader, I note that Mr. Aase, sadly, appears to have died at the age of 40 back in April, 2015. So it appears that the conflict in the original post between Ms. Hedtke and her former firm was really between her and another lawyer, Mr. Bradley Kirscher who appears somehow to have been appointed as the “Special Administrator” for the Aase law firm — perhaps counsel for Mr. Aase’s heirs.
Update (June 28, 2106): Between the time of drafting of the post, below, and the time of posting yesterday, it seems like William J. Aase, the principal/owner/founder of the Aase Law Firm PLLC has died and notice to that effect is posted on the firm website. Should this change the analysis of the distribution of spoils as between “the acorn” and “the oak”?
Original post (June 27, 2016): It has been a little while since I have cynically noted that injured people are currency for personal injury law firms. They are assets. But another fight over ownership of personal injury “files,” meaning “lawsuits,” meaning “money,” has bubbled up from underground and the age-old strife persists.
As between the acorn (Aria Hedtke, in this case) and the oak (the Aase law firm, in this case) where should our sympathies lie? Until the facts are in we cannot take sides. We must withhold judgment. There are very sound reasons for permitting lawyers to leave law firms and to still be available to former clients of the previous firm. But an abandoned law firm may have bankrolled a client’s case, with out-of-pocket expenditures (aka blood) as well as sweat, tears of frustration, and toil. And the firm should be allowed to recoup that investment.