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.
On a personal note…
Minnesota Litigator is pleased to announce that Seth Leventhal, Minnesota Litigator’s publisher, editor, and author has moved back to downtown Minneapolis and is now in solo practice, specializing broadly in Minnesota commercial litigation in Minnesota state and federal courts. With fourteen years of experience in Twin Cities large firm civil litigation practice (click “ABOUT” for […]
GO VOTE!!! (But Tea Party “Paraphernalia” NOT OK for Polling Places)
U.S. District Court Judge Joan N. Ericksen (D. Minn.) has denied an emergency Tea Party motion to be allowed to wear Tea Party “paraphernalia” and “Election Integrity Watch” “Please I.D. Me” buttons at polling places — which would at least arguably be in violation of Minn. Stat. § 211B.11.
Caveat Vendor : A One Million Dollar Ooops
[UPDATE: Hearing of the Minnesota Supreme Court appeal is set for Wednesday, November 3. Barbara Jean D’Aquila will argue for the appellant. Kevin Decker and Jonathan Schmidt of Briggs & Morgan are identified as counsel for the respondent. The issues: On appeal to the supreme court, the following issues are presented: (1) what standard of review […]
Hennepin County Electronic Case Filing Pilot Program
Minnesota civil litigators, their clients, and the public have been the beneficiaries of electronic case filing (“ECF”) in federal court for several years now. ECF has likely been a significant savings for firms and clients, has been useful for the news media, and has also been profitable for the court system (somewhat controversially). (Who loses […]
The Pleading Standard in Federal Court for Affirmative Defenses
Minnesota Litigator has covered this issue before. Now, U.S. District Court Judge Patrick J. Schiltz weighs in (strongly against a reciprocal application of the Iqbal/Twombly pleading standard for affirmative defenses).
What’s That Got to Do with the Price of Cheese in Chicago?
The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (“CME”) Cheese Spot Call is a thinly traded market, which during the relevant time period opened for only fifteen minutes a day and comprised only 2% of the sales of cheese in the United States. Yet, the price at which cheese traded on the CME Cheese Spot Call effectively set the […]
Minnesota Supreme Court to decide: When is a secured interest “of record” for Torrens property?
[UPDATE: In a lien priority dispute of importance to lenders and builders, the Minnesota Supreme Court issued an opinion today holding that “of record” means when received by the registrar, when date and time stamped and assigned a document number.] [Original June 5, 2010 Post:] In the current economic downturn, particularly by virtue of the fact […]
U of M Law School Bad Press
National “law gossip” website, Above the Law, takes on the University of Minnesota Law School for its 13% tuition hike and 1% cut in faculty salary.
Afremov v. Sulloway & Hollis, Michael Lafond
Plaintiff has now filed his second amended complaint in this case of alleged professional malpractice and malfeasance, discussed in Minnesota Litigator previously. The portrait painted in the complaint is unflattering — unsound legal advice with criminal consequences, deceiving the client as to the concerns and misgivings of other lawyers in connection with that advice, all […]
Best Buy Dryer Installation Class Action Claim Forms
Minnesota Litigator has received several requests for class action claim forms in recent days. I am not sure what explains the sudden uptick in contacts to Minnesota Litigator regarding claims in a class action to which Minnesota Litigator has no connection of any kind, other than a stray comment on the litigation. Whatever the reason, […]