Jack Moore and Lauren D’Cruz Succeed With “Passing Out” Defense

Jack Moore and Lauren D’Cruz recently obtained a defense verdict in a Hennepin County jury trial involving unusual facts. Their client had passed out while driving and caused an accident resulting in serious injuries to the driver of another vehicle. Jack and Lauren called the client’s doctor as a trial witness, who testified that the loss of consciousness was caused by the drug Atenolol, which slows down the heart rate. The client had been taking this drug for several years without a problem, until it caused him to pass out without warning a few moments before the accident. The other driver’s attorney cited the fact that the client had passed out previously due to dehydration, his doctors had warned him to drink enough water to avoid passing out again, on the accident date the client told the ER doctor that he might be dehydrated, and at least one doctor’s note concluded the client was dehydrated on the accident date. The client explained his ER statement at trial by stating that he didn’t know why else he might have passed out, but that he thought he was adequately hydrated at the time of the accident. The jury found that the client wasn’t negligent, following a jury instruction (which Jack and Lauren drafted) that a person isn’t negligent if the accident is caused by a medical emergency which the person couldn’t have reasonably foreseen.

Brian Wood and Jason Prochnow Participated in TIDA’s Community Service Outreach at Three Square

Lind, Jensen, Sullivan & Peterson, P.A. partners, Brian Wood and Jason Prochnow attended TIDA’s 22^nd Annual Industry Seminar in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 22, 2014 through October 24, 2014.  TIDA members kicked off this year’s meeting by participating in a community service outreach event at Three Square. Three Square serves as the primary distribution center for donated goods to charitable organizations serving individuals and families in the Las Vegas area. Three Square’s mission is to “provide wholesome food to hungry people, while passionately pursuing a hunger-free community.”

Three Square currently provides more than 30 million pounds of food and grocery product – the equivalent of more than 25 million meals – per year to nearly 600 Program Partners including non-profit and faith-based organizations, schools and feeding sites throughout Southern Nevada.

TIDA donated $2,500 which will help provide 7,500 meals to those less fortunate in our community.  The TIDA Team helped to assemble 7,100 ready to eat meals in the community kitchen while other team members packed 7,285 lbs of product in the Three Square Volunteer Room.

The Trucking Industry Defense Association, also known as TIDA was founded in 1993, TIDA is a nonprofit association whose members share knowledge and resources in defense of the trucking industry. TIDA members include motor carriers, trucking insurers, defense attorneys and claims servicing companies

Jury Returns $4.5 Million Verdict in Minnesota Living Mesothelioma Case: Humphreys and Jensen v. 3M, et al., Ramsey County Case File No. 62-CV-13-7709

On October 22, 2014, after a two-week trial, a Ramsey County jury returned a verdict in favor of 75-year-old plaintiff Neil Humphreys and his wife Lona Jensen.  Plaintiffs alleged that Humphreys was exposed to Owens-Illinois’ Kaylo insulation and Mundet asbestos cement during his three-month employment in 1957 with insulation contractor API on the new construction of a power plant.

Trial began on October 6, 2014 against defendants Smith-Sharpe Company and Owens-Illinois.  Smith-Sharpe was represented by Lind, Jensen, Sullivan & Peterson, P.A. attorneys Tom Jensen and Jason Prochnow.  Jensen and Prochnow secured a dismissal for Smith-Sharpe on the second day of trial.  Trial continued against Owens-Illinois, which defended the case by arguing that Humphreys had misidentified the insulation products, and with a state-of-the-art defense.  The jury concluded that Owens-Illinois’ and Mundet’s products were defective due to inadequate warnings, and that API was negligent with respect to the safety of its employees.  The jury apportioned fault as follows: 36.5% to Owens-Illinois, 23.5% to Mundet, and 40% to API.  The jury awarded Humphreys $856,250 in past damages and $2,756,000 in future damages, and Jensen $904,000 in loss-of-consortium damages.

This is the first plaintiff’s verdict in Minnesota asbestos litigation since 2008, when a jury returned a $4.6 million verdict in favor of plaintiff Dennis Newinski.  The Humphreys case is also the first asbestos case to be tried before newly appointed Minnesota Asbestos Litigation trial judge the Honorable John H. Guthmann.

Favorable Jury Verdict in an FMLA Dispute

Bill Davidson and Ryan Myers obtained a defense verdict in federal court on behalf of their client, Hammer Residences, Inc., a non-profit organization that provides services to adults and children with developmental disabilities. The plaintiff, a former employee who was discharged, sued Hammer claiming it violated the Family and Medical Leave Act. On October 16, 2014, a jury agreed with Hammer that its decision to discharge was made before the plaintiff made any FMLA request for time off. The case is Kania v. Hammer, 13-cv-176 (DWF/FLN).

Successful Asbestos Trial Defense

Successful Asbestos Trial Defense in Neil Humphreys v Owens-Illinois and Smith-Sharpe Company (Ramsey County District Court, CT File # 62-CV-13-7709), Tom Jensen and Jason Prochnow started Trial on October 6 in this complex asbestos product, living mesothelioma lawsuit, and successfully obtained a dismissal for their client, defendant Smith-Sharpe Company, on the Trial’s second day. The case is noteworthy as the first asbestos case to be tried before the newly appointed MN Asbestos Trial Judge, Hon. John H. Guthmann, and Trial continues against the last co-defendant.

Ladwig v. Hollenkamp

On September 11, 2014, the court entered judgment in favor of the defense in Ladwig v. Hollenkamp, Kanabec County (MN) District Court File No. 33-CV-13-151. Tom Jensen successfully defended the farmer whose herd of cattle escaped from confinement at night and wandered onto the adjoining road. Plaintiff driver collided with several cows that caused a C5-6 disc injury requiring surgery. The jury found the farmer was not negligent and did not allow the herd to run at large in violation of a statute. Yes, in Minnesota cows sometimes escape from fenced pastureland!

Lind, Jensen, Sullivan & Peterson, P.A. Successfully Defends Chiropractors

Thomas D. Jensen, Thomas J. Evenson, and Amy E. Boyle from Lind, Jensen, Sullivan & Peterson, PA, were retained by chiropractors and their clinics to defend them in a lawsuit commenced by several insurers in the United States District Court, District of Minnesota. The insurers asserted several claims, including but not limited RICO and anti-kickback claims, against the chiropractors and their clinics. As early as possible, a motion to dismiss was filed on behalf of the chiropractors and their clinics requesting that the Complaint be dismissed. Via Order dated August 19, 2014, the United States District Court, District of Minnesota, granted the motion to dismiss dismissing some claims in part with prejudice and some claims in part without prejudice. In the Order, the Court stated that “[u]nfortunately, plaintiffs in this case failed to heed the warnings of this Court, and thus it is now necessary for the Court and the defendants to undertake an onerous, claim-by-claim march through the lengthy complaint to try and separate the wheat from the chaff.”

2014 Super Lawyers™ and Rising Stars™ Honorees Selected.

Lind, Jensen, Sullivan & Peterson, P.A. is pleased to announce that 11 lawyers have been named Super Lawyers™ and an additional 4 lawyers have been named Rising Stars™ by Minnesota Super Lawyers.

2014 Minnesota Super Lawyers

William L. Davidson
Appellate

Mark A. Fredrickson
PI General: Defense

Thomas D. Jensen
Civil Lit: Defense

Patrick J. Larkin
Construction Litigation

Richard A. Lind
Business Litigation

Jack D. Moore
PI General: Defense

Timothy J. O’Connor
Civil Lit: Defense

Paul C. Peterson
Prof. Liability: Defense

Matthew D. Sloneker
Civil Lit: Defense

Eric J. Steinhoff
Civil Lit: Defense

Brian A. Wood
PI General: Defense

2014 Minnesota Rising Stars

Connie I. Armstrong
Construction Litigation

Thomas J. Evenson
General Lit

Amber N. Garry
Workers’ Comp

Elizabeth M. Sorenson Brotten
PI-Products: Defense

In addition to being named a Super Layer, Paul C. Peterson was named one of the Top 100 Minnesota Super Lawyers.

Super Lawyers is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high-degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The select process is multi-phased  and includes independent research, peer nomination and peer evaluations.  Within the state of Minneosta, 5% of attorneys are selected to Super Lawyers and 2.5% of attorneys are selected to Rising Stars.

Connie Armstrong Elected to 2014-2015 Board of Directors of the Minnesota Women Lawyers Association

At the Minnesota Women Lawyers 42^nd Annual Meeting, which was held on May 19, 2014, Connie Armstrong was elected as treasurer for Minnesota Women Lawyers and will serve on the 2014-2015 Board of Directors.  Her board term will begin July 1, 2014.

http://www.mwlawyers.org/news/165030/MWL-Announces-Slate-of-Candidates-for-2014-15-Board-of-Directors.htm

C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc. v. SnacLite, LLC

In C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc. v. SnacLite, LLC, Carver County (MN) District Court File No. 10-CV-14-214, the court ruled on May 15, 2014 that our firm’s clients were not subject to the jurisdiction of Minnesota courts.  The ruling relied on two recent U.S. Supreme Court cases decided this year (Walden v. Fiore and Daimler A.G. v. Bauman) that address limits on the exercise of general and specific personal jurisdiction by courts over non-resident defendants.

Connie Armstrong Recognized – 2014 Top Women Attorneys In Minnesota by Super Lawyers

Lind, Jensen, Sullivan & Peterson, P.A. is pleased to announce that Connie Armstrong has been recognized by Super Lawyers for inclusion in the 2014 Top Women Attorneys in Minnesota selection.

The women attorneys who were selected as 2013 Super Lawyers or Rising Stars are featured in the 2014 Top Women Attorneys in Minnesota list, which is published in the April 2014 issue of Twin Cities Business and the Minneapolis-St. Paul Magazine. Super Lawyers is a Thomson Reuters business that provides a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas, who have attained a high-degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. Rising Stars selections undergo the same selection process as Super Lawyers but recognizes attorneys who are 40 years old or younger, or have been practicing for 10 years or less. No more than 2.5% of lawyers in Minnesota are named to the Rising Stars list.

This is Connie’s second selection to the Rising Stars list and her first inclusion in the Top Women Attorneys in Minnesota list. Connie is licensed in Minnesota and practices primarily in the areas of Business Disputes, Construction Litigation, Employment Litigation, General Liability, Insurance Litigation and Professional Liability.

Lindsay Christensen Joins Lind, Jensen, Sullivan & Peterson, P.A.

Lindsay has 10 years of experience as a litigation paralegal, primarily in the areas of professional malpractice, products liability and personal injury. She has previously worked as a paralegal in Chicago, Illinois.  Lindsay attended the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee, earning a B.A. degree in Behavioral Science and Law.

Lind Jensen Attorneys Obtain Dismissals

Lind Jensen attorneys recently obtained dismissals of lawsuits on behalf of their clients in two separate matters.

Brian Wood and Eric Steinhoff obtained dismissal for their client in a Carver County lawsuit.  The Court found their client did not have any notice of the hazard upon which Plaintiff fell.  Through discovery and depositions Brian and Eric were able to establish that Plaintiff did not have sufficient evidence to meet the evidentiary standard required to overcome summary judgment.  The case was dismissed with prejudice.

Brian and Eric also successfully obtained a dismissal of a strict liability claim in the wrongful death action of Olson v. Alder in Anoka County.  The Court agreed that Minnesota’s dog bite statute should not apply based on the facts presented in the case.  The ruling dismissed Plaintiff’s absolute liability claim against the Defendant and leaves only a negligence claim which allows comparison of fault and other defenses.

Pro Bono Activities

Eric Steinhoff and Lauren D’Cruz recently obtained the dismissal of a lawsuit against their low-income client, who was sued in a dispute over distribution of a decedent’s estate. Eric and Lauren volunteered to take the case through the Federal Bar Association’s Pro Se Project. They filed a motion to dismiss based on failure to state a claim and res judicata. Plaintiff then agreed to dismiss the case, with prejudice, with no payment by the client, who would not have been in a position to pay a judgment..

Peter Stiteler recently successfully defended a low income client, who was sued when her dog bit and injured a young boy. Peter volunteered to take the case through the Hennepin County Bar Association’s Volunteer Lawyers Network. The incident occurred in the course and scope of the client’s  job, but her employer, also a defendant, declined to defend her and in fact asserted a claim against her for reimbursement of any liability the employer might have. A default judgment was eventually entered against the employer. Peter obtained dismissal of all claims against his client, with prejudice, and with no payment by the client, a low income single mom for whom a judgment would have been an extreme hardship.

National Commercial Insurer Grades Lind, Jensen, Sullivan & Peterson, P.A.

A national commercial insurer recently graded the firms counsel at 9.65 out of 10 in its yearly report card.

Dave Bateson Appointed to MSBA Task Force

Phil Duran, President of the Minnesota State Bar Association, has appointed Lind Jensen attorney Dave Bateson to serve on the association’s Challenges to the Practice of Law Task Force.  The Task Force will “explore and make recommendations as to how the MSBA can assist member lawyers in responding to emerging challenges, including though not necessarily limited to challenges posed by student-debt loads, technological changes, and activities that may represent unauthorized practice of law.”  The Task Force will begin its work in February of 2014.