Minnesota Lawyer articles from October 2005

Minnesota Lawyer archives from October 2005

Paul B. Klaas, attorney with Dorsey & Whitney in Minneapolis, moves to firm's London office.
October 3, 2005... Byline: Michelle Lore Minneapolis litigator Paul B. Klaas made a big career move this past summer -- from Minneapolis to London. In July, the long-time Dorsey & Whitney attorney assumed the role of "partner-in-charge" of the firm's...

MN federal and state court judges give their views on changes in class-actions.(Minnesota)
October 3, 2005... Byline: Barbara L. Jones Minnesota federal and state court judges discussed their views on the controversial subject of class-action litigation at a continuing legal education (CLE) seminar last month at the Minnesota CLE Conference Center...

MN Supreme Court Chief Justice Kathleen Blatz announces that she will retire.(Minnesota)
October 3, 2005... Byline: Barbara L. Jones Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Kathleen A. Blatz surprised many in the legal community last week by announcing her retirement effective Jan. 10, 2006. Blatz, 51, told Gov. Tim Pawlenty she wanted to...

Two Twin Cities law firms sponsor Equal Justice Works fellows.
October 3, 2005... Byline: Michelle Lore Two recent law school graduates have put a public service spin on the start of their legal careers. William Mitchell College of Law graduate Leah Weaver and University of St. Thomas School of Law graduate John Ross...

Commentary: Dealing with a client with diminished capacity.
October 3, 2005... Byline: Craig D. Klausing The client establishes the objectives of the representation while the lawyer generally has control over the means by which those objectives are pursued. Rule 1.2 of the Minnesota Rules of Professional Conduct...

MN State Bar Association approves minority clerkship program.
October 3, 2005... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Reporter The Minnesota State Bar Association (MSBA) recently unanimously approved creation of the Minnesota Minority Clerkship Program. The goal of the summer clerkship program, proposed earlier this year...

Minnesota Bar Buzz: October 3, 2005.
October 3, 2005... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Reporter The buck stops here Oh, deer! In a story last week about a $4.8 million verdict involving an advertising dispute between two hunting-products companies, we included a picture of a buck to...

MN Legal Briefs: October 3, 2005.
October 3, 2005... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Reporter Daniel P.H. Reiff has joined Tomsche, Sonnesyn & Tomsche as an associate attorney where he will concentrate his practice in the area of insurance defense litigation. He is a graduate of Hamline...

National foster-care summit is held in Minnesota.
October 3, 2005... Byline: Barbara L. Jones As a big windstorm swept through part of the state on Sept 21, chief justices and human services leaders from 49 states and several U.S. territories were in Minnesota to discuss the winds of change in foster care....

Commentary: Meaning of 'any' dogs difficult decisions.
October 3, 2005... Byline: Marshall H. Tanick The rotund character who made Alice wonder with awe at his self-serving logic may have gotten it right before he took his great fall. Humpty Dumpty's observation about the meaning of words is illustrative of the...

A look at some key opinions written by MN Supreme Court Chief Justice Kathleen Blatz.(Minnesota)(Brief Article)
October 3, 2005... Byline: Barbara L. Jones Notable opinions written by Chief Justice Kathleen Blatz during her tenure have included: * Regents of the University of Minnesota v. Raygor, in which the Supreme Court ruled that the 11th Amendment to the...

Chief justice of the MN Supreme Court Kathleen Blatz is passing the gavel.(Minnesota)(Interview)
October 10, 2005... Byline: Barbara L. Jones In 1998, Kathleen Blatz took office as Minnesota's first woman chief justice of the Supreme Court. Since that time she has been focused on children's legal issues, public trust and confidence, access to justice and...

Minnesota lawyers group changes tactics for its meetings.(Res Ipsa Loquitur )
October 10, 2005... Byline: Michelle Lore The lawyers group Res Ipsa Loquitur is undergoing some changes this year in an effort to generate interest and work toward systemic changes in the Minnesota legal community. For the first several years of its...

MN attorneys challenge Hennepin County Bar Assn. for commitment-defense contract.
October 10, 2005... Byline: Barbara L. Jones Two local lawyers are challenging the Hennepin County Bar Association (HCBA) for the right to oversee the assignment of counsel to represent the mentally ill in Hennepin County commitment proceedings. The value...

8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals orders city of Crookston to pay burn victim.(Brief Article)
October 10, 2005... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Reporter The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals recently ordered the city of Crookston to pay $300,000 to a man who burned over 67 percent of his body when a swimming pool's boiler exploded. The pool was...

Farewell to the Chief: Kathleen Blatz , Minnesota Supreme Court.(Brief Article)
October 10, 2005... Byline: Mark A. Cohen The role of the chief justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court is not an easy one to undertake. It involves balancing a scholarly insight into the law, the managerial ability to run a large organization, the...

Minnesota Bar Buzz: October 10, 2005.
October 10, 2005... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Reporter The high court's not been half Anderson since we don't remember Sven With Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Kathleen Blatz's decision to step down from her seat on the high court next...

Speculation abounds about who will be the next MN Supreme Court chief.(Minnesota)
October 10, 2005... Byline: Barbara L. Jones Since Gov. Tim Pawlenty announced the formation of an ad hoc committee to screen candidates for the chief justice spot on the Minnesota Supreme Court, the legal community has been buzzing with speculation about who...

MN Legal Briefs: October 10, 2005.(David M. Cremons; William K. Ecklund; David B. Eide join Felhaber Larson Fenlon and Vogt)(Brief Article)
October 10, 2005... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Reporter Felhaber, Larson, Fenlon and Vogt has announced that the following individuals have been elected to the firm's board of directors: David M. Cremons; William K. Ecklund; David B. Eide; Ruth S. Marcott;...

Commentary: Supreme Court review: Only two from the 8th Circuit.
October 10, 2005... Byline: Marshall H. Tanick The partially reconstituted U.S. Supreme Court, headed by new Chief Justice John G. Roberts, convened for its 2005-06 term last Monday, with President Bush's latest nominee, Harriet E. Miers, waiting in the...

Safety and bullying are major issues right now for school law attorneys.
October 17, 2005... Byline: Michelle Lore After a long, hot summer, it was "back to school" for students last month. Unlike students, however, who get to take the summer off, attorneys practicing in the area of school law are busy year round. While...

Legal professionals offer advise on how to maintain good relations with clients.
October 17, 2005... Byline: Michelle Lore Maintaining good relationships with clients is more than just good business, it's a necessity for a successful law practice. Happy clients don't file ethics complaints or malpractice actions against their lawyers...

Minnesota Bar Buzz: October 17, 2005.
October 17, 2005... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Reporter Sprenger and Lang dials 'M' for marketing (Hollywood style) The law firm of Sprenger and Lang has been much in the news lately with the release of "North Country," a movie that chronicles the...

Univ. of Wis.-Madison Law School professor analyzes why lawyer jokes have become so popular.
October 17, 2005... Byline: Michelle Lore Why are laboratories now using lawyers instead of rats in their experiments? Three reasons - there are more of them, lab assistants don't get attached to them and there are some things that a rat just won't do. ...

Commentary: Wellstone remembered: Libel litigation after the crash.
October 17, 2005... Byline: Marshall H. Tanick It has been almost three years since the tragic death of Sen. Paul Wellstone. The Minnesota senator, his wife, Sheila, and six others perished when a charter aircraft in which they were flying crashed in...

Interview with Karen Janisch, legal counsel to Minnesota's governor.(Interview)
October 24, 2005... Byline: Barbara L. Jones Governor Tim Pawlenty and his counsel, Karen A. Janisch, came to the Capitol from the same law firm - Rider Bennett in Minneapolis. At Rider Bennett, Janisch worked in the areas of school law and employment law...

MN State Bar Assn.'s CLE focused on the major changes in criminal law.(Minnesota, continuing education )
October 24, 2005... Byline: Michelle Lore Criminal law attorneys earlier this month got an in-depth look at Minnesota's recently enacted Omnibus Public Safety Bill during a three-hour continuing education (CLE) program. "Where's Waldo? The Top 50 Changes...

Minnesota's bankruptcy courts hold up well under last-minute rush.
October 24, 2005... Byline: Barbara L. Jones As the final bankruptcy filings in Minnesota under the old bankruptcy law were received, clerks sighed with relief but then moved to the next big challenge - docketing the massive stacks of filings and getting the...

MN Bar Buzz: October 24, 2005.(continuing legal education )
October 24, 2005... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Reporter An ethics CLE that even Enron could love Most attorneys are lucky if they get a free cookie and a pop when they attend a continuing legal education (CLE) course, but Shred Right is offering...

Hennepin County Bar Association's mentoring program set to kick off on Nov. 1.
October 24, 2005... Byline: Barbara L. Jones Fall can be a time for fresh starts and the upcoming New Year is a time for self-improvement resolutions. The Hennepin County Bar Association (HCBA) Mentoring Program can meet both needs as it helps lawyers...

Commentary: Why don't we just skip the trial?(Column)
October 24, 2005... Byline: Mark A. Cohen I was recently waiting in line to pay the cashier at a gas station - wondering if I would need to cash in my 401k to pay my bill - when I noticed the customer in front of me excitedly gesticulating and discussing...

Commentary: Group polarization and the benefit of opposing views for clients and lawyers.
October 24, 2005... Byline: Neil W. Hamilton Both the mainstream media and the scholarly literature observe that our society is in a period of reduced trust and polarization. In a September 2005 essay in "The Chronicle of Higher Education," Daniel Yankelovich...

Commentary: Fight nights: Appellate actions address assaults.
October 24, 2005... Byline: Marshall H. Tanick When Minnesotans go out socially, whether for recreation or refreshments, they usually expect fun, not fights. But a trio of rulings by the Minnesota Court of Appeals this past summer examined the rights of...

MN State Bar Association outlines relief efforts for hurricane victims.
October 24, 2005... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Reporter In an Oct. 19 message to members of the Minnesota State Bar Association (MSBA), the group's president, Susan Holden, updated members on the work of the MSBA's hurricane-relief efforts. According...

MN Legal Briefs: October 24, 2005.
October 24, 2005... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Reporter Merchant & Gould has announced that Brent Routman, a partner at the firm, has been recognized as a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation (ABF). Recognition by the ABF honors attorneys whose...

Minnesota attorneys have advice about 'clients from hell'.
October 31, 2005... Byline: Michelle Lore Ghouls and goblins don't only come out at Halloween. For attorneys, these menacing creatures can appear at any time in the form of "clients from hell." While most attorneys enjoy most of their clients most of the...

Minnesota law firms reassess screening after resignation of phony attorney.
October 31, 2005... Byline: Barbara L. Jones Even though Dorsey & Whitney believed it had a good system in place for checking the credentials of its lawyers, the law firm was still duped for about six months by a woman posing as an attorney. In a story...

NY Attorney General Eliot Spitzer speaks in the Twin Cities.
October 31, 2005... Byline: Mark A. Cohen New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer was the keynote speaker at a luncheon program held at the University of St. Thomas School of Law on Oct. 25. Spitzer, a rising star in New York politics, has made a name for...

Attractive Nuisance Tour raises $41,000 for legal charities in Minnesota.
October 31, 2005... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Reporter This year's Attractive Nuisance Tour, a rock concert that raises money for local legal charities, was the most successful one to date. The 3rd annual event - held Oct. 14 at First Avenue in...

Minnesota Bar Buzz: October 31, 2005.
October 31, 2005... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Reporter As good as Gould? Merchant & Gould, one of the Twin Cities' leading IP firms, recently announced it plans to merge with Welsh & Katz, a Chicago-based intellectual property law firm and will...

New book for judges focuses on the Indian Child Welfare Act.
October 31, 2005... Byline: Barbara L. Jones Even though the federal Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) governs the rights of Indian children, parents and tribes in juvenile court, many judges and attorneys are unfamiliar with its requirements. The authors of a...

Commentary: Journey to the center of the 'No Spin Zone'.
October 31, 2005... Byline: Mark A. Cohen I had the rather interesting experience last week of being a guest on the "O'Reilly Factor." For those not in the know, Bill O'Reilly has made a national name for himself as the loud and sometimes abrasive...

Minnesota Lawyers in the News: October 31, 2005.
October 31, 2005... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Reporter Andrew J. Rorvig has joined the law firm of Hauer, Fargione, Love, Landy & McEllistrem as an associate. Rorvig graduated with his J.D. in 2005 from William Mitchell College of Law and from the...

Commentary: Calling 911: Appellate activities address assistance.(Column)
October 31, 2005... Byline: Marshall H. Tanick Ever since it's inception in the late 1960s through its widespread acceptance in this country in the 1980s and its international adoption in the 1990s, the 911 call system has been the source of assistance for an...