Minnesota Lawyer articles from September 2006

Minnesota Lawyer archives from September 2006

Courting contributions in MN.
September 4, 2006... Byline: Mark A. Cohen Fears that political parties and special-interest groups would dump money into judicial campaigns once the restrictions on partisan activities were lifted so far have not come to fruition. In states like Illinois,...

State court administrator reflects on 24 years of service to the courts of MN.
September 4, 2006... Byline: Barbara L. Jones Many of Minnesota's lawyers and judges have no memory of the court system without State Court Administrator Sue Dosal, who has worked tirelessly organizing, reorganizing and streamlining the courts for the past 24...

Citizens commission holds last forum on judicial elections in MN.
September 4, 2006... Byline: Akeem Soboyede The Citizens Commission for the Preservation of an Impartial Judiciary recently held its third and final public hearing to receive input as it mulls how to respond to federal court rulings in Republican Party of...

Commentary: Finding the needle in the electronic haystack.
September 4, 2006... Byline: Bruce L. Dorner One of the most vexing problems confronting lawyers is how to deal with electronic evidence. The e-mails in a divorce, the text messages on cellphones, the documents in a failed business transaction -- each may be...

Interview with three strong MN DFL candidates on ballot for AG primary.
September 4, 2006... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Reporter Steve Kelley: Has served in the state Legislature for 14 years Sen. Steve Kelley, DFL-Hopkins, who was endorsed by the DFL after Rep. Matt Entenza dropped out of the AG's race, has served in...

MN Lawyers in the News: September 4, 2006.
September 4, 2006... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Reporter Tammy L. Pust has joined Parker Rosen, LLC. She will concentrate her practice in the areas of employment litigation, workplace investigations and commercial litigation. *** Winthrop &...

Hurricane law: Four lawyers carve out niche in wake of devastation.
September 4, 2006... Byline: Dick Dahl New Orleans attorney Jeffrey Berniard was a refugee from the ravages of Hurricane Katrina last year when he realized that the monstrous storm could contain a silver lining for his practice. "I had an inkling there...

Commentary: Cyberinsurance could save you from an IT disaster.
September 4, 2006... Byline: Edward Poll "Disaster" for any law firm is not a question of "if," but rather of "when." The only unknowns are the type of disaster, when it will occur and how bad it will be. That's particularly the case when disaster...

Commentary: Labor Day: Employees lose duty and discrimination cases.
September 4, 2006... Byline: Marshall H. Tanick As the nation commemorates Labor Day, a union and two companies had occasion to celebrate their victories before the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in a pair of employment-related cases, including one from...

Attorneys getting paid.
September 18, 2006... Byline: Michelle Lore Pursuing claims for attorney fees through the court system is not how most lawyers want to spend their time. Perhaps the only thing worse is losing the case after the client doesn't even show up for the hearing. ...

Incumbents in MN all survive judicial primary races.
September 18, 2006... Byline: Mark A. Cohen There were no major surprises in last week's judicial primary, with all three incumbents facing primary challenges coming out the top vote-getters and earning themselves a place on the November ballot. Since party...

Minnesota's newest federal judge enjoys a challenge.
September 18, 2006... Byline: Michelle Lore The newest addition to the federal District Court in Minnesota, Patrick J. Schiltz, will be given the oath of office later this week by none other than his former boss and mentor, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin...

Some Twin Cities law firms tighten their hiring procedures.
September 18, 2006... Byline: Barbara L. Jones Some Twin Cities law firms have increased scrutiny in their hiring processes since last year, when Minnesota's biggest law firm made the embarrassing discovery that an associate at the firm had forged her...

MN Bar Buzz: September 18, 2006.
September 18, 2006... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Reporter Going global with the MSBA The Minnesota State Bar Association is offering its members the opportunity to get away from it all next spring. Cruises of China and the Yangtze River, the Western...

MN Court Justice, Rosalie Wahl portrait unveiled at Minnesota History Center.(Brief article)
September 18, 2006... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff A new portrait of Minnesota's first woman Supreme Court Justice, Rosalie Wahl, was scheduled to be unveiled at the Minnesota History Center on Sunday, Sept. 17. The portrait was sponsored by an ad hoc...

Swanson prevails in hotly contested DFL AG primary in MN.
September 18, 2006... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Political newcomer Lori Swanson, 39, prevailed in last week's primary and is now the DFL's attorney general nominee. Swanson -- a top depute for Attorney General Mike Hatch -- over state Sen. Steve Kelley...

Appellate lawyers in MN declare support for Dietzen.
September 18, 2006... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff More than 100 experienced appellate lawyers have added their names to a statement of support for Court of Appeals Judge Christopher Dietzen in the upcoming judicial election. Dietzen is the sole appellate...

Commentary: Ode to Sallie Mae.
September 18, 2006... Byline: Mark A. Cohen When I was but a mere lad not long out of law school, I had my first encounter with Sallie Mae -- the nation's leading provider of student loans. Steeped in student debt, I was susceptible to Sallie Mae's charms when...

Divorce coaches help clients to stay focused on achieving positive results.
September 18, 2006... Byline: Dick Dahl (This article originally appeared in Lawyers USA, another Dolan Media publication). When a suicidal doctor blew up a Manhattan townhouse in July, it was an extreme example of how tensions in a messy divorce can spiral...

'Special needs' grows as elder-law niche.
September 18, 2006... Byline: Dick Dahl (This article originally appeared in Lawyers USA, another Dolan Media publication). In the view of many trusts and estates lawyers, "special needs" law has developed into an important niche practice area. Three...

MN Lawyers in the News: September 18, 2006.
September 18, 2006... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Julia Dayton has joined the Minneapolis office of Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi L.L.P., as an associate focusing in the area of intellectual property litigation. Dayton received her J.D., cum laude, from...

Commentary: 'Prairie Home' recalls Minnesota movie litigation.
September 18, 2006... Byline: Marshall H. Tanick This summer's "Prairie Home Companion," the movie derived from Garrison Keillor's popular radio show, is the latest Minnesota-based film to attain critical acclaim. The movie, which Keillor wrote and also stars...

Commentary: Partner compensation in big-firms.
September 18, 2006... Byline: Edward Poll As an earlier story on big-firm profits might suggest, averaging $1 million in profits per partner raises a host of questions on how those profits are realized in terms of partner compensation. There are, of course,...

Commentary: Brokerage firms continue to equivocate in defining their brokers' roles.
September 18, 2006... Byline: James J. Eccleston Faced with several class action lawsuits nationwide by commission-based brokers who seek payment of overtime, some brokerage firms have adopted yet another definition of the roles and responsibilities of their...

Three appointed to 10th Judicial District bench in Anoka County.(Brief article)
September 18, 2006... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Gov. Tim Pawlenty has appointed Tammi A. Fredrickson, Douglas B. Meslow and Barry A. Sullivan to three trial court bench vacancies in the 10th Judicial District in Anoka County. The vacancies are the result of...

Prosecutorial misconduct ruling by MN Supreme Court has upset some prosecutors.
September 25, 2006... Byline: Michelle Lore Prosecutors are reeling over a recent Supreme Court decision that places a new burden on them in cases where defendants allege prosecutorial misconduct. Under the Sept. 15 ruling in State v. Ramey, when a...

Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota now a decade old.
September 25, 2006... Byline: Barbara L. Jones An elderly Jewish couple from Belarus who immigrated to the United States to escape religious persecution passed their citizenship exams, but somehow could not get the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services...

Exonerated death-row inmate shares experiences at Sixth Annual Innocence Ball in Minneapolis.
September 25, 2006... Byline: Akeem Soboyede During his 45-minute keynote address at the Innocence Project of Minnesota's annual fundraiser, Kirk Bloodsworth succinctly summed up the mission of the organization. "We cannot have innocent people on death row."...

Medicaid changes increasing estate planners' workload.
September 25, 2006... Byline: Reni Gertner (This article originally appeared in Lawyers USA, Boston, MA, another Dolan Media publication.) Sweeping changes to the Medicaid eligibility rules for long-term care that went into effect earlier this year are...

Minnesota Bar Buzz: September 25, 2006.(Jim Chen has made learning about the U.S. Constitution fun.)(Hennepin County Bar Association's 53rd Annual Judges Social.)(Human Rights Campaign says law firms are making tremendous strides in providing fair and open workplaces.)
September 25, 2006... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Students scavenge for constitutional clues For those whose taste for brainteasers was not satisfied by the release of the blockbuster movie the Da Vinci Code, Bar Buzz submits the following tidbit. ...

4th Judicial District Assistant Chief Judge Swenson recognized for outstanding service to MN.
September 25, 2006... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Fourth Judicial District Assistant Chief Judge James T. Swenson received the District Court Judge of the Year Award for Outstanding Service to the Minnesota Judiciary at the Minnesota District Judges...

Commentary: Law firm accounting 101: A brief lesson.
September 25, 2006... Byline: Edward Poll There are two basic methods for keeping track of law firm financial performance: accrual versus cash accounting. Accrual records reflect income irrespective of whether cash has been collected. In other words,...

Massachusetts' own Maria Lopez's debuts as a television judge.
September 25, 2006... Byline: David Yas (This article originally ran in MA Lawyers Weekly, Boston, MA, another Dolan Media publication.) You might recall the scene in the film "Rain Man" where Tom Cruise's character tells his brother in exasperation that he...

Minnesota Judicial Branch recognizes U.S. Constitution Day.
September 25, 2006... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff In honor of national Constitution Day, celebrated this year on Monday, Sept. 18, the Minnesota Judicial Branch has developed a special "Constitution Day" report. The report, which appears on the website...

Juvenile adjudication can be used for criminal history score, rules MN Supreme Court.
September 25, 2006... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff The Minnesota Supreme Court ruled last week that evidence of a juvenile conviction can be used to calculate a criminal history score. The defendant pled guilty to making terroristic threats. The...

MN Legal Briefs: September 25, 2006.
September 25, 2006... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff Reporter Nisha Taneja has joined the Minneapolis office of Meagher & Geer P.L.L.P. Taneja will work with the firm's health-care group. She obtained her law degree from Hamline University School of Law and...

Commentary: Appellate court considers four state settlement cases.
September 25, 2006... Byline: Marshall H. Tanick The often-expressed statement that the law favors settlement is probably an understatement. It is more accurate that the law embraces settlement disputes and it almost invariably enforces them. The 8th U.S....