Homeowner Liable for Craigslist Post Slamming Driveway Contractor

A driveway contractor has won a $2,000 defamation judgment against a Minnesota homeowner whose daughter slammed the business owner on Craigslist. The post on the “rants & raves” section of Craigslist stems from Kyong Kessler’s legal battle against a contractor she accuses of leaving pockmarks in her driveway and damaging…

Jul 14, 2011 12:35 PM CDT

Neighbor Gets 18 Years for Hacking Lawyer’s Wi-Fi Account, Using His ID to Harass Others

Attorney Matt Kostolnik wound up with a seeming MySpace page featuring teens having sex and was visited at work by the Secret Service after the Minneapolis lawyer moved next door to a computer technician who quickly developed a grudge against him and his wife. Law firm superiors also wanted an…

Jul 13, 2011 9:28 PM CDT

Lawyer’s New Client in Murder One Case Allegedly Killed a Former Client

A Minnesota criminal defense lawyer is now representing, in a first-degree murder case, a man who is accused of killing a former client of the attorney. This kind of situation can raise some complicated ethical issues, experts tell the Star Tribune. But there is no clear conflict of interest, because…

Jul 5, 2011 4:45 PM CDT

Minnesota Law School Considers Taking Itself Private

With public funding increasingly unreliable, the University of Minnesota’s law school is mulling the option of taking itself private. By giving up public funding, the school would have more control over its operations, according to the Minnesota Star Tribune, which reports that the university’s business school is also considering going…

Jul 5, 2011 4:44 PM CDT

Debt Be Not Proud: Unpunctual Payors Bristle at Collectors’ Tacky Tactics

Jul 1, 2011 5:20 AM CDT

Molested Teen Awarded $15M in Suit Against Antitrust Lawyer in Prison for the Assault

A Minneapolis judge has awarded a teenage boy $15 million in a civil lawsuit against the once-prominent lawyer he accused of sexually assaulting him. Judge Denise Reilly ordered former antitrust lawyer Aaron Biber to pay $10 million in punitive damages and $5 million for assault, battery and emotional distress, the…

May 25, 2011 3:40 PM CDT

Judge Accused of ‘Vitriolic Attack’ on Group and Its Clipboards Wins Ethics Case

A Minnesota judge accused of a “vitriolic attack” on a court-monitoring group and its members’ intimidating red clipboards has won dismissal of ethics charges stemming from the incident. A three-judge panel of the Minnesota Supreme Court said the remarks by Judge Jack Nordby “were not so intemperate as to warrant…

May 13, 2011 10:29 AM CDT

Federal Judge Grants Injunction Ending Lockout; NFL Seeks Stay, Plans Expedited Appeal

Apparently swayed by the players’ argument that their careers are being irreparably harmed by a National Football League lockout, a federal judge in Minnesota today granted an injunction putting them back to work that was sought as part of an antitrust suit being pursued by the players. However, the NFL…

Apr 25, 2011 10:54 PM CDT

Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Cautions Against More Budget Cuts

Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Lorie Gildea, painting a dire portrait of how inadequate funding is adversely affecting the state’s judicial system, warned against more budget cuts. It is estimated state courts need 20 more judges and 270 staffers, Gildea said, the Princeton-Union Eagle reports. Gildea also described situations wherein…

Mar 18, 2011 5:27 PM CDT

Lawyer Loses License, Gets OK to Run Guardian Business, Is Now Accused of Stealing $68K from Client

Terri Ann Hauge had her license to practice law suspended in 1995. But that didn’t prevent the former Minnesota attorney from getting a large guardianship business up and running, along with a partner. Now Hauge is accused of stealing $68,000 from 10 vulnerable clients, the Star Tribune reported. The case…

Mar 17, 2011 1:07 AM CDT

Firestorm re $60K Award Against Blogger, Despite Lack of Defamation, May Be Focusing On Wrong Issue

Media observers have been complaining that a recent $60,000 jury verdict over a blog post in Minnesota that linked an individual to a mortgage fraud threatens free speech rights. That’s because, although the jury rejected a defamation claim, finding the relevant portion of the post to be truthful, it did…

Mar 16, 2011 5:17 PM CDT

Nurse Found Guilty of Encouraging Suicide in Online Chats

A Minnesota nurse had been convicted of two counts of aiding suicide for encouraging depressed people in online chats to kill themselves and offering instructions on how to do it. William Melchert-Dinkel will appeal the verdict, issued in a bench trial, according to his lawyer, Terry Watkins. The Associated Press,…

Mar 16, 2011 12:28 PM CDT

Minnesota AG Sues California Company, Alleging Fake Refi Deals

California’s Meredian Financial Corp. targeted homeowners struggling with adjustable interest-rate mortgages and offered them lower rates through fake refinance deals, while pocketing the service fees, according to a Minnesota state court lawsuit filed today. According to Lori Swanson, Minnesota’s attorney general, Meredian Financial pretended to be the homeowners’ current mortgage…

Mar 14, 2011 8:31 PM CDT

As Surrogacy Becomes More Popular, Legal Problems Proliferate

Mar 1, 2011 11:40 AM CST

Raid on Clark Thomas Lures 8 Lawyers to New Texas Office of Midsize Minn. Firm, Bowman and Brooke

A midsize Minneapolis firm has raided the biggest law firm in Austin, Texas, departing with an eight-attorney group that will help Bowman and Brooke establish a new office there. The group represents a substantial portion of the pharamceutical practice at Clark Thomas & Winters. The 185-attorney Bowman and Brooke opened…

Feb 12, 2011 12:29 AM CST