Category: Commercial Litigation
BGS Grows with Addition of New Lawyer
May 21, 2013 | Barna, Guzy & Steffen, Ltd.Barna, Guzy & Steffen Ltd. announces the addition of a new associate to the firm. Jennifer C. Moreau has joined the firm’s Commercial Litigation and Employment Law practice area. The firm is excited to welcome Jennifer and hopes that adding this new associate attorney to the existing team will be beneficial to current clients and assist with the growth of new clientele. BGS’ Commercial Litigation attorneys are experienced trial lawyers able to represent clients in state, federal and the appellate courts on issues such as: business disputes construction issues and mold information technology security issues unfair competition contract actions non-competes employment defense and counseling unlawful detainers collection and insurance law other complex litigation cases Jennifer received her J.D. from the University of Minnesota Law School, 2007, magna cum laude. She was admitted to the Minnesota State Bar in 2007 and was admitted to the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota bar in 2013. She is a member of the Minnesota State Bar Association and of the Anoka County Bar Association. Before joining BGS, Jennifer was a Judicial Law Clerk for the Hon. Robert B. Varco and Hon. Mary A. Yunker, Minnesota District Court, 2007-2013. She lives in Coon Rapids with her husband and two children.
Read MoreAnoka County District Court Awards $73,938.75 in Sanctions Against Defendant for Discovery Misconduct
February 25, 2013 | Joan M. QuadeOn December 11, 2012, an Anoka County District Judge awarded my clients Ed Fields and Sons, Inc., $73,938.75 in sanctions during litigation I commenced against the Defendant, 1st Regents Bank, for discovery misconduct. (December 11, 2012 Order, James E. Fields, et al. v. Anthony Emmerich, et al., Court File No. 02-CV-11-5482) The litigation involved a multimillion dollar transaction and included causes of action such as fraud and conspiracy claims. I had sent discovery requests to 1st Regents asking for all emails related to the transaction at issue. The Bank responded that they had no emails. I pursued the issue with a Rule 115 letter and conference and the Bank continued to take the position that no such emails existed and therefore none would be produced. During a deposition, I noted that the Bank president was, as many of us do, using his Blackberry or iPhone to communicate throughout the day. I approached his lawyers after the deposition and again requested that 1st Regents Bank find potential emails related to the litigation. The Bank once again took the position that no such emails existed. This did not seem believable considering that this was a multimillion dollar transaction at issue and the Bank president clearly used technology. There were other defendants named in the suit…
Read MoreCity Employees and Off-Duty Conduct Webinar
September 11, 2012 | Scott M. LepakOur attorney, Scott Lepak, presented a free webinar hosted by the League of Minnesota Cities. This webinar titled, “City Employees and Off-Duty Conduct,” took place on Thursday, July 12th. You can view the full webinar here: Click here to download the full transcript (PDF) Click here to download the presentation slides (PDF) Scott Lepak is a frequent lecturer on labor and employment law topics in Minnesota and in this webinar he provides some guidance when off-duty conduct is illegal, unethical, or harms the reputation of the city. It’s often hard to know whether or not the city can discipline for that behavior. Off-duty conduct is a tricky and every-changing area of employment law. There are issues associated with freedom of speech and expectations of privacy that must be waived against the legitimate interest of the city. In this webinar Scott discusses… What is off-duty misconduct? What governs off-duty conduct? Are there limitations on conduct that may be regulated? The National Academy of Arbitrator’s four prong test An alternate four prong test Limitations on regulating off-duty conduct Arbitration Rulings We want to thank the League of Minnesota Cities for granting us permission to publish the webinar here and on our YouTube channel.
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