Professionals

• Experience
• Activities & Memberships
• Articles & Presentations
• Recognition

Experience

Trade Secret, Unfair Competition and Employment:

• Won order certifying class of current and former employees of Mutual of New York Insurance Co. alleging miscalculation of lump sum retirement benefits.
• Won preliminary injunction, $100,000 discovery sanction, and substantial settlement against competitor and former employees of digital publishing firm in case alleging misappropriation of trade secrets and tortious interference with contract.
• Won precedent-setting multi-million dollar verdict following three-month class action trial on behalf of class of 56,000 current and former Wal-Mart workers, enforcing terms of Minnesota Fair Labor Standards Act.
• Won preliminary injunction enforcing two-year nationwide non-compete agreement against former Regional Vice-President of medical device firm.
• Won affirmance in the Minnesota Court of Appeals of a summary judgment order enforcing "clawback" of stock option gains from former California-based medical device sales representative for violation of non-competition provision.
• Won TRO on behalf of credit union against former board director in case alleging trade secret/breach of confidentiality agreement.
• Won complete dismissal of multi-million dollar claim for commissions and stock brought against medical technology firm, its lead investor, and several officers and directors by former Chief Executive Officer, alleging breach of fiduciary duty, minority shareholder oppression, and breach of contract.
• Recovered in excess of $2 million from former distributor of medical device manufacturer, and defeated distributor's motion for TRO alleging wrongful contract termination, unfair competition, and violation of Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
• Won arbitration order enforcing non-competition agreement for medical device manufacturer against former senior product development engineer and his California employer, following week-long trial.
• Won TRO enforcing non-competition agreement for medical device manufacturer against former product development engineer and his Texas employer.
• Defended medical product manufacturer against trade secret and gender/race discrimination claims brought by former product development engineer.
• Defeated motion for TRO brought against provider of electronic data consulting services in action to enforce sales representative non-competition agreement, resulting in favorable settlement.
• Won summary judgment for leading medical products supplier, in case brought by former sales representative on claims relating to forfeiture of restricted stock.
• Prosecuted trade secret misappropriation and Lanham Act product disparagement claims, in case brought by leading multi-national medical device manufacturer.
• Won favorable arbitration award for leading medical products manufacturer in case construing unemployment provision of noncompetition agreement.
• Defended leading medical products manufacturer against gender discrimination and stock option claims brought by former regional sales manager.
• Defended leading medical products manufacturer against stock option acceleration claim brought by former international operations director.
• Defended leading gaming manufacturer against trade secret misappropriation claim involving electronic gaming technology.
• Defended physician owners of medical clinic against discrimination claims brought by former employees.

Business Ownership Disputes:

• Won multi-million dollar settlement of fraud claim on behalf of livestock ranchers against former partner.
• Defended investor against breach of fiduciary duty, fraudulent transfer and preference claims arising from failure of automobile dealership.
• Won favorable settlement of action to compel founding shareholder to comply with terms of agreement to assign ultrasonic imaging technology used in vascular surgery.
• Won judgment for value of client's ownership interest in company engaged in the manufacture and distribution of computer disk drive technology, in action to enforce LLC operating agreement buyout provisions.
• Won settlement for value of client's ownership interest in venture capital management company, in action to enforce terms of LLC operating agreement and related limited partnership agreements.
• Defended former officers and directors of plastics manufacturer in action asserting breach of contract, misrepresentation and breach of fiduciary duty claims arising out of sale of corporate subsidiary.
• Won favorable settlement of minority shareholder claims brought by prominent attorney against former law partners.

Securities, Insurance & Finance:

• Currently representing indenture trustee and class of purchasers in action alleging fraud in the sale of municipal bonds.
• Won multi-million dollar settlement of claims brought by individual annuitants and insurance guaranty association against major regional brokerage company relating to marketing of single-premium deferred annuities issued by insolvent Midwest Life Insurance Company.
• Won judgment in excess of $2 million on behalf of several employers who purchased group annuity pension funding agreements from insolvent InterAmerican Life Insurance Company in action to enforce assumption reinsurance agreement.
• Won multi-million dollar settlement on behalf of insurance guaranty association of breach of fiduciary duty claims against defined contribution plan sponsor and investment manager for losses relating to guaranteed investment contracts purchased from insolvent Executive Life Insurance Company.
• Obtained declaratory judgment upholding constitutionality of retroactive amendment to the Minnesota Life & Health Insurance Guaranty Association Act, clarifying intent of Act to protect Minnesota resident pension fund contributors from insolvency of companies which sell pension funding instruments, including en banc affirmance by U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, and denial of certiorari by the U.S. Supreme Court.
• Won dismissal of claim brought Minnesota lease finance company against Nevada lessee based on doctrine of forum non conveniens, overturning forum selection clause in lease agreement.

Other Complex Litigation:

• Won favorable settlement of claim on behalf of leading university art museum in action to construe donor agreement.
• Won favorable settlement of claims on behalf of assignees of secured lender arising out of asset-purchase agreement relating to bankruptcy of Call 4 Wireless LLC, a cellular telephone service reseller.

Representative Published Decisions:

• Eagle Creek Software Services, Inc. v. Paradise, __ F. Supp. 2d __, 2011 WL 5863957 (D. Minn. Nov. 22, 2011).
• Medtronic, Inc. v. Carmichael, 2011 WL 1672034 (D. Minn. May 4, 2011).
• Cenveo Corp. v. Southern Graphic Systems, Inc., 784 F. Supp. 2d 1130, 2011 WL 1134969 (D. Minn. Mar. 25, 2011).
• Allstate Life Ins. Co. v. Robert W. Baird & Co., Inc., 763 F. Supp. 2d 1113, 2010 WL 4581242 (D. Ariz. Nov. 4, 2010).
• Cenveo Corp. v. Southern Graphic Systems, Inc., 2010 WL 3893709 (D. Minn. Sept. 30, 2010).
• Maguire v. Medtronic, Inc., 2010 WL 744561, 49 Employee Benefits Cas. 1023 (W.D. Pa. Feb. 26, 2010).
• Medtronic v. Hedemark, 2009 WL 511760 (Minn. Ct. App. Mar. 3, 2009).
• Cenveo Corp. v. Southern Graphic Systems, Inc., 2009 WL 161210 (D. Minn. 2009).
• Braun v. Wal-Mart, Inc., 2008 WL 2596918, 156 Lab. Cas. P. 60, 631 (Minn. June 30, 2008).
• Kroll Ontrack v. Grain, 2008 WL 4561637 (D. Minn. 2008).
• Cenveo Corp. v. CelumSolutions Software GMBH & Co KG, 504 F. Supp. 2d 574, 2007 WL 951550 (D. Minn. 2007).
• Nonin Medical Inc. v. BCI Inc., 2005 WL 2105501 (D. Minn. 2005).
• Hollywood Healthcare Corp. v. Deltec, Inc., 2004 WL 1118610 (D. Minn. 2004).
• Lyon Financial Services Inc. v. Reno Sparks Ass'n of Realtors, 2004 WL 234405 (D. Minn. 2004).
• Braun v. Wal-Mart, 2003 WL 22990114 (Minn. 2003).
• Wolfer v. Microboards Manufacturing, LLC, 654 N.W.2d 360 (Minn. Ct. App. 2002), review denied.
• Hoehne v. Kerns, 2002 WL 3126000 (8th Cir. 2002 )(per curiam).
• Kerns v. Kerns, et al., 53 P.3d 1157 (Colo. 2002).
• Haley v. AIG Life Ins. Co., 229 F. Supp. 2d 957 (D.N.D. 2002).
• Medtronic Inc. v. Shope, 135 F. Supp. 2d 988 (D. Minn. 2001).
• Scimed Life Systems, Inc. v. Johnson & Johnson, 1999 WL 33643933 (D. Minn.).
• Liberty State Bank v. MLHIGA, 149 F.3d 832 (8th Cir. 1998).
• Vetter v. Security Continental Ins. Co., 567 N.W.2d 516 (Minn. 1997).
• Honeywell, Inc. v. MLHIGA, 110 F.3d 547 (8th Cir. 1997) (en banc).
• Hillard, et al. v. Medtronic, Inc., 910 F. Supp. 173 (E.D. Pa. 1995).
• Honeywell, Inc., et al. v. MLHIGA, 518 N.W.2d 557 (Minn. 1994).
• Simon v. G.D. Searle & Co., 119 F.R.D. 680 (May 8, 1987).
• Simon v. G.D. Searle & Co., 119 F.R.D. 683 (Dec. 15, 1987).