John has been trying lawsuits and arguing appeals in state and federal courts in Minnesota and across the U.S. for more than 30 years. His focus is on complex civil litigation, with an emphasis on commercial, corporate, and fiduciary issues. He has tried to conclusion well in excess of 100 jury cases, and his experience includes a wide variety of other forums, including appellate courts, administrative proceedings, and arbitration hearings. He has argued cases in the Minnesota Supreme Court, the Minnesota Court of Appeals, and the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals. He has represented major pharmaceutical, medical device, and agribusiness corporations, financial institutions, nonprofit organizations, and individuals. His counseling and litigation experience includes:

• Estate, trust, and fiduciary liability
• Product liability
• ERISA
• Class actions
• Insurance coverage
• Professional liability (especially legal malpractice)
• Environmental law
• Employment litigation
• Breach of contract and Uniform Commercial Code
• Trade secrets, fraud and other business torts

John is professional responsibility counsel to the firm, responsible for advising and representing the firm in matters involving the rules of professional conduct, professional liability, and risk management.

He has served as an arbitrator for the American Arbitration Association and the Hennepin County District Court, and has frequently been a court-appointed and privately-retained mediator.

Representative Trial Experience

• Lanham Act false advertising case against drug manufacturer/distributor falsely claiming its product as a generic
• Will contests involving diminished capacity, undue influence
• Product liability case involving commercial garage door operator in which plaintiff was a brain-damaged quadriplegic
• CERCLA (Superfund) case involving site occupied by lead smelting facility
• Brain damage case involving allegedly defective all-terrain vehicle
• Civil action and administrative contested cases involving taconite mining facility and its tailings disposal practices
• Lanham Act false advertising and theft of ideas cases
• Tax litigation involving tax-exempt status of halfway house as an "institution of purely public charity"
• ERISA class action involving change-in-control executive severance plan
• Catastrophic injuries arising out of amusement park ride
• Covenants not to compete in various industries, including insurance, medical devices, and computer sales
• Breach-of-contract litigation involving NBA-branded merchandise
• Defense of  manufacturers of swimming pools and athletic equipment in spinal-cord injury cases
• Defense of appliance manufacturers against claims involving catastrophic burn injuries
• Defense of  appliance manufacturers in cases involving destruction of residences and other buildings in fires

Pro Bono

• The Advocates for Human Rights
• Minneapolis Indian Women's Resource Center
• Volunteer Lawyers Network
• Tubman/Chrysalis
• Counsel for plaintiffs in conceal/carry litigation
• Counsel for plaintiffs in LGBT anti-harassment litigation

Honors

Professional Associations

• Hennepin County Bar Association (former president)
• Minnesota State Bar Association (former member, Board of Governors)
• Minnesota Defense Lawyers Association (former director)

Civic Activities

• Fund for the Legal Aid Society (executive committee; former chair)
• Milkweed Editions (director; former chair)

Clerkships

Presentations

• Law and Literature (Diversity and the Elimination of Bias) (2011)
• The Eight Most Difficult Ethical Issues for Probate and Trust Attorneys (2009)
• The Sky is Falling: Probate and Trust Litigation in Troubled Times (2008)
• Corruption Junction: The Ethical Intersection of Law, Politics, and Human Nature (2008)