In January 2010, Plaintiff slipped and fell on a patch of ice while exiting her vehicle near the rear loading area of a metro furniture store.  Plaintiff alleged she underwent surgery and later became entirely disabled, requiring millions of dollars in future health care costs.  Plaintiff brought suit against the owner of the property, the property manager, and the contract maintenance company.  The Premises Liability Defense Team of Robert E. Kuderer and Jenna M. Powers represented the property manager and its maintenance contractor.

On March 6, 2012, the case was dismissed at the summary judgment stage because none of the Defendants owed Plaintiff a duty of care.  Sherburne County Judge Thomas D. Hayes found that the ice Plaintiff slipped on was not only open and obvious, but so obviously dangerous that Defendants did not owe her a legal duty of care, citing her status as a lifelong Minnesota resident and deposition testimony that the ice patch was visible.  The court rejected Plaintiff’s argument that she was distracted and that Defendants were liable despite the obvious ice hazard.

The MTA sponsored prohibition on one way indemnity (SF 1687) has yet to be heard in the Senate Commerce Committee. That same committee acted as a roadblock last year. The lobbying team met with Senator Gerlach, chair of that committee, last week and were told unless compromise could be reached with Flint Hills Resources, the primary opponent of the bill, he was not inclined to take it up. The bill has met first deadline requirements after being passed to the House floor, but will need to be heard in Senate Commerce and Senate Judiciary Committees by March 23rd to remain alive. Please contact your senator and deliver this message: Ask Chairman Gerlach to hear SF 1687 asap.

To learn what this could potentially mean to your organization contact Jon Lilleberg, Matt Johnson or Paul Hopewell.

Plaintiff brought a premises liability claim against a property management company claiming they were negligent in maintaining her rental unit in Bloomington, MN. After a 3-day trial in Hennepin County District Court, the jury returned its verdict finding that defendant’s conduct was not a direct cause of plaintiff’s harm. Plaintiff claimed almost $200,000 in general and special damages, which the jury rejected in their entirety.

The Defendant was capably represented by Tim Leer, who headed up the firm’s Premises Liability Defense Team, consisting of Matt Johnson, Christy Remington and Jill Doherty.

About Tim Leer

Tim Leer is one of Johnson & Condon’s senior partners and co-chair of the Firm’s General Liability and Professional Liability practice groups. His practice involves a variety of litigation matters including professional and pharmaceutical malpractice, products liability, No-Fault and Motor Vehicle law, premises liability, patent and trademark infringement, and employment-related claims. He is one of the Firm’s most prolific trial lawyers, and regularly receives defense verdicts in the state and federal courts of Minnesota and Wisconsin. He has over twenty-nine years of experience in representing both plaintiffs and defendants in personal injury and wrongful death matters.

About Matt Johnson

Matt Johnson is a shareholder with Johnson & Condon. His litigation practice involves representing clients defending personal injury and property damage claims involving automobile, liquor, premises, and products liability. He also represents his clients in contractual disputes. His corporate clients include trucking and car rental companies, hotels, restaurants, retailers, and marinas. Mr. Johnson also pursues subrogation claims on behalf of workers’ compensation insurers and employers. He also represents insurance companies in automobile, homeowners, and commercial coverage disputes.

About Johnson & Condon

Johnson & Condon, P.A. is a 29-attorney Civil Lit­igation law firm based in Minneapolis that has been guiding its clients to effective decisions for more than 35 years. Regularly honored by their peers as the best in the industry, Johnson & Condon’s record in business, education and disabilities litigation has helped shape the law and protect important rights. Johnson & Condon’s major practice groups include Civil Litigation and Employer-Related Workers’ Compensation. Additional areas of emphasis are General & Professional Liability, Insurance Coverage and Defense, Employment, Education, Construction, Toxic & Mass Tort and Transportation.

For Immediate Release                                                                        Contact:

Joseph G. Scott — Scott & Associates, Inc.

612–839-3800 — joes@scottassoc.com@scottassoc / LinkedIn

In January 2009, the Plaintiff ate at the Defendant’s quick service restaurant and paid for the meal with a credit card.

He was given the Merchant Copy of his receipt, which contained his credit card’s expiration date. Plaintiff claimed that the restaurant willfully violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and the Fair Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA), and sought class action status on behalf of similarly situated individuals for statutory damages of up to $1,000.00 per violation, plus attorney’s fees.

The Consumer Law Defense Team of Bob Kuderer and Jenna Madden Powers represented the Defendant franchisee restaurant. The case was dismissed by Federal District Judge Donovan Frank based upon insufficiency of specific facts alleged to sustain a claim for willful violation of Federal law. A claim for negligent violation could not be maintained due to the absence of any allegations of actual damages. As such, the case was dismissed at the pleading stage and the Defendant was found not liable to the Plaintiff.

About Bob Kuderer

Bob Kuderer is a partner at Johnson & Condon and focuses on professional liability, insurance coverage, and business and commercial litigation. He has handled high-profile toxic tort, pesticide and vaccine litigation inside, and outside, Minnesota and in various State and Federal Courts.

Bob represents parties involved in commercial contract disputes, including franchise and dealership terminations. He has handled lawsuits of statewide interest, including the State’s seminal case establishing good faith immunity for officers and directors of non-profit corporations.

About Jenna Madden Powers

Jenna Madden Powers concentrates her civil litigation practice in the areas of general liability and commercial litigation. She joined Johnson & Condon as a law clerk in 2007, after her first year of law school, and became an associate in 2009.

Ms. Powers graduated from William Mitchell College of Law in 2009. She received a CALI Award in “Feminist Jurisprudence”, the 2008 Douglas K. Amdahl Scholarship and was nominated for a Burton Award as author of the best memorandum of law in her first year writing class.

About Johnson & Condon

Johnson & Condon, P.A. is a 29-attorney Civil Litigation law firm based in Minneapolis that has been guiding its clients to effective decisions for more than 35 years. Regularly honored by their peers as the best in the industry, Johnson & Condon’s record in business, education and disabilities litigation has helped shape the law and protect important rights. Johnson & Condon’s major practice groups include Civil Litigation and Employer-Related Workers’ Compensation. Additional areas of emphasis are General & Professional Liability, Insurance Coverage and Defense, Employment, Education, Construction, Toxic & Mass Tort and Transportation.

]]> http://www.johnson-condon.com/news/2012/03/johnson-condon-trial-team-obtains-dismissal-of-plaintiff%e2%80%99s-claims-in-credit-card-liability-case/feed/ 0 http://www.johnson-condon.com/news/2012/03/johnson-condon-trial-team-obtains-dismissal-of-plaintiff%e2%80%99s-claims-in-transportation-liability-case/ http://www.johnson-condon.com/news/2012/03/johnson-condon-trial-team-obtains-dismissal-of-plaintiff%e2%80%99s-claims-in-transportation-liability-case/#comments Thu, 08 Mar 2012 23:09:33 +0000 scottassoc http://www.johnson-condon.com/news/?p=231 Continue reading →]]> Minneapolis, MN

On December 28, 2007, the Plaintiff was rear-ended on I-94 near Maple Grove, MN after a semi-tractor owned by the Defendant rear-ended the vehicle behind her, causing a three-vehicle accident. The Plaintiff claimed the Trucking Company employee negligently operated the semi-tractor, causing serious injuries to her neck, hand and wrist.  The Plaintiff claimed a total of approximately $150,000 in medical expenses and wage loss, and requested the jury award in excess of $450,000.

The Transportation Liability Defense Team of Bob Kuderer and law clerk Lance Meyer, represented both the Trucking Company and its driver.  The case was tried from February 6 to February 10, 2012.  The jury found that the driver was not negligent in the operation of the semi-tractor and, further, that Plaintiff did not meet the No-Fault Tort Thresholds to pursue non-economic damages. As such, the Defendant was not liable and the case was dismissed post-verdict on stipulation.

About Bob Kuderer

Bob Kuderer is a partner at Johnson & Condon and focuses on professional liability, insurance coverage, and business and commercial litigation.  He has handled high-profile toxic tort, pesticide and vaccine litigation inside, and outside, Minnesota and in various State and Federal Courts.  Bob represents parties involved in commercial contract disputes, including franchise and dealership terminations.  He has handled lawsuits of statewide interest, including the State’s seminal case establishing good faith immunity for officers and directors of non-profit corporations.

About Johnson & Condon

Johnson & Condon, P.A. is a 30attorney Civil Lit­igation law firm based in Minneapolis that has been guiding its clients to effective decisions for more than 35 years. Regularly honored by their peers as the best in the industry, Johnson & Condon’s record in business, education and disabilities litigation has helped shape the law and protect important rights. Johnson & Condon’s major practice groups include Civil Litigation and Employer-Related Workers’ Compensation. Additional areas of emphasis are General & Professional Liability, Insurance Coverage and Defense, Employment, Education, Construction, Toxic & Mass Tort and Transportation.

For Immediate Release                                                                        Contact: Joseph G. Scott — Scott & Associates, Inc.

612–839-3800 — joes@scottassoc.com

@scottassoc / LinkedIn