280 results for 'court:"USDC Minnesota"'.
J. Tunheim partially grants the hand sanitizer manufacturer's motion for attorney fees and costs and to amend a judgment in its favor in its suit alleging failure to pay for its products. The purchaser has not demonstrated that the manufacture exaggerated its attorney's hours, but the total fees award is reduced by 30% since the suit involves relatively simple issues. The hourly rate of one attorney is reduced by $140. Costs are awarded in the amount of $3,561.28 and the judgment is amended to include post-judgment interest.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Tunheim, Filed On: October 2, 2023, Case #: 0:21cv1026, NOS: Other Contract - Contract, Categories: Attorney Fees, Contract
J. Tunheim amends a previous order partially granting competing motions for summary judgment in a suit alleging that the sellers of several companies proceeded to steal those companies, and their customers, back from the purchaser along with employees and customers. An arbitrator's findings of fact are not preclusive, and summary judgment is granted to the sellers as to a breach-of-contract claim.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Tunheim, Filed On: October 2, 2023, Case #: 0:17cv5009, NOS: Other Contract - Contract, Categories: Fraud, Contract
J. Blackwell partially grants the city and police officers’ motion for summary judgment in a wrongful death suit brought by the family of a man shot and killed by police in a highly publicized incident. A Fourth Amendment excessive force claim related to less-lethal munitions is dismissed as to the officers who used lethal munitions, and a substantive due process claim is dismissed because it is subsumed in Fourth Amendment claims. The motion is otherwise denied.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Blackwell, Filed On: September 29, 2023, Case #: 0:20cv1508, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: Civil Rights, Wrongful Death, Police Misconduct
J. Blackwell grants summary judgment to the property owners in their suit against the city arguing that the placement of bollards in front of the owners' driveway was an unlawful taking. The owners have a protected property interest in their access to the city's road, and the bollards' only function is to interfere with that access. Any money damages award would hinge on fact issues better evaluated by a jury, but injunctive relief is granted to the property owners and the city is ordered to remove the bollards.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Blackwell, Filed On: September 29, 2023, Case #: 0:21cv1446, NOS: Land Condemnation - Real Property, Categories: Municipal Law, Property
J. Schiltz largely grants the employer's motions to dismiss its employees' suits alleging that their terminations for refusal to be vaccinated for Covid-19 were discriminatory. The employees' religious discrimination claims survive, since the employer has not adequately shown that it would have suffered an "undue hardship" by keeping unvaccinated employees on staff and the employees have pleaded a failure to provide reasonable accommodations. One employee has not, however, exhausted her administrative remedies for her disability discrimination claims, and the employees' arguments that a vaccination requirement is an unlawful medical examination under the Americans with Disabilities Act fail. Failure-to-accommodate claims under the ADA survive.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Schiltz, Filed On: September 29, 2023, Case #: 0:22cv1923, NOS: Employment - Civil Rights, Categories: Employment, Covid-19, Employment Discrimination
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J. Tunheim denies the German substance-abuse treatment clinic's objection to a magistrate judge's order which found that the clinic's outside auditor, tax advisor and shareholder was a "managing agent," ordered that that agent and other officers, directors and managing agents be deposed in Minneapolis and granted narrowed motions to compel. The order did not rely upon any clear errors.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Tunheim, Filed On: September 28, 2023, Case #: 0:20cv409, NOS: Trademark - Property Rights, Categories: International Law, Trademark, Discovery
J. Tunheim largely grants the Minnesota Sex Offender Program and its administrators' motion to dismiss the program detainees' suit alleging failures to transfer them to lower-security facilities. One procedural due process claim survives, but the detainees' other claims are dismissed with prejudice, and their request for damages is dismissed without prejudice. A motion to certify a class is also denied.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Tunheim, Filed On: September 28, 2023, Case #: 0:23cv486, NOS: Civil Detainee: Conditions of Confinement - Prisoner Petitions, Categories: Civil Rights, Class Action, Prisoners' Rights
J. Frank grants the sheriff's motion to dismiss the Agence France-Presse journalists' claims against him in his individual capacity in a civil rights action arising after they were allegedly harassed and physically assaulted by officers while covering protests following the police shooting of Daunte Wright. The journalists claim they were pepper sprayed and threatened with arrest for filming. The journalists failed to sufficiently allege that the sheriff ordered any of the officers to take the alleged unconstitutional actions or that the sheriff was deliberately indifferent to a pattern of misconduct.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Frank, Filed On: September 27, 2023, Case #: 0:22cv3009, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: Civil Rights, Police Misconduct
J. Tostrud partially grants the debtor's motion for attorney fees and costs after he accepted an offer of judgment from the debt collector in a fraud and invasion of privacy action alleging violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, Driver's Privacy Protection Act and the Fair Credit Reporting Act. One attorney's claimed hourly rate is reduced by about 14% because he has fewer credentials and less experience than the other attorney. The debtor also failed to show that a paralegal's claimed hourly rate is reasonable. The debtor is awarded $78,000 in attorney fees and $7,000 in costs.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Tostrud, Filed On: September 27, 2023, Case #: 0:22cv1799, NOS: Consumer Credit - Other Suits, Categories: Debt Collection, Attorney Fees
J. Menendez rules in favor of the SEC in a securities action against the companies alleging that they bought and sold billions of newly issued shares of microcap securities without registering as or associating with a dealer. There is undisputed evidence showing that the companies bought and sold securities as part of a regular business under the meaning of the Securities Exchange Act and the dealer definition. The companies conceded that they never registered with the SEC as a dealer and there is no dispute that neither the individual nor the company associated with any entity that was registered as a dealer. The companies cannot assert an advice-of-counsel defense because there was neither complete disclosure of relevant facts or a request for the advice which would have allowed any reliance on that advice to be in good faith.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Menendez, Filed On: September 27, 2023, Case #: 0:21cv2114, NOS: Securities/Commodities/Exchange - Other Suits, Categories: Securities
J. Tunheim denies the meat packing companies' motion to dismiss multidistrict antitrust litigation alleging anticompetitive conduct in the pork packing industry to unlawfully stabilize the price of pork sold to grocery companies and others. The grocery companies sufficiently alleged a conspiracy to restrict competition in the industry which would impact the prices paid for pork for use in multi-ingredient pork products and pork by-products. The grocery companies' claims are timely even though the action was filed 10 years after the conspiracy allegedly began. The grocery companies alleged specific acts committed by the meat companies for the purpose of fraudulently concealing a conspiracy such that the statute of limitations is tolled. The grocery companies also adequately alleged that they were injured by the meat companies' violation of the Packers and Stockyards Act.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Tunheim, Filed On: September 26, 2023, Case #: 0:18cv1776, NOS: Antitrust - Other Suits, Categories: Antitrust
J. Tostrud grants the long-term care facilities' and officials' motion to dismiss the siblings' civil rights and negligence action arising from alleged misconduct related to the disabled brother's guardianship. The action failed to put the facilities on notice as to which siblings are asserting which claims against them. Many of the siblings' claims are barred by the Rooker-Feldman doctrine preventing a lower federal court from declaring a state court judgment unconstitutional. The siblings also failed to properly state civil rights claims against the facilities by failing to plausibly allege that they are state actors.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Tostrud, Filed On: September 26, 2023, Case #: 0:23cv1144, NOS: Amer w/Disabilities - Other - Civil Rights, Categories: Civil Rights, Guardianship
J. Tunheim rules in favor of the mother and son in the amount of $107,000 in an action under the Federal Tort Claims Act against the government arising after they were injured in a collision with a postal service truck. The mother and son showed that the truck driver failed to exercise ordinary care and that his breach of the duty of care proximately caused the wreck. However, a third party driver is 65% at fault for the collision due to his failure to secure a ladder to a van. The postal truck driver is 35% at fault and the government is therefore only liable for 35% of the total damages award for the mother's and son's medical expenses, property damages and other damages.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Tunheim, Filed On: September 26, 2023, Case #: 0:21cv1747, NOS: Other Personal Injury - Torts - Personal Injury, Categories: Damages, Negligence
J. Schlitz denies the employee's insurer's motion to compel arbitration and dismiss a declaratory judgment action brought by the employer's insurer arising from a coverage dispute after the employee, a massage therapist, was sued for malpractice and settled for $1.6 million. The employer's insurer is not a party to the contract between the employee and the employee's insurer. The employer's insurer is not seeking or obtaining direct benefits from the employee's insurance policy and cannot be ordered to arbitrate.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Schlitz, Filed On: September 26, 2023, Case #: 0:22cv2018, NOS: Insurance - Contract, Categories: Arbitration, Insurance, Indemnification
J. Wright partially denies the sheriff's motion for summary judgment in a civil rights action brought by the journalists alleging that they were harassed, shot with less-lethal weapons and unfairly arrested during the law enforcement response to protests after the deaths of George Floyd and Daunte Wright. The sheriff's motion is granted as to the journalists' injunctive and declaratory relief claims. However, the sheriff is entitled to qualified immunity as to three journalists' civil rights claims against him in his individual capacity. The city's motion for summary judgment is denied because the journalists presented evidence of a persistent pattern of unconstitutional misconduct by the police department and deliberate indifference by the city. The evidence shows that officers "deliberately and systematically" targeted journalists who were identifiable as members of the press and were not committing crimes. There is also evidence supporting the inference of a conspiracy between the police department, state patrol and other agencies to disregard curfew exemptions and interfere with the freedom of the press.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Wright, Filed On: September 26, 2023, Case #: 0:20cv1302, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: Civil Rights, First Amendment, Police Misconduct
J. Wright partially grants the company's motion to dismiss a nationwide class action brought by the homeowners arising from damages to their property allegedly caused by defective Power Grout and Hardener products. The motion is granted with respect to the homeowners' claims under the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act and Minnesota statutes, as well as the negligent misrepresentation, unjust enrichment and product liability claims. The homeowners failed to show that the Minnesota legislature intended for the statutes to apply extraterritorially. The homeowners failed to allege sufficient facts showing that damage occurred to their homes and property value to surmount the economic-loss doctrine.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Wright, Filed On: September 26, 2023, Case #: 0:22cv2173, NOS: Other Fraud - Torts - Personal Property, Categories: Product Liability, Warranty, Class Action
J. Wright partially rules in favor of the contractor in a breach of contract action against the subcontractor arising from microtunneling work performed as part of a water main construction project. The contractor's motion for summary judgment is granted as to the subcontractor's counterclaims for breach of contract, misappropriation of property and professional negligence but denied as to the wrongful termination, warranty and prompt payment counterclaims. The contractor's motion to exclude an estimator's testimony is granted to the extent that his opinions on engineering and geological topics are beyond his area of expertise. The motion is denied in all other respects. The subcontractor's motion to exclude testimony from a geotechnical engineer and a scheduling and damages expert is denied. The contractor's motion to exclude testimony from a construction expert and a hydrogeology expert is also denied.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Wright, Filed On: September 25, 2023, Case #: 0:20cv808, NOS: Other Contract - Contract, Categories: Experts, Contract
J. Schlitz partially grants Target's motion to dismiss a negligent misrepresentation, warranty and breach of contract class action brought by the consumers under California, Idaho and Illinois consumer protection laws. The action arose after Up & Up cold-and-flu medicine sold by Target which was labeled as non-drowsy made the consumers drowsy when they used it. The consumers' unjust enrichment claim and breach of contract claim as to one consumer are dismissed. One consumer failed to give Target adequate time to cure the breach. However, the consumers' claims to enforce regulations against false and misleading labeling are not preempted by the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Schlitz, Filed On: September 25, 2023, Case #: 0:22cv1576, NOS: Other Fraud - Torts - Personal Property, Categories: Consumer Law, Class Action
J. Frank rules in favor of the manufacturer in a trade secret misappropriation and breach of contract action brought by the company alleging that the manufacturer used the company's proprietary designs and information to develop and design two cell-culture products. The evidence at trial showed that the manufacturer's inventors designed and developed the products independently, without using any of the company's confidential information. The design of the manufacturer's products is fundamentally different from the company's concepts. The company's state law claims are untimely and its eight-year delay in bringing the action against the manufacturer was unreasonable. The delay caused a loss of documentary evidence, including emails, documents and recordings, that prejudiced the manufacturer.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Frank, Filed On: September 25, 2023, Case #: 0:13cv210, NOS: Patent - Property Rights, Categories: Patent, Trade Secrets, Contract
J. Magnuson grants the vehicle rental company a temporary restraining order enjoining the motorcycle rental agency from auctioning, using, operating or renting any of the former's vehicles, as the vehicle rental company's complaint alleges that the motorcycle rental agency did not pay all sums owed when renting the vehicles. The vehicle rental company demonstrates that the motorcycle rental agency likely breached the contract by continuing to use the vehicle rental company's mark on its websites despite the agreements' termination.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Magnuson, Filed On: September 22, 2023, Case #: 0:23cv2843, NOS: Trademark - Property Rights, Categories: Trademark, Contract, Injunction
J. Wright grants the corporation's motion to dismiss the former employee's action under the Minnesota Fair Labor Standards Act due to his failure to state a claim. The employee's motion for leave to amend is denied. The proposed second amended complaint fails to state claims under the Act against the corporation's counsel, its law firm and two executives. The employee also failed to allege a sufficient basis for invalidating agreements releasing the corporation and its agents or affiliates from liability for claims which do not fall under the Act.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Wright, Filed On: September 22, 2023, Case #: 0:22cv1922, NOS: Fair Labor Standards Act - Labor, Categories: Labor
J. Blackwell dismisses the permanent residency applicant and her husband's suit seeking to overturn the denial of their application. The District of Minnesota lacks subject-matter jurisdiction to review the denial, and while the husband has standing on the couple's remaining claims, and the Board of Immigration Appeals erred in finding that the husband's 2010 sex-offense and failure-to-register conviction was a "specified crime against a minor," that error was not prejudicial since the circumstances that the couple have alleged disprove "predatory intent" required for such a finding are insufficient to show prejudice. Due process claims are also not adequately pleaded.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Blackwell, Filed On: September 18, 2023, Case #: 0:22cv1698, NOS: Other Immigration Actions - Immigration, Categories: Administrative Law, Immigration
J. Menendez partially grants the university's motion to dismiss the professor's religious-discrimination suit against it stemming from her termination for displaying a painting of the Prophet Muhammad in her art history class. The professor's reprisal, defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress and retaliation claims are dismissed for failure to state a claim, but her religious-discrimination claim survives. The professor's motion to remand this action to state court is denied.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Menendez, Filed On: September 15, 2023, Case #: 0:23cv505, NOS: Employment - Civil Rights, Categories: Employment, Employment Discrimination, Employment Retaliation
J. Tostrud partially grants the department of human service's motion to dismiss the civilly-committed criminal defendants' suit alleging failures to keep to deadlines for treatment placement of defendants. Fourteenth and Fourth-Amendment substantive due process claims, along with negligence, false imprisonment, and infliction of emotional distress claims and a request for a writ of mandamus, are dismissed. Procedural due process claims under the Fourteenth Amendment and the Minnesota Constitution survive.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Tostrud, Filed On: September 14, 2023, Case #: 0:23cv355, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: Civil Rights, Prisoners' Rights
J. Tunheim denies the insurers' three motions to exclude expert testimony along with the insureds' two such motions, with the exception of a request by the insureds to strike two errata sheet changes by one of the experts. Cross-motions for partial and total summary judgment are partially granted. The experts' testimonies are variously appropriate to their proposed functions. Billing limitation agreements the insurers entered with healthcare providers are prohibited under the No-Fault Act as preestablished limitations and for having the effect of managed care. The insurer is therefore enjoined from entering or enforcing those or similar agreements. The insureds' breach of contract claims fail, however, since they have failed to prove that their policies guaranteed them their choice of providers. Issues of fact remain as to the insurers' involvement in challenged policies, so one insurer's request to dismiss all of its claims against an affiliated company that is not an insurer is denied, but another such company which has not issued any auto insurance policies in Minnesota during the class period of this suit is dismissed from this action.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Tunheim, Filed On: September 13, 2023, Case #: 0:19cv3071, NOS: Insurance - Contract, Categories: Insurance, Class Action, Contract
J. Tunheim dismisses the would-be employee's suit alleging that the employer failed to hire her on the basis of race, color, sex, sexual orientation and national origin. The national origin claim has not been administratively exhausted, and the would-be employee has not plausibly alleged discrimination nor that she was qualified for the employer's open positions.
Court: USDC Minnesota, Judge: Tunheim, Filed On: September 13, 2023, Case #: 0:23cv906, NOS: Employment - Civil Rights, Categories: Employment, Employment Discrimination