In 1992, I graduated from
the James Madison School of Public Policy at Michigan State University with a
degree in Political Economy and Economics.
I took a year off to work as a messenger in a large Seattle law firm
before stating school in St. Paul.
I got my law degree from the William Mitchell College of Law (moot court and
cum laude for those who care) in
1996. I have more than 15 years of
experience helping injured people
with accident cases, dog (and cat!) bite cases, no-fault insurance claims, and
property damage disputes. I work
closely with associates that help victims in workers compensation claims,
medical and legal malpractice and even criminal cases.
If you have a question or need help, please don’t be shy about asking.
Email or call – consultations are always freely given.
I am also not willing to
assist anyone looking to game the system.
There are plenty of plaintiff attorneys willing to take on any person who
has been in an accident, whether or not they are really (truly) hurt – I am not
one of them. My personal belief is
that there are also doctors and chiropractors that prey on accident victims for
their greedy and selfish gain. This
repugnant behavior is ruining the no-fault insurance safety net for everyone.
While I would be happy to answer anyone’s questions, I screen cases
carefully and take only legitimate claims.
If you are not really hurt, I am not the lawyer for you.
Allan Shapiro (www.finnshapiro.com)
gave me a job doing personal injury work in 1994, when I was in my second year
of law school. I worked for him
until 2006. We were fortunate to
have not only a thriving practice helping injured plaintiffs, but steady work
doing insurance defense – mostly truck, bus and taxi cab accidents.
My work from both sides of the spectrum not only allowed me to work with
(some might say against, but we are all trying to get matters resolved fairly)
many people from both plaintiff and defense law firms.
We won some cases and lost some, including what was for a time the
biggest personal injury verdict in Ramsey County (we were on the defense side of
that one).
Working from both sides of
a claim allowed me to develop a healthy perspective for what motivates parties
in a lawsuit. Now, if I am on the
defense side of a claim, I know what motivates plaintiffs and their attorneys to
settle – it is not trying to beat a settlement into them, it is trying to be
fair under the circumstances.
Understanding the reality of the situation, and communicating that to my clients
and the other side is important.
When I am on the plaintiff side, I know what the defense attorney and insurance
representatives need before they are willing to meet our demand.
I know what needs to be done to get to the insurers’ top dollar and am
willing to work hard to get there.
I started my own law firm
in January 2006, by simply getting a business license and printing new cards.
My old boss was generous enough to allow me to stay (rent free for a
time) in his office suite while I got established.
In 2010, I was approached by Robert Christensen and Jim Vander Linden,
whom, while maintaining independent offices, practice together under the moniker
Advocates for Justice (www.rpcmnlaw.com).
They, along with attorney James Sherburne, offered me an opportunity to
move my practice to their suite in the Park Place East building in St. Louis
Park.
While it was hard to leave
the attorneys and staff I had worked with for more than a decade at the Parkdale
Plaza building, the move has been wonderful.
The facilities are gorgeous, the staff friendly, and business is good.
Even in the short time I have been working with this group, I have
learned much about how one can do well by doing good (and working very hard).
I now spend at least as much time working on general litigation cases,
like breach of contract, commercial theft, and corporate fraud, as I do personal
injury work.
Arbitration has also been a
passion for more than a decade. I
have been an arbitrator for the American Arbitration Association (www.adr.org)
and the Better Business Bureau (www.thefirstbbb.org)
since 2001. With the AAA I have
been selected to arbitrate more than 150 Minnesota No-Fault insurance disputes.
With the BBB, while I mainly decide Minnesota Lemon Law cases, I have
also been selected to serve as an arbitrator on many commercial and construction
cases.
I believe the reason I have
been picked to arbitrate disputes is my background in working cases from both
the plaintiff and defense side. I
am able to appreciate both sides’ arguments and render a decision that is fair
and based on the law as opposed to personal belief or prejudice.
In 2010 I completed my 30-hour training session as required to become a
Qualified Neutral under the Minnesota
General Rules of Practice. This
allows me to work as a mediator. As
opposed to an arbitrator, who renders a decision, a mediator works to bring the
parties to a settlement they both can accept.
Along with handling a limited number of serious injury cases and
egregious cases of abusive denials by insurance companies, along with helping
companies that find themselves in trouble for one reason or another I look
forward to opening this new mediation chapter in my career.
Personal Injury - Personal Service