Attorney Spotlight: Brian Niemczyk

In what area of law do you practice and why did you choose this? General litigation, but particularly employment law and landlord-tenant law. When did you decide you wanted to be a lawyer? I always knew that I wanted to be a lawyer. It probably started with me obsessively watching episodes of “Law & Order” […]

Employee Restrictive Covenants, Part 4: What Types of Employees Should be Most Worried?

As a general matter, Minnesota non-compete law does not care what type of employee you are. If the agreement is supported by adequate consideration, protects a legitimate business interest, and is reasonable in geographical and temporal scope, it will be enforceable. That being said, experience has shown that certain categories of employees have proven to […]

Employee Restrictive Covenants, Part 3: What is a “Reasonable” Scope?

Generally speaking, employee restrictive covenants in Minnesota are enforceable only to the extent that their scope – in terms of both time and geographic area – is “reasonable.” But what does “reasonable” mean? As with most difficult legal questions, it depends. As will be discussed below, courts will look closely at a number of factors […]

Employee Restrictive Covenants, Part 2: Independent Consideration

When I get a call from either an employer or an employee about the potential enforceability of either a non-compete provision or a non-solicitation provision, among the first questions I ask is whether the contract at issue is supported by “independent consideration.” This post will address what independent consideration really is in this context, and […]

Employee Restrictive Covenants, Part 1: The Three Types of Restrictions

This is the first in a series of posts addressing some of the major legal issues facing Minnesota employers and employees in the area of employee restrictive covenants. This series will begin with the basics, by defining and describing the three major types of restrictive covenants contemplated by Minnesota law: 1) non-compete provisions; 2) non-solicitation […]

The perils of suing and being sued for fraud in commercial cases in Minnesota

As commercial litigation attorneys, a healthy percentage of the complaints which we initiate or respond to contain a claim that one or both of the parties involved committed fraud.  For a variety of reasons, it has become almost standard practice for such claims to be included in complaints primarily involving contracts or business-related torts.  While […]

Do’s and Don’ts of Winning an Unemployment Appeal Hearing

Quick Summary Learning how to win your unemployment appeal hearing is not an exact science. While nothing is guaranteed, understanding the do’s and don’ts of these cases will prepare you to approach your court date with confidence and increase your chances of winning. DO’s DON’TS Take the process seriously Rely too heavily on hearsay evidence […]

A landlord’s liability for leftover personal property

In my experience as counsel for landlords in eviction situations, I’ve found that no single set of issues is as vexing to me and to my clients as those which arise when a tenant leaves behind personal property following their departure.  Minnesota law is notoriously pro-tenant in this area, requiring the landlord to follow a […]