News

ACKSP Brief provides regular communications from our attorneys to keep you connected and updated on current legal issues and decisions that impact your businesses and claims handling.

The Minnesota Supreme Court offered a reminder to employers in its February 3, 2021 decision, Hall v. City of Plainview: carefully draft your employee handbooks and follow your own policies. If the handbook contains ambiguous disclaimers and concrete compensation policies, it can be enforced against the employer as a unilateral contract.

Our attorneys are well-versed in handling and defending COVID-19 business interruption claims. Shayne Hamann, Steven Erffmeyer and Gregory Duncan are presently handling a case for IMT Insurance Company in the United States District Court – District of Minnesota. To date, they have obtained positive results for their client. Read more on the case here: https://bit.ly/3toiTQ6

Construction Law attorney, Jonathon Zentner, joined Acuity Insurance to share insights on avoiding legal issues in construction. Tune in to hear more from Jon and others in this webinar.

While 2020 was a year with more bad news than good, the Minnesota Court of Appeals offered something to celebrate when it released its decision in Else v. Auto-Owners Insurance Company in late-December. The Court’s decision, agreeing with Attorneys Tim Tobin and Marissa Linden of Arthur Chapman, holds that first-party insurance policy limits operate as a cap on pre-judgment (or pre-award) interest. While unreported, Else is a favorable outcome for insurers and is anticipated to have persuasive value in other first-party coverage matters as we head into the brighter days of 2021.

Congratulations to appellate attorneys Jeff Markowitz and Steve Warner for a stellar win at the North Dakota Supreme Court. A commercial landlord tried to collect a windfall of more than $2,000,000 from their client. Arthur Chapman trial attorneys Mike Ryan, Jonathon Zentner, Corey Bronczyk, and Bradley Idelkope secured summary judgment against the claim, and Jeff and Steve defended the win on appeal. Great team effort.

Arthur, Chapman, Kettering, Smetak & Pikala, P.A. has announced the election of Jeffrey M. Markowitz as shareholder at the firm.

Attorney, Sally Ferguson, was recognized at the ABOTA meeting last week for her contributions as 2020 President of the Minnesota ABOTA Chapter. She was recognized for her leadership and guidance through a difficult year as well as for her resourcefulness, ingenuity, and embodying stability and professionalism. Congratulations, Sally!

The Executive Order also brings new regulations for the construction industry. COVID-19 Construction under Executive Order 20-99 explains the new requirements as follows:

On Thursday, November 19 at 12 p.m. Central time, attorneys from our Wisconsin team will share an update on recent case law and trends they are seeing in Wisconsin. If you’re a claims professional and interested in joining Lee Miller, Gregory Duncan, Allison Krueger, and James Ranheim on this one-hour webinar, email info@arthurchapman.com for a link to register.

A primer on changes wrought in the wake of Justice David Lillehaug’s 2016 article on unpublished appellate decisions.

The American Arbitration Association will be moving to a new location as of September 14, 2020. Therefore, future denial of No-Fault benefits letters sent on and after September 14, 2020 must include the new address. Here is sample language for your denial letters with the required information pertaining to the American Arbitration Association office, and contact information for filing Minnesota No-Fault Arbitration.

The Minnesota Supreme Court issued a ruling addressing the significance of a potential intervenor’s decision not to intervene when it received adequate and timely notice of its right to intervene in an employee’s pending proceeding. In Koehnen v. Flagship Marine Company, File No. A20-0053 (August 12, 2020), the Minnesota Supreme Court confirmed that pursuant to Minn. Stat. §§ 176.271, 176.291 and Minn. R. 1420.1850, subp. 3B, when a potential intervenor receives adequate and timely notice of its right to intervene but chooses not to intervene in an employee’s pending proceeding, it can be extinguished by the award on stipulation for settlement and cannot subsequently dispute the award.

Arthur, Chapman, Kettering, Smetak & Pikala, P.A. is proud to share that Steven J. Erffmeyer has been named to the Minnesota Defense Lawyers Association Board of Directors.

On July 29, 2020, the Minnesota Supreme Court released Peterson v. Western National, expanding the scope of what can be first-party bad faith in Minnesota. In the case, Peterson claimed the $250,000 limits of her underinsured motorist (“UIM”) coverage, alleging that a whiplash injury from a motor vehicle accident caused severe headaches that required quarterly Botox injections (a relatively novel treatment). Western National’s last offer before trial was $50,000. A jury awarded Peterson damages over $1.4 million. After trial, Peterson amended her complaint to allege bad faith against Western National. The bad-faith claim was tried to the district court judge who awarded $100,000 in costs and $97,940.50 in attorney fees. Western National appealed.

On August 3, a New York federal district court judge injected a great deal of uncertainty into COVID-19 paid-leave law. The Honorable Judge Paul Oetkein of the Southern District of New York vacated four Families First Coronavirus Response Act (“FFCRA”) regulations in the U.S. Department of Labor’s (“DOL”) Final Rule. The court order impacts regulations that govern the Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act (“EFMLAEA”) and Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act (“EPSLA”).

On Thursday July 30th, 2020, amid a spike in coronavirus cases, Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers declared a Public Health Emergency and issued an Emergency Order requiring individuals to wear face coverings when indoors, or in an enclosed space, and not in a private residence––with some exceptions. The order is effective at 12:01 a.m. on Saturday, August 1, 2020, and will expire on September 28, 2020 or by a subsequent superseding order. Noncompliance with the order could land you a fine of $200.00.

Per Governor's Executive Order 20-81, on July 25, 2020, Minnesotans are required to wear a face covering in all public indoor spaces and businesses––subject to certain exceptions. Governor Walz explains this decision is inline with the CDC’s explanation that face coverings are most effective when worn by all individuals in a public setting. This “face mask mandate” will remain in effect until the legislature deems the peacetime emergency over.

Arthur Chapman is proud of the 18 attorneys selected as Super Lawyers® or Rising Stars® for 2020. Super Lawyers is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high-degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The patented selection process is multi-phased and includes independent research, peer nominations and peer evaluations.