January 3, 2021 by V. John Ella

“I am altering the deal, pray I don’t alter it any further.” (Darth Vader to Lando Calrissian in The Empire Strikes Back (1980)) Auge v. Fairchild Equipment, Inc. Despite the best efforts of the Minnesota Legislature, Minnesota Courts, and parties drafting contracts to clarify when and how employees are entitled to be paid commissions, disputes […]

October 5, 2020 by James C. MacGillis

In a May 2020 unpublished opinion, the Minnesota Court of Appeals decided in Mallberg v. Gustafson, et al that a company’s former employee was not only entitled to double damages on his wage claim, but also that the owner who managed the business was personally liable to the former employee for the monetary award. The […]

September 20, 2020 by Trepanier MacGillis Battina P.A.

In Sanimax, LLC v. Blue Honey Bio -Fuels, 945 N.W.2d 366 (Wisc. Ct. App. 2020), the Wisconsin Court of Appeals affirmed a circuit court’s decision to award attorney’s fees in the amount of $50,102.09 to the defendant, Blue Honey Bio-Fuels (“Blue Honey”) pursuant to Wis. Stat. § 134.90(4)(c) because it determined that the plaintiff, Sanimax, […]

September 18, 2020 by V. John Ella

In Cedar Valley Medical Specialists PC v. Wright, 940 NW.2d 442 (Iowa Ct. App. 2019), the Iowa Court of Appeals affirmed a district court bench trial judgment enforcing a liquidated damages provision in a physician non-compete agreement. The physician, Dr. Wright, signed a non-compete stating in part: “For the two-year period commencing on the last […]

September 18, 2020 by V. John Ella

Over this past year, Iowa appellate courts issued several decisions regarding employee drug and alcohol testing under Iowa Code Section 730.5.  Ferguson v. Exide In Ferguson v. Exide Technologies, 936 N.W.2d 429 (Iowa 2019), the Iowa Supreme Court held that the civil cause of action set forth in Section 730.5(15) provides the exclusive remedy for […]

September 13, 2020 by V. John Ella

Bonuses and commissions are useful and common compensation tools for employers. If implemented properly, they can incentivize hard work, generate sales, increase productivity, help to recruit and retain talent, promote fairness and objectivity, and allocate uncertainty from the business to the employee. But what is the difference between a “bonus” and a “commission”? In one Minnesota […]

August 6, 2020 by V. John Ella

The Minneapolis Freelance Worker Protections Ordinance The City of Minneapolis has enacted the Minneapolis Freelance Worker Protections Ordinance (“MFWPO” or “Ordinance”) to protect freelance workers and to “eliminate and prevent theft of freelance workers’ earned income.” The Ordinance amends existing wage theft protections for employees and will be codified at Title 2, Chapter 40, Article […]

June 28, 2020 by V. John Ella

Introduction The publication of a false statement that harms a business may addressed in litigation through tort claims other than common law defamation. In the realm of business torts, false statements about the goods or services of a commercial enterprise are sometimes referred to as “trade defamation” or “trade libel.” Many states use the term […]

June 20, 2020 by James C. MacGillis

Settling years of contentious litigation that followed Minneapolis’ adoption of a sick and safe time ordinance, the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled in June 2020 that the city’s ordinance (i) was not preempted by state law, and (ii) did not violate the extraterritoriality doctrine.  The decision means that not only are Minneapolis-based employers responsible for tracking […]

June 10, 2020 by V. John Ella

Introduction The Minnesota Supreme Court has weighed in on whether claims of sexual harassment under state law should continue to be analyzed under the “severe or pervasive” standard of review developed by federal courts ruling on sexual harassment claims under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. The state’s highest tribunal ultimately declined to […]