Happy New Year! We hope that 2024 brings you health and prosperity and fills you with generosity.
At the start of another year serving our remarkable clients we are taking time to reflect and share gratitude for the amazing year we had in 2023.
In November of 2022, Anthony Ostlund attorneys Joe Anthony, Joe Richie, and Ryan Lawrence, and paralegal Lisa O’Donnell, joined a team of attorneys from Robins Kaplan in representing Douglas Kelley, the court-appointed receiver and bankruptcy trustee for Petters Company Inc., in seeking recovery from BMO Harris Bank N.A. for the role that a predecessor bank played in the Tom Petters Ponzi scheme.
Our team won a $564 million jury verdict against BMO, the largest jury verdict ever awarded in Minnesota history. As of June 2023 that award has ballooned to over $1 billion after the court granted our client’s request for pre- and post-judgment interest. The court also denied BMO’s post-trial motions, denying its requests for a new trial and a reduction of the jury award.
“We never doubted that the court would uphold the jury’s verdict and grant the interest our client is owed under the law, especially given the excellent briefs prepared by the attorneys at Robins Kaplan,” said Joseph Anthony. “But final entry of a landmark judgment like this one is a great moment.”
In June, Senior United States District Judge Donovan Frank on granted the parties’ motion to approve the settlement agreement in Murphy, et al. v. Harpstead, a significant federal court civil rights lawsuit brought on behalf of a class of people with disabilities living in group homes. Anthony Ostlund served as co-counsel with Mid‑Minnesota Legal Aid, and its affiliate the Minnesota Disability Law Center, and Nichols Kaster, PLLP in this case. The suit asserts that group home residents have been denied appropriate choice and opportunity to live more independent and integrated lives of their own choosing in the community. With this approval, the parties can start working to carry out the terms of the settlement and improve the lives of many impacted individuals.
In August, we announced that five of our attorneys were selected by their peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® for 2024. Art Boylan was named to the list for the first time and joins shareholders Joseph Anthony, Janel Dressen, Vincent Louwagie, and Richard Ostlund in receiving the honor.
Three months later in November, we shared that for the 10th year in a row, Anthony Ostlund Louwagie Dressen & Boylan was been named among the Best Law Firms® in the region. Our firm has been ranked by Best Lawyers® in three practice areas for the Minneapolis metro:
Regional Tier 1
- Commercial Litigation — Recognized annually since 2015
- Bet-the-Company Litigation — Recognized annually since 2020
Regional Tier 2
- Securities / Capital Markets Law — Recognized annually since 2018
In October we celebrated our four 2023 POWER 30 Business Litigation honorees: Joe Anthony, Janel Dressen, Randy Gullickson and Vince Louwagie. Each of these shareholders embody everything our firm stands for. We are a full team of 18 dedicated litigators and trial lawyers delivering advice, strategy and solutions that help our clients sleep at night. We are proud to be recognized as Minnesota’s go-to powerhouse for high-stakes business litigation.
Founding partner, Joe Anthony, was the honoree at the 42nd Annual Law Day Dinner benefitting Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid. The event was organized by the Fund for Legal Aid and co-sponsored by the Hennepin County Bar Association. Joe was recognized for his decades of personal, professional, and financial dedication to the work of Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid.
Congratulations to Joe for this well-deserved honor and to Legal Aid for its ongoing heroic work in support of justice for all in our community.
Following the success of our relaunch last fall, Lying, Cheating, and Stealing Seminar 2023: Secrets and Solutions for Handling Messy Business Disputes once again brought together great legal minds to share innovative approaches and strategies for handling lawsuits involving the liars, cheaters and stealers who just can’t stop.
For 2023 we expanded our popular Judges Panel and added a second panel made up of local GCs in addition to eight presentations by attorneys from Anthony Ostlund, Ballard Spahr, Henson Efron, Jones Day, Robins Kaplan, Rogness & Field, Stinson LLP and Vlodaver Law Offices.
Once again, our firm matched the $15 registration fee of all attendees and contributed it all to Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid to help them continue their amazing work.
Samantha J. Buckman has joined Anthony Ostlund as an Associate attorney. Samantha practices in all areas of business litigation with a focus on securities and derivative suits, shareholder/partnership disputes, contract disputes and corporate finance litigation.
Samantha is a magna cum laude graduate of the University of Minnesota Law School and served as a research assistant for Professor Morris Kleiner bringing her skill and acute attention to detail to the analysis and interpretation of contemporary and historical statutes and regulations involving complex occupational licensing requirements. Samantha was a Summer Associate at Anthony Ostlund in 2022.