Category: Attorney News
BGS announces the addition of a new associate to the firm
May 13, 2021 | Barna, Guzy & Steffen, Ltd.
Mikael J. Ingvaldson has joined the firm’s Personal Injury and Criminal Law department. He will be working closely with attorneys practicing in those areas serving existing clients and enhancing the firm’s ability to serve our community. Mikael began his career with BGS as a law clerk in the PI and Criminal Law department in 2019. Finding it a perfect fit for his desire to pursue a career helping people navigate the legal system when they are in need, Mikael was thrilled to accept a permanent position in the department upon earning his JD from University of St. Thomas School of Law and passing the bar exam. Prior to joining BGS, Mikael clerked for a small PI firm in Roseville, where his interest in pursuing a career in PI originated. Mikael also has experience working with the Chaska Public Defenders office where he appeared in court for first appearances, arraignments, pre-trial hearings, and probation violations. He has experience with negotiating plea bargains, conducting interviews with clients, and assisting them with evaluating their options. Barna, Guzy and Steffen, LTD. has a long-standing tradition of helping clients with their legal needs, serving generations of clients in the north metro. Mikael is excited to be working with Attorneys Adriel Villarreal and John Buchman on our PI and…
Read MoreBarna, Guzy & Steffen LTD. announces the addition of a new associate to the firm
April 26, 2021 | Barna, Guzy & Steffen, Ltd.
Georgia S. Kellogg has joined Barna, Guzy & Steffen’s Corporate Business & Real Estate department and will be working closely with attorneys practicing in those areas serving existing clients and enhancing the firm’s ability to serve our community. She is an experienced corporate attorney who has worked with clients in commercial and real estate transactions, transfers, entity formation and corporate governance, shareholder buyouts and redemptions, loan defaults, property disputes and more. Georgia has recently returned to Minnesota after working for a law firm in Washington where she also advocated on behalf of a corporate client before the Washington Department of Revenue. Georgia is a 2019 graduate of Mitchell Hamline School of Law. During her time at Mitchell Hamline, she earned the Law and Business Certification; Law School Public Service Award and was on the Dean’s List. Prior to law school, Georgia attended the University of St. Thomas, graduating with a dual degree in Accounting and Legal Studies for Business in 2016. Barna, Guzy and Steffen, LTD. has a long-standing tradition of helping clients with their legal needs, serving generations of clients in the north metro. Georgia is excited to be joining our legal team saying, “It is a blessing to be back home in Minnesota and to have this opportunity to practice alongside…
Read MoreMinnesota Supreme Court Rules on Workplace Handbook Policies
April 16, 2021 | Scott M. Lepak
Authored By Scott M. Lepak and Claire Schmitz The Minnesota Supreme Court recently announced two important holdings in Hall v. City of Plainview regarding workplace handbook policies. First, the Court determined that general disclaimers in employee handbooks (generally at the front of personnel handbooks or manuals) do not automatically apply to all provisions within the handbook, including compensation and severance policies. The second ruling was that the state law providing a penalty for failure to pay wages promptly did not create an automatic right to paid time off (PTO) on its own absent a binding contract present. Read on as we discuss the specifics of the Minnesota Supreme Court rulings on workplace handbook policies. Background Facts In 2017, the City of Plainview terminated an employee who had accrued unused PTO throughout 30 years of work. When the employee was terminated, the City refused to pay him the accrued PTO, citing the employee handbook. The City claimed he had not given “sufficient notice” per a policy in their handbook. This employment handbook also contained a disclaimer stating that the provisions within it “should not be construed as contract terms” and that it was “not intended to create an express or implied contract of employment between the City of Plainview and an employee.” The employee…
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