Category: Commercial Litigation
Counsel Now Required for Business Entities Involved in Commercial Evictions in Hennepin County Housing Court
February 15, 2019 | Tammy J. SchemmelCoauthored by Tammy Schemmel and Karen Kurth For years, commercial landlords in Hennepin County have filed eviction actions against tenants in material default of leases in Hennepin County Housing Court. Rule 603 of the Minnesota General Rules of Practice allowed the principals of business entities to file eviction actions without counsel and permitted commercial tenants to appear and defend the business entity without counsel in Hennepin County Housing Court. In 2018, the Minnesota Court of Appeals issued a decision holding that the Hennepin County Housing Court lacks authority to hear and determine any matter that is not related to residential rental housing. Likely in an attempt to salvage years of common practice, the Hennepin County District Court Chief Judge issued a Standing Order authorizing the Housing Court to hear civil cases involving commercial property evictions, but also requiring those commercial property evictions to be filed in District Court, not in Housing Court. [maxbutton id=”1″ ] Practically speaking, now commercial landlords that are business entities must hire counsel to file all commercial eviction actions in Hennepin County District Court and tenants must hire counsel to represent them in those eviction actions if they are business entities. The commercial eviction actions are still heard in Housing Court, but all business entities must appear through counsel….
Read MoreDefending Against ADA Lawsuits
October 1, 2018 | Bradley KletscherCoauthored by Bradley A. Kletscher and Tyler W. Eubank Generally. The Americans with Disabilities Act (commonly known as the “ADA”) is a federal law meant to protect persons with disabilities from discrimination. To that end, the ADA requires that businesses open to the public remove architectural barriers where such removal is readily achievable. The Department of Justice has produced the ADA Accessibility Guidelines, voluminous guidance on design specifications covering everything from the height of counters to the placement of braille signage on elevators. The ADA also allows persons affected by discrimination in the form of architectural barriers to seek injunctive relief from courts compelling business owners to make changes to their establishments. [maxbutton id=”1″ ] ADA Abuse. Enter ADA “drive-by” lawsuits. These lawsuits trace a predictable pattern: a disabled person, as defined by the ADA, goes to a business looking for non-compliance with ADA regulations. Due to the vast number of regulations, the business is often found not to be in compliance with ADA regulations; there may be too narrow of an accessibility strip next to a reserved parking space, too steep of a curb cut, too low signage for reserved spaces, too narrow of aisles, too high of a counter, or too high of a grab bar in the restroom. In one…
Read MoreNew Associate Attorney Joins BGS
April 5, 2017 | Barna, Guzy & Steffen, Ltd.Barna, Guzy & Steffen LTD. announces the addition of a new associate to our firm. Tyler W. Eubank has joined the firm’s Litigation and Employment Law department. He will be working closely with attorneys practicing in the firm’s growing Litigation/Employment Law area serving existing clients and enhancing the firm’s ability to serve our community. We are happy to welcome Tyler back to BGS as he previously worked in our Litigation/Employment Law department as a law clerk while attending law school. After graduating and receiving his JD, Tyler worked as a Judicial Law Clerk for Honorable Tammi A. Fredrickson. Before attending law school, Tyler spent 6 years living and working in Taiwan as an English Teacher, Intercultural-Manager and Area Trainer. Tyler graduated summa cum laude from Hamline University School of Law in 2015 ranked in the top 10{a0c01d20c42349884e67ff80c137866b0a9fe47aaae8f8a86a605a369ae487c3} of his class. He was on the Dean’s List all semesters and was a Dean’s Summer Fellow in 2013, during which time he also clerked for Honorable Tammi A. Fredrickson. Tyler also worked as Managing and Associate Editor of the Hamline Law Review. Tyler is excited about the opportunity to return to BGS as a Litigation/Employment Law attorney, “It’s great to back at Barna, Guzy & Steffen, I look forward to working with this great group…
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