Category: Our Attorneys
Herman L. Talle Retirement
February 15, 2023 | Barna, Guzy & Steffen, Ltd.Attorney Herm Talle is a well-known figure in Anoka County legal fields and has practiced since 1959. Herm joined Barna, Guzy & Steffen, Ltd. during a merger in 1991 with the intention of winding down his practice. That practice continued for another thirty-two years. Herm finally decided to retire on January 31st, 2023. During those final 32 years Herm counseled many young attorneys and taught them how to be good lawyers. Full of history, knowledge and a unique insight on legal practice, Herm routinely made everyone’s day brighter at BGS just by showing up and being part of the team. His stories will be missed dearly, and we wish him all the best in retirement at long last. Congratulations Herm! Well done and well-earned retirement.
Read MoreEarly Mediation in Your Civil Litigation Case: A Time and Cost Saver, or a Waste of Time and Money?
August 19, 2022 | Joan M. Quade
The short answer is that it depends. But there are many cases where, with hindsight, we can say that it would have been beneficial to try early mediation. There are some cases where we tried early mediation and they settled before the parties spent a lot of money and time. These are usually the happiest litigants. In my 35 years as a lawyer and advocate for litigants, in many different types of civil litigation cases, and my years as a mediator and an arbitrator, I can tell you that there are many cases that would, and many that did, do well in early mediation. There are also many more cases, especially in the last years, that should have tried early mediation and settled. Litigation should be a last resort for dispute resolution. It costs too much, and it takes too long. Good lawyers, who have a thorough understanding of the law and experience in the litigation process, and who are representing reasonable clients, should be able to negotiate a settlement with the help of a skilled mediator. More and more the parties wish, as they slog through the litigation process, that they would have settled earlier in the process, instead of spending the money and time it takes to litigate. 96% of all…
Read MoreSignificant Proposed Changes to Minnesota Veterans Homes Rules
November 17, 2021 | Barna, Guzy & Steffen, Ltd.
By: Cathryn Reher While there has been a great deal of publicity about the ground-breaking ceremonies around the state for additional Minnesota Veterans Homes, far less publicized are the 88 pages of proposed changes to the Minnesota Rules. These proposed changes will impact both veterans and their spouses whether they currently reside, or have future plans to reside, at one of these facilities. The current rules can be viewed at: https://link.edgepilot.com/s/1f367ca5/5mJ1ZMz-4kSkcAQfk_IInA?u=https://www.revisor.mn.gov/rules/9050. You will want to check out the proposed rule changes at: https://link.edgepilot.com/s/71a018ff/xz80iGxVIUKb4jigTsKN0w?u=https://mn.gov/mdva/assets/2021-10-15-rd4384_tcm1066-502928.pdf. From an initial review of the proposed rule changes, many are adverse or more restrictive than under the current rules. If you read the MDVA description of the proposed rule changes, you would have no idea what changes are afoot. For instance, one of the proposed changes will impact a current and future facility resident’s holding a real property interest in the form of a life estate. The change adopts a valuation method for a life estate which could result in as much as a twenty to thirty percent increase in the equity value allocated to a Veterans Home resident. If the life estate were sold, the resident’s maintenance charge would increase until the full value of the interest, along with other available assets, was reduced below $3,000. For any persons holding…
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