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Happy Holidays 2024!
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LGN SPONSORS MINNESOTA FARMERS UNION CONVENTION
LGN was pleased to sponsor the 83rd annual state convention of the Minnesota Farmers Union. The annual convention aims to bring the community together and focus on the future. Speakers included officials from the Farm Service Agency, the DOJ Antitrust Division, and many local elected leaders. LGN associate Eura Chang and government relations team member Amos Briggs were in attendance.
The Minnesota Farmers Union works to protect and enhance the economic interests and quality of life of family farmers and ranchers and rural communities. MFU is a nonprofit membership-based organization. Membership is open to everyone.
You can learn more about the Minnesota Farmers Union on their website: https://mfu.org/
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Asp Featured Speaker: Loper Bright & Impacts to the Health Care Industry
LGN partner David Asp recently served as a panelist on an important CLE presentation, “Loper Bright: How One of the Most Significant Supreme Court Decisions In Recent Years Will Impact the Health Care Industry.”
The program focused on the Supreme Court’s decision in Loper Bright and its implications for the health care industry. This landmark ruling overruled the longstanding Chevron doctrine, reshaping how courts address disputes between industry and federal agencies such as CMS, FDA, and DOJ.
David joined panelists Professor Nicholas Bednar (University of Minnesota Law School) and Ryan Williams (Mayo Clinic) to share insights into how this decision will affect federal agency rulemaking, litigation, and advocacy.
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LGN Sponsors Night For Nexus 2024
We were honored to sponsor and be part of the 6th Annual Night for Nexus benefit. Thank you to all the guests, donors, speakers, and fellow sponsors who made the evening unforgettable. For over 50 years, Nexus Family Healing has been committed to restoring hope for thousands of children and families through mental and behavioral health services. Supporting Nexus Family Healing brings hope and meaningful change to the lives of the youth, families, and individuals Nexus serves.
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LGN Files First Antitrust Class Action Against GoodRx and Pharmacy Benefit Managers
On October 30, LGN, along with co-counsel at Pearson Warshaw LLP, filed an antitrust class action lawsuit against generic drug coupon provider GoodRx and Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) Caremark, Express Scripts, MedImpact, and Navitus. The lawsuit is brought by the plaintiff, Keaveny Drug, an independent pharmacy in Minnesota. The lawsuit alleges that the defendants (GoodRx and the PBMs) conspired to suppress reimbursement rates and increase fees charged to independent pharmacies on all GoodRx-related transactions through GoodRx’s “integrated savings program.”
The lawsuit seeks to recover the damages incurred by independent pharmacies throughout the United States, and to put a stop to the illegal conduct of GoodRx and the PBMs in participating in the GoodRx integrated savings program. It is the first lawsuit in the U.S. challenging this conduct.
Click below for more information.
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LGN Sponsors 2024 Progressive Law Benefit
LGN was proud to sponsor the Minnesota Chapter of the American Constitution Society’s 2024 Progressive Law Benefit. ACS is the nation’s leading progressive legal nonprofit organization, connecting lawyers, judges, professors, and law students across the country, who share a collective vision of the Constitution and law that enhances individual rights and liberties, and promotes genuine equality, access to justice, democracy, and the rule of law. The Progressive Law Benefit is the Chapter’s annual fundraising event, featuring a fun night of networking and trivia with local legal luminaries, hosted by Tane Danger, co-founder of Danger-Boat Productions and the Theatre of Public Policy.
LGN partner Rachel Kitze Collins served as Co-President of the Chapter for five years, and currently serves on the Board of Directors. LGN partner Charlie Nauen serves on the Board of Advisors, and was also a recipient of the Chapter’s Justice David Lillehaug Award for Distinguished Leadership.
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LGN Spotlight: Rachel Kitze Collins and Jennifer L. M. Jacobs Lead Employment Law Practice
Led by Rachel Kitze Collins and Jennifer L. M. Jacobs, the Employment Law Practice team at Lockridge Grindal Nauen represents leading global companies, governmental entities, and mission-driven non-profits.
Rachel and Jennifer provide exceptional leadership and subject matter expertise to this practice. Clients appreciate their responsiveness and nuanced advice in managing complex situations and ensuring compliance with ever-changing employment laws. When litigation is necessary, the team provides skilled representation in state and federal court. In addition to Rachel and Jennifer, LGN’s experienced employment law team includes David Asp, Marty Munic, Toni Konkoly, David Hahn, Derek Waller, and Consuela Abotsi-Kowu, along with support staff Heather Potteiger and Samantha Girard.
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Karen Hanson Riebel Selected as “Top Women in Law” Honoree
We are pleased to announce that Karen Hanson Riebel has been honored by Minnesota Lawyer magazine as a “Top Women in Law” award recipient! This prestigious award recognizes women attorneys who have achieved excellence in the legal profession, made significant contributions to the legal community, and demonstrated outstanding leadership. She was celebrated at an awards ceremony in Minneapolis last night.
Karen has been on the forefront of nationwide data breach litigation for more than ten years, just one component of a long and distinguished career as a consumer protection, antitrust, and securities lawyer acting on behalf of plaintiffs and classes. She is a fierce advocate on behalf of those who have been harmed and has used her advocacy in motion practice, discovery, at trial, and in achieving landmark settlements.
Karen is known for her ability to work collaboratively with counsel, both co-counsel and opposing counsel, her ability to work with plaintiffs, and her breadth of expertise, especially in data breach and privacy litigation. She is adept at working cooperatively to solve problems and manage teams of lawyers and litigants.
Karen is a fantastic mentor to less experienced attorneys and participates in mentoring groups that facilitate learning across practice, gender, racial, and experience level lines. She is devoted to studying diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives and works to foster an inclusive environment for all attorneys. She is conscious of including a diverse range of attorneys from all races, genders, geographic regions, years in practice, and backgrounds in all that she does.
Congratulations, Karen, on this remarkable achievement!
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LGN Welcomes Three New Associate Attorneys
We are thrilled to announce the expansion of our legal team with the addition of three exceptional new associate attorneys: Consuela M. Abotsi-Kowu, Michael J. K. M. Kinane, and Kira Q. Le. Their diverse backgrounds and impressive credentials will further strengthen our ability to provide the highest quality legal services to our clients. We are excited to see the impact they will have on our firm and our clients. You can read more about each of them below.
Consuela Abotsi-Kowu is an associate at Lockridge Grindal Nauen practicing primarily in the firm’s antitrust, data breach and employment practice groups.
Consuela graduated from the University of St. Thomas School of Law in 2024. In law school she served as President of the Black Law Students Association, Vice President of UST Student Government, and participated on the Negotiations team. She was part of the authorship team for the article titled ‘Using COVID-19 Surveillance Systems to Identify and Monitor Disparities: Best Practices and Recommendations,’ published in Ethnicity & Disease.
Consuela graduated from Oakwood University in May 2016 with a major in biology and later earned a Master of Public Health with a specialization in Environmental Health Sciences from UCLA.
Michael Kinane is an associate at Lockridge Grindal Nauen, where his practice focuses on antitrust law. Before entering private practice, Michael clerked for Associate Chief Justice John A. Pearce at the Utah Supreme Court. Michael graduated cum laude from the University of Minnesota Law School in 2023 and was the recipient of the Civil Litigation Concentration Honors Award. He served as a Managing Editor of the Minnesota Law Review and contributed a published Note, Grandpa Sherman Did Not See Google Coming: Evolutions in Antitrust to Regulate Data Aggregating Firms, as well as a published Essay, Interstate Cannabis Compacts: The Road to a Regional Legal Cannabis Economy. Michael competed on Minnesota Law’s McGee Moot Court team and was awarded the Best Respondent’s Brief in the competition. He additionally worked in criminal law during law school, including successfully representing the State of Minnesota before the Minnesota Court of Appeals.
Michael also earned a Master of Public Policy from the Humphrey School of Public Affairs in 2022 while attending the University of Minnesota. Before law school, Michael was a digital marketer in Silicon Valley.
Kira Le is an associate practicing primarily in the firm’s antitrust and health care practice groups. Kira graduated from the University of Minnesota Law School in 2024. In law school, she served as Lead Web Content Editor of the Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology, President of the Health Law & Bioethics Association, and a Student Director of the Community Legal Partnership for Health Clinic. Her student Note on antitrust concerns in the metastatic breast cancer drug market was selected for publication in Vol. 25, Issue 1 of the Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology.
Kira graduated summa cum laude from The George Washington University in December of 2020 with a major in Political Science and minors in Sustainability and Law and Society.
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LGN Welcomes Chief Justice Hudson and Judge Bratvold to Minneapolis Offices
Over the past few weeks, we have had the privilege of hosting two distinguished members of the MN judiciary at our Minneapolis office for a series of meet-and-greet events, Chief Justice Natalie Hudson of the MN Supreme Court and Minnesota Court of Appeals Judge Diane Bratvold. We pride ourselves on fostering meaningful connections between our legal professionals and the wider judicial community. These unique gatherings offered our attorneys and staff the opportunity to engage directly with Chief Justice Hudson and Judge Bratvold, gaining insights into their perspectives on the evolving legal landscape while discussing key issues shaping today’s courts. You can learn more about each of these Judges below.
Chief Justice of the MN Supreme Court, Natalie Hudson
Chief Justice Hudson began her legal career as a staff attorney with Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services in 1982, where she represented indigent clients in housing matters. She then transitioned to practice employment law and general civil litigation in 1986.
In 1989, Chief Justice Hudson’s career shifted from litigation to academia, when she became an Assistant Dean of Student Affairs at Hamline University School of Law. She served in this role until 1992, when she became the St. Paul City Attorney.
In 1994, Chief Justice Hudson went on to practice before the state appellate courts in the Criminal Appellate Division of the Office of the Minnesota Attorney General. The diversity of her underlying experience, and depth of appellate practice prepared Chief Justice Hudson well for her appointment to the Court of Appeals in 2002, a post to which she was twice re-elected. In August, 2015, she was appointed as an associate justice on Minnesota Supreme Court, winning election in 2016 and 2022. On October 1, 2023, she was appointed Chief Justice of the State of Minnesota, becoming the first Black woman to lead the Minnesota Judicial Branch.
Learn more about Chief Justice Hudson on her website: https://justicehudson.org/
Minnesota Court of Appeals Judge, Diane Bratvold
Diane is a judge on the Minnesota Court of Appeals, where she has been deciding appeals for 8 years. Diane has written over 400 opinions and decided more than 1200 appeals. She practiced law for 26 years in Minnesota before becoming a judge.
The Judicial Selection Commission recommended Diane for appointment to the Fourth Judicial District (Hennepin County), where she served as a trial judge from 2014 to 2016. The Commission recommended her for appointment to the Minnesota Court of Appeals and Governor Dayton appointed her in 2016. She was the first sitting judge elected as President of the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers.
Minnesota voters elected Diane in 2018. She was appointed to the special redistricting panel that redrew the legislative and congressional boundaries based on the 2020 census. Both political parties praised the panel’s work as nonpartisan.
You can learn more about Judge Bratvold on her website: https://www.reelectjudgebratvold.com/
