2022 Unsung Legal Heroes: Nicholas Adler

Robins Kaplan LLP Nicholas Adler’s move from the Scott County Sheriff’s Office to Minneapolis-based Robins Kaplan LLP, must have seemed like a natural transition, since he was following in his father’s footsteps. As one of the firm’s two investigators, Adler holds the same position his father, John Adler, held from 1986 until his retirement in 2016.

As a Scott County sheriff’s deputy, Adler worked in traffic enforcement until 2005, when he became a narcotics investigator. During his 14 years with the department, he also served in several other roles, including field training officer, crime scene technician and K-9 handler. He joined Robins Kaplan as one of the firm’s two investigators in 2015.

Law enforcement runs in his family; both his father and uncle are retired state troopers. Adler also followed that path, earning a degree in law enforcement from Vermilion Community College.

Adler serves all of the firm’s practice groups, working on cases from around the country. He has done the majority of his investigative work on personal injury cases, collecting information, photos and vehicle records, and contacting and hiring experts who may provide testimony in court. He also works in business litigation — including insurance-related work, medical malpractice and conducting background checks for client firms — and in intellectual property cases.

Some of his most meaningful work has been done in personal injury or wrongful death cases including “working with families who have lost a dad or mom or sibling, who come to us looking for answers. Our firm is really good at providing those answers, which provides some comfort to families.”

Adler remembers one memorable case from 2017, helping the family of a high school student who had lost his life in a collision in Vining, Minnesota. The firm’s investigation revealed that a driver of a semi-truck was driving down the wrong side of the road in heavy fog, and that the driver had previously been involved in a similar incident.

Comparing law enforcement work and working for law firms “the stresses are different, there can be a lot of pressure to find answers for families, but for me the transition has not been very difficult.”

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