Minnesota Lawyer

Gov. Mark Dayton has appointed a lawyer from the Ramsey County Attorney's office to serve as state commissioner of human rights.

Federal regulators say a Minnesota man who pleaded guilty to bilking investors in a commodities Ponzi scheme has to pay $84.7 million in civil fines and restitution to customers under a court order.

Attorneys for Toyota Motor Corp. asked a federal judge last week to dismiss most of the claims filed by a Minnesota man who was incarcerated after a fatal crash involving a 1996 Camry, saying the automaker had no direct connection to events that put Koua Fong Lee in prison.

The number of people filing for bankruptcy increased in Minnesota in 2010 for the fourth consecutive year.

The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has rejected a challenge to Minnesota rules for electing judges and its mandatory retirement age for judges.

A Minnesota farmer who believes stray voltage killed hundreds of his cows and affected milk production can sue for damages in state court.

A former Forest Lake volunteer firefighter faces sentencing in March for a 2009 fire that burned about 1,500 acres in and around the Carlos Avery Wildlife Refuge.

The U.S. Attorney's Office in Minnesota has set up a new unit to go after those committing fraud.

Dozens of attorneys packed a federal courtroom in St. Paul on behalf of clients who lost money in Tom Petters' $3.7 billion Ponzi scheme.

Former Senate Majority Leader John Hottinger is once again free to practice law, following his suspension for misusing money from a client's lawsuit settlement.