Proven Results for Minnesota Employees 

At Schlesinger Kaster, PLLC, we measure success by real outcomes for real people. Our attorneys have a proven track record of winning significant jury verdicts, achieving meaningful settlements, and overturning unjust rulings for employees and individuals whose rights were violated. We prepare every case as if it will be tried, and that commitment shows in the results we deliver.

Below is a sampling of outcomes achieved by our attorneys in employment law and civil rights matters. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes, and results may have been achieved by our attorneys while working with other lawyers and firms, but they reflect the experience, preparation, and resolve we bring to every case.

Employment Discrimination, Harassment & Retaliation

• $9.4 Million Jury Verdict – Retaliation
  Federal Railway Safety Act retaliation case tried to verdict in U.S. District Court, District of Minnesota on behalf of employee who lost his job after he reported safety concerns. This verdict was later reduced to a punitive damages cap on such cases. 
• $3.8 Million Jury Verdict – Disability Discrimination
  Disability discrimination jury verdict on behalf of amputee who lost his job after informing his supervisor that he had a lower leg prosthetic.   
• $1.455 Million Settlement – Race Discrimination
  Settlement on behalf of eight Minnesota correctional officers subjected to race and color discrimination during detention of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin at the Ramsey County Correctional Facility.
• $1.2 Million Jury Verdict – Retaliation and Discrimination
  Federal jury verdict for an employee who was subjected to sexual harassment and then demoted and transferred after she reported the harassment to her employer. 
• $ 700,000 Settlement – Race Discrimination and Retaliation
  Settlement for employee subject to race discrimination and retaliation in an industrial workplace.
• $375,000 Jury Verdict, $1.65 Million Total Award – Disability Discrimination
  Minnesota state court jury verdict in a disability discrimination case on behalf of employee who lost his job after he informed his employer of his disability. 
• $150,000 Court Trial Verdict – Sexual Harassment and Retaliation
  Verdict for multiple employees in a bench trial who were subject to sexual harassment and retaliation when they objected to and reported the harassment to their employer. Verdict included statutory penalties and treble damages under the Minnesota Human Rights Act. 

Whistleblower & Retaliation Appeals

• Reversal of Summary Judgment – Resulting in $285,000 Settlement
  Successfully argued before the Minnesota Court of Appeals to reinstate a whistleblower claim dismissed at the trial court level on behalf of a former policy officer who was subject to retaliation for reporting misconduct within his department. 
• Reversal of Summary Judgment – Resulting in $150,000 Jury Verdict
  Overturned dismissal of a state whistleblower claim on appeal, leading to a jury verdict for the employee who was retaliated against after reporting misconduct within his department. 
• Reversal of Summary Judgment (Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals) 
  Successfully argued before Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals to reverse an adverse summary judgment order in a disability discrimination claim on behalf of employee who lost his job after suffering a brain injury. 
• Federal Appellate Victory (Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals)
  Successfully reversed an adverse jury verdict in a retaliation case due to erroneous jury instructions, securing a new trial opportunity. 

Civil Rights & Police Misconduct

• $495,000 Settlement
  Settlement for transgender female inmate incarcerated in a men’s facility and subject to gender-based harassment. 
• $300,000 Settlement
  Excessive force claim under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against Minneapolis Police Department for individual who was subject to excessive force when he objected to the treatment of a fellow citizen. 

We Stand With You

If you believe your workplace rights or civil rights have been violated, you deserve attorneys who will stand with you and fight for accountability.