I keep a quote on my desk that really resonates with me: “Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves.” Proverbs 31:8. This is what I am driven to do every day. I have made it my life’s work to use my voice to help those who need it most, helping clients reclaim their lives as fully as possible after an injury or loss and improving safety in our community at the same time.

Experience

Tom Conlin has an exceptional record of helping families and individuals get back on their feet after experiencing a serious injury or the loss of a loved one. Since 1982 his clients have been families, children, or spouses who have suffered through one of life’s great burdens, a serious personal injury or a wrongful death, resulting from someone else’s negligence.

Tom has been recognized by his peers as a preeminent trial lawyer of high esteem and personal character by his induction as a Fellow in two elite trial-lawyer associations: The International Academy of Trial Lawyers and the American College of Trial Lawyers. He is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates and is certified as a Civil Trial Specialist by the MSBA. Tom has been recognized as a Minnesota Super Lawyer every year since 2008, and he has been perennially listed in Best Lawyers in America, and as a Top Attorney in Minnesota. For the last three years (2022-2024), Minnesota Lawyer named Tom to its POWER 30 Personal Injury Lawyers list. He has twice received the Minnesota State Bar Association’s Professional Excellence Award on account of his pro bono work. A native of Williston, North Dakota, Tom is an alumnus of the University of Minnesota Law School and the University of Notre Dame.

Medical Malpractice

Our goal is to help you put a difficult, frightening and painful time behind you. We seek out the truth in complex situations, and set the stage for fair restitution so you can move forward with the healing process.

Our medical malpractice and injury team

Selected Case Results

$13.2 million settlement for a college student suffering from a brain injury from a construction defect.

$8 million settlement for wrongful death in MN truck crash. Recovery for family who lost their 40-year old husband and father due to the negligence of a truck driver.

$3.5 million product liability settlement for woman injured by a recalled medical device.

Condon v. St. Alexius Medical Center: $3,500,000 medical malpractice verdict. Represented a 30-year-old woman who suffered a stroke after the defendant surgeon cut into the innominate artery during a biopsy procedure. A Bismarck, ND jury returned a verdict in the amount of $3.5 million.

Vail v. S/L Services, Inc.: Oilfield injury to employee. the North Dakota Supreme Court considered certified questions from the District Court regarding employer’s immunity from liability for negligent injury to an oilfield employee, establishing that ignorance of the law does not preclude a finding of a willful violation of N.D.C.C. § 65-04-33, and allowing injured employee’s suit against employer to proceed.

Brunsting v. Lutsen Mountain Corp: Ski injury case. Leading case in the Eighth Circuit regarding Federal Rule of Evidence 803(2) (excited utterance).  After win in the Eighth Circuit, case settled.

Pro Bono Legal Services for the Survivors of the I-35W Bridge Collapse.  Provided free legal services as part of a consortium of lawyers to the over 100 survivors and the 13 families who lost loved ones on August 1, 2007 when the I-35W Bridge in downtown Minneapolis collapsed into the Mississippi River.  In total, more than $77 million was recovered, consisting of a compensation fund from the State of Minnesota, additional compensation from the construction company which placed thousands of pounds of construction material on the bridge the day it collapsed, and a $40 million settlement of claims from the company hired by the State to provide engineering services on the bridge. An additional $1.5 million in attorneys’ fees was recovered, donated in its entirety to the construction of a memorial.

$4.2 million settlement: Defective Snowmobile. Represented a man who suffered a spinal cord injury when the steering of a snowmobile broke because of defect in manufacturing and design. The recovery obtained will provide for his future care needs and pay for necessary modifications to make his home safe.

$2.55 million settlement: North Dakota Oilfield Injury. Represented an oilfield worker who suffered a brain injury due to the negligence of a commercial driver at a tanker cleaning facility. Recovery paid back past medical costs and provided for future medical expenses and loss of income.

$1.8 million settlement in piling injury case. Young engineer suffered spinal cord injury (paralysis, quadriplegia) when road construction worker toppled piling without clearing the area of other personnel.

$1.68 million settlement following auto accident. Represented a delivery driver who underwent two neck surgeries after being t-boned by another driver who ran a red light. Recovery paid back past medical and will provide for future medical care and loss of income.

Brockman v. Sun Valley. Settlement followed by verdict, over $1M: Respiratory Injury from Zamboni Poisoning. Represented 14 topflight amateur players who, while competing in a hockey tournament in Sun Valley, Idaho suffered respiratory injury when someone closed the ventilation, flooding the arena with caustic nitrogen dioxide gas each time the Zamboni ran between periods. In the aftermath of the game, one of the players had to be airlifted to Billings, Montana, for treatment. Everyone survived, but all suffered lung injuries. One case was settled for $400,000, after which a federal jury in Boise returned a verdict totaling almost $1M.

While I am proud of the verdicts and settlements we have achieved, I know that most of our clients, when we finish their cases, don’t thank us so much for the amount of money we have obtained for them. Instead, they recount the constant burdens we lifted from them along the way, that they were always informed, that their phone calls were promptly returned, and that when they called my cell phone number, even after hours, they had the feeling I was happy they called.  – Tom Conlin

Recognition

  • Fellow, the American College of Trial Lawyers
  • Fellow, International Academy of Trial Lawyers
  • Member, American Board of Trial Advocates
  • Named to the Minnesota Super Lawyers Top 100 List
  • Named to the Minnesota Super Lawyers List (2008-Present)
  • Named to Minnesota Lawyer’s POWER 30 List for Personal Injury Law
  • Member, Million Dollar Advocates Forum
  • Certified Civil Trial Specialist (Minnesota State Bar Association)
  • Named one of “The Best Lawyers in Minnesota” by Mpls/St. Paul Magazine
  • Recipient of the “Professional Excellence Award” by the Minnesota State Bar Association (2006 and 2009).
  • Recipient of the “Public Service Award” by the Minnesota State Bar Association (2005)

Community Service

  • Minnesota Jury Instruction Guides Bar Committee—Products Liability (2014)
  • Legal Services Advisory Committee (2005-2011)
  • Minnesota State Bar Association, Legal Assistance to the Disadvantaged Committee (2001-2006); Co-chair (2004-2006)
  • Minnesota State Bar Association, Assembly, (2004-2009; 2011)
  • Hennepin County Bar Association, Board of Governors (2004-2005)
  • Hennepin County Bar Association, Affiliation Agreement Advisory Group (2005-06)
  • Adjunct Professor, Legal Practicum in Torts, William Mitchell College of Law (2005-2006)
  • Pro Bono Consortium, I-35W Bridge Collapse (2007-2010)
  • Hurricane Katrina Relief Fund Task Force
  • Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi, Pro Bono Committee, Chair (1994 – 2003)
  • India Association of Minnesota, Board of Directors (1994-1996)

Articles

  • Going Pro Se: Children and The Law
    Metropolitan Corporate Counsel (August 2000)
  • All Aboard the Preemption Train: How a Lot of Railroad Common Law Liability Went the Way of the Roundhouse
    Minnesota Trial (Spring 2001)

Speeches

  • Presenting Pain at Trial (Minnesota Association for Justice Annual Convention (August 2018))
  • The Malpractice Damages Cap: An uncertain remedy for the catastrophically injured
    North Dakota Association for Justice Spring Seminar (May 2018) (with Stacy Deery Stennes)
  • Voir Dire
    MAJ Boot Camp for New Trial Lawyers (2017)
  • Top Verdict Outcomes of 2013: feature verdict
    Minnesota Association for Justice seminar (2014) (with Stacy Deery Stennes)
  • A New Look at Apportionment of Fault in Dram Shop Cases
    Minnesota Association for Justice Annual Convention (August 2012) (with Stacy Deery Stennes)
  • NITA North Central Regional Advocacy Program
    Faculty Member – William Mitchell College of Law, St. Paul, Minnesota (various dates)
  • Final Arguments and Voir Dire
    NITA North Central Regional Advocacy Program (May 2003)
  • Preemption: Lost and Found
    Minneapolis, MN (November 2002)
  • Expert Witnesses
    Minneapolis, MN (June 2002)
  • Products That Injure and Kill People – Ethical Considerations in Products Liability Litigation
    New Orleans, LA (April 1997)
  • Federal Preemption
    Minneapolis, MN (April 1997)
  • New Methods for Proving Damages
    Minneapolis, MN (November 1996)
  • Direct Examination of the Expert – Making the Presentation Memorable
    Minneapolis, MN (October 1996)
  • Product Liability: Where Does Corporate Responsibility End and Personal Responsibility Begin
    Commentator – Minnesota Public Radio “Mid-Morning” (July 1996)
  • Litigation for Legal Assistants and Attorneys
    Minneapolis, MN (November 1994)
  • Dealing with the Auto Accident Case in Minnesota
    Minneapolis, MN (September 1994)