Phone: 612-294-2602
Fax: 612-294-2640
Doug is a senior attorney specializing in complex individual, group, and class action litigation in the fields of employment discrimination, civil rights, consumer protection, and criminal defense. He joined Schaefer Law Firm in 2008, bringing a wealth of trial and appellate experience to our team. Doug regularly represents his clients in proceedings against several large-scale corporations, financial institutions, and municipalities.
Doug’s notable achievements include Reeves v. C.H. Robinson, 594 F.3d 798 (11th Cir. 2010), an employment discrimination case in which the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit issued an extraordinary unanimous en banc decision in favor of Doug’s client, reversing the trial court. He won a similar victory in Gallagher v. C.H. Robinson, 567 F.3d 263 (6th Cir. 2010), successfully arguing on behalf of an employment discrimination victim. In Felder v. King, 599 F.3d 846 (8th Cir. 2010), Doug successfully argued that his client was entitled to a trial in a civil rights case involving Minneapolis police officer misconduct. At the trial, the jury awarded the plaintiff $1.81 million for the wrongful death of her son, widely reported as one of the largest judgments of its kind.
Before joining the firm, Doug served as a law clerk to both the Honorable Gerald W. Heaney and the Honorable Donald P. Lay, Judges for the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. He also worked as a trial attorney for The Defender Association, the largest public defense agency in Seattle, Washington, and represented victims of employment discrimination and consumer fraud at Sprenger + Lang, PLLC, a nationally recognized class action firm.
Doug is a member of local and national chapters of the National Employment Lawyers Association (NELA), the National Association of Consumer Advocates (NACA), and the Hennepin County and Minnesota State Bar Associations. He currently serves as the Eighth Circuit representative for NELA’s Amicus Advisory Counsel, a committee which guides NELA’s national brief-writing efforts. Doug has previously been selected as a "Rising Star" in the legal profession by Minnesota Law & Politics, and has been featured in local and national media publications.
Doug is admitted to practice before the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota, and Minnesota state courts.
Areas of Practice:
Civil Rights
Employee Rights
Employment Discrimination
Consumer Protection
Wage & Hour Laws
Whistleblower
Wrongful Termination
Police Misconduct
Class Actions
Criminal Defense
Education:
University of Minnesota Law School
J.D. 1999
Honors: Magna Cum Laude
University of St. Thomas
B.A. 1995 (Political Science)
Honors: Dean’s List
