Phone: 612-294-2601
Fax: 612-294-2640
As one of the most recognized plaintiff's lawyers nationwide, Larry Schaefer has earned the respect of judges and other lawyers for his thorough and aggressive client advocacy in negotiation and litigation, whether on behalf of individuals, multiple plaintiffs or in class actions. He concentrates his practice representing people who are injured through employment discrimination practices, organizations that defraud or injure consumers, as well as personal injury victims.
Over the course of his twenty year career, Larry has taken on some of the largest and most powerful companies in the country, helping tens of thousands of people recover damages from injuries they received as a result of illegal corporate conduct. He chose this field of practice to give a voice to victims of workplace misconduct and tirelessly pursues claims for his clients to recover full damages as a result of illegal conduct.
He has earned a reputation as a lawyer who assists clients in every way possible to best recover from the effects of illegal conduct or personal injury.
Clients Represented:
Larry has represented clients against some of the nation's largest employers, such as:
Cargill
FMC Corporation
CBS / WCCO TV
Eveleth Mines
Ford Motor
3M
IKON Document
Ramada
Northwest Airlines
C.H. Robinson
Amtrak
First Union
Control Data
North Memorial Medical Center
Synergistic Tech.
General Mills
University of Minnesota
Koch Refining
City of Minneapolis
American Express Financial Advisors
Marshalls
Wal-Mart and Sam's Club
Kmart
Target Corporation
Wells Fargo
Verizon
Representing clients in class action and complex litigation in the employment law field, Larry has served as lead counsel in numerous groundbreaking cases during the course of his career. He is currently involved in litigating class action cases against C.H. Robinson, Northwest Airlines, and the Department of Education, as well as numerous other complex cases.
Exemplar Cases:
Sexual Harassment
Groundbreaking Sexual Harassment Case Depicted in the Movie "North Country" starring Charlize Theron. Larry was one of three lead trial counsel in the first successfully prosecuted class action hostile environment sexual harassment case. The history of the case is chronicled in CLASS ACTION: The Story of Lois Jenson and the Landmark Case that Changed Sexual Harassment Law (Doubleday 2002) (C. Bingham, L. Gansler), and was the basis for the movie "North Country," starring Charlize Theron. Jenson v. Eveleth Mines, et al.
Gender Discrimination
3,000+ Financial Advisors. Larry Schaefer served as co-lead counsel in this gender discrimination class action successfully prosecuted on behalf of more than 3,000 financial advisors. The case settled for $31 million and extensive injunctive relief that revamped the compensation and promotion system, imposed internal training, and specific complaint resolution procedure. Kosen v. American Express Financial Advisors.
200+ Female Technicians at CBS Stations. Larry Schaefer acted as lead counsel in this class action gender discrimination claim involving female technicians at 6 CBS-owned stations, including WCCO in Minneapolis. After a class was certified, the case settled for more than $8 million in compensation and comprehensive injunctive relief involving distribution of overtime, assignments, training and reporting obligations on behalf of approximately 200 female employees. Beckmann v. CBS et al.
Race Discrimination
Individual Race Discrimination Against Northwest Airlines. Larry Schaefer was trial counsel in an individual race discrimination case in which the jury awarded the plaintiff $380,000, including a $250,000 punitive damage award. Landon v. Northwest Airlines.
150+ African-American Salaried Ford Employees. Larry Schaefer was lead alternative dispute resolution counsel in this race discrimination case representing approximately 150 African American salaried employees throughout Ford's U.S. operations. Claims were successfully prosecuted and resolved in a comprehensive, negotiated ADR procedure involving mediation, discovery and trial phases. Jones v. Ford Motor Company.
250+ FMC Corporation Employees. Larry Schaefer was the lead counsel in this race discrimination class action consisting of more than 250 current and former employees. The case was successfully settled for $3.1 million plus injunctive relief changing the method of evaluating, promoting and compensating class members and imposing extensive training obligations as well as a specific complaint procedure. Rogers v. FMC Corporation.
1,000+ Employees of IKON Document Services. Larry Schaefer was co-lead counsel in these successfully prosecuted race, national origin and Fair Labor Standards Act - based class and collective actions involving claims of more than 1,000 employees. Gentry and Bailey v. IKON Document Services et al.
2,000+ Amtrak Employees. Larry Schaefer participated in the successful prosecution of this race discrimination class action involving all terms and conditions of employment affecting certain hourly employee and all management employees. Obtained settlement of more than $24 million in compensation and comprehensive injunctive relief for more than 2,000 employees. Thornton and McLaurin v. Amtrak.
Age Discrimination.
400 Bank Employees. Larry Schaefer participated in the prosecution of this successful age discrimination collective action on behalf of almost 400 terminated bank employees. The case settled for $58.5 million, establishing one of the largest per capita recoveries for any case in this field. Hyman v. First Union Corporation.
300+ Terminated Control Data Employees. Larry Schaefer participated in the prosecution of this successful age discrimination collective action representing more than 300 terminated employees, obtaining a $28.5 million settlement. Burns v. Control Data Corporation.
ERISA
75,000 401(k) Participants. Larry Schaefer participated in the prosecution of this novel ERISA class action, challenging management of 401(k) funds on behalf of more than 75,000 participants. Class action status was approved and the case was settled for $26 million. Plaintiffs also obtained the appointment of an independent advisor to assist in fund management, comprehensive reporting obligations and introduction of new funds, and extensive reporting obligations. Franklin v. First Union Corporation.
500+Pension Plan Participants. Larry Schaefer participated as one of the lead counsel in an ERISA challenge to the failure to honor promises made following a company purchase in funding a pension plan, including taking the deposition of the CEO. The case settled for substantial monetary and injunctive relief. American Home Mortgage ERISA Litigation.
Representing Terminated Executives.
Larry Schaefer has represented numerous executives in severance negotiations and litigation. He was lead counsel in a case establishing the good cause standard for termination in Minnesota on behalf of a former Cargill Vice President, securing a judgment of more than $500,000 and establishing the legal principal that good cause is not present unless there is some form of misconduct. Hilligoss v. Cargill.
Larry has been AV rated by Martindale-Hubbell (CV, BV and AV are registered certification marks of Reed Elsevier Properties Inc., used in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedures, standards and policies). He has also been selected for inclusion in Woodward/White's The Best Lawyers in America and has been designated a Minnesota "Super Lawyer" as determined through a comprehensive survey conducted by Minnesota Law & Politics magazine. He has been described in Chamber's & Partner's Client Guide to America's Leading Business Lawyers as follows: "...Lawrence Schaefer specializes in discrimination litigation. His first class' work has impressed his peers who refer to him as 'One of the best attorneys in the state.'"
He frequently lecturers to lawyers at continuing legal education conferences, and has published numerous articles on a variety of topics involving employment discrimination, class actions and multi-plaintiff litigation. He received his B.A. with honors from the University of Chicago and his law degree magna cum laude and Order of the Coif from the University of Minnesota Law School. Larry is an active member of the National Employment Lawyers Association (NELA) and its Minnesota chapter. He is also a member of the Minnesota State and Hennepin County Bar Associations.
Areas of Practice:
30% Class Action
30% Multi-Plaintiff Cases
30% Employment Litigation
10% Counseling Individual Clients in Non-Litigation Matters
Bar Admissions:
Minnesota, 1988
U.S. District Court District of Minnesota, 1988
U.S. Court of Appeals 8th Circuit, 1989
Education:
University of Minnesota Law School, Minneapolis, Minnesota, 1988
J.D.
Honors: Magna Cum Laude
Honors: Order of the Coif
University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, 1984
B.A.
Honors: Honors in Political Philosophy
Published Works:
Wage and Hour Case Update, Co-written with David Goldstein for MSBA Upper Midwest Employment Law Institute, May, 2006
Strategies in Age Discrimination Litigation, MSBA Upper Midwest Employment Law Institute, May, 2004
The Surest Ways to Get Sued- Co-authored with Robert Boisvert, Minnesota Institute of Legal Education CLE seminar "Litigating in the Employment Arena", June, 2001
Class Actions and Multi-Plaintiff Litigation, Annual MSBA Upper Midwest Employment Law Institute, May, 2001
The Art and Practice of Jury Selection, A Plaintiff's Counsel's Perspective, MILE Seminar "Litigating in the Employment Arena", March, 2001
Demystifying Class Actions, Annual MSBA Upper Midwest Employment Law Institute, May, 2000
Common Obstacles in Proving Age Discrimination Claims, Minnesota Annual Human Rights Commission seminar, November, 1999
Preparing the Fee Petition: When to File and the Amount to Seek, Annual MSBA Upper Midwest Employment Law Institute, May, 1999
Insights into Eveleth Mines Litigation, MILE CLE Seminar, February, 1999
Strategies and Considerations in Class Action Employment Discrimination-, Co-authored with Terry Demchek of the Saperstein firm, NELA Chicago Convention, March, 1998
Maximizing Compensatory Damage Awards- Co-authored with David Borgen of the Saperstein firm., Eighth Annual NELA Convention in Toronto, Canada, June & August 1997
Is Your Workplace at Risk for a Class Claim of Harassment?, MILE CLE Seminar, January, 1997
Use of Expert Witnesses in Employment Litigation- A Plaintiff Counsel's Perspective, MSBA Seminar, November, 1996
Basics of Effectively Preparing Your Case In Minnesota, MILE CLE Seminar, October, 1996
Federal District Court Case Analysis, Annual MSBA Upper Midwest Employment Law Institute, May, 1996
Discrimination Update: 1990-91 Federal and State Supreme Court and Appellate Decisions, written with K. Graham & D. Palmquist for MSBA Upper Midwest Employment Institute, May 1992
Limiting Liability When Discharging Employees, co-written with C. Chalmers for MSBA Upper Midwest Employment Institute, May 1990
Professional Associations and Memberships:
National Employment Lawyers Association (NELA), 1995 - Present
NELA - Minnesota Chapter
Minnesota State Bar Association
Hennepin County Bar Association
Minnesota Lawyers, 1988 - 1993
Member, International Human Rights Committee
Legal Aid Society, 1988 - 1993
Member
Minnesota Justice Foundation, 1989 - 1992
Board of Directors
Harriet Tubman Battered Women's Shelter, 2001 - 2002
Counsel, Board of Directors
Harriet Tubman Battered Women's Shelter, 1990 - 1993
Counsel, Board of Directors
Past Employment Positions:
Sprenger & Lang, Partner, 1995 - 2005
Sprenger & Lang, Associate, 1993 - 1995
Leonard, Street & Deinard, Associate, 1988 - 1993
Fraternities/Sororities:
Phi Kappa Phi