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Court of Appeals Opinions

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IMPORTANT NOTICE

Appellate Courts will begin transmitting all notices, orders, and opinions electronically.

Beginning no later than July 1, 2011, the appellate courts will send notices, orders, opinions, and correspondence related to pending cases to attorneys in those cases by e-mail rather than postal mail.  All attorneys with pending appellate cases who have not already registered an e-mail address should do so immediately.  Unrepresented parties with pending appellate cases may also participate in this e-notification system by registering an e-mail address.  Please visit the Clerk of Appellate Courts page for instructions on how to register your e-mail address.
 

Opinion Policies

Minnesota Court of Appeals opinions are issued weekly and are available to the public at 10 a.m. CST/CDT every Monday.

On Wednesday of every week, the Court of Appeals will mail a notice that informs counsel, pro se parties, and court personnel associated with a case that an opinion will be released the following Monday.  Opinions are available online or by visiting the Clerk of Appellate Courts, 305 Minnesota Judicial Center, 25 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., St. Paul, after the Monday release time.  Copies of the opinions are mailed to involved parties on Mondays.

In certain time-sensitive cases, the Court of Appeals may issue opinions on a business day other than Monday.  In these instances, involved parties will be contacted just prior to the special release.

Please visit the Minnesota State Law Library's Appellate Opinions Archive for previously released Court of Appeals Opinions.

NOTE: If you are having trouble accessing the tabs on your mobile device, you may view all Opinions on a single page.

Published OpinionsBy statute, the Court of Appeals issues a published opinion only in the most important and complex cases. Published opinions include an extensive analysis of the facts and law. They will be considered and used by courts faced with similar issues in the future, and they are published in books found in most law libraries.

DECISIONS OF THE COURT OF APPEALS
FILED Monday, September 21, 2020



A19-1943        Matthew William Edwards, petitioner, Appellant, vs. State of Minnesota, Respondent.
                         Sherburne County District Court, Hon. Thomas D. Hayes.
            A postconviction petition challenging the legality of a test refusal conviction under the Birchfield rule is timely under the new interpretation of law exception, Minn. Stat. § 590.01, subds. 4(b)(3), 4(c) (2018), if the petition is filed within two years of Johnson v. State, 916 N.W.2d 674 (Minn. 2018), cert. denied, 139 S. Ct. 2745 (2019), which held that the Birchfield rule retroactively applies to final convictions on collateral review.
            Reversed and Remanded.  Judge Diane B. Bratvold.
 
Unpublished OpinionsUnpublished opinions are issued in cases that are less complicated, that involve legal issues that have already been decided in published opinions, or that will affect only the parties to that particular case. These opinions are usually shorter, do not contain extensive discussion of the facts, and are not generally relied on by other courts to the same degree as published opinions.

UNPUBLISHED OPINIONS
FILED Monday, September 21, 2020

Pursuant to Minn. Stat. § 480A.08, subd. 3 (2018)



1.         A19-1163, A19-1332
            In re the Marriage of: Joyce Marie Peterson, petitioner, Respondent (A19-1163),
             Appellant (A19-1332), vs. David Lee Peterson, Appellant (A19-1163), Respondent
            (A19-1332).
            Affirmed.  Chief Judge Susan L. Segal.
            Ramsey County District Court, Hon. Jeffrey Bryan.

2.         A19-1854
            Erin Elisabeth Dancour, n/k/a Erin Elisabeth Meyers, Appellant, vs. Elie E. Dancour,
            Respondent.
            Affirmed in part, reversed in part and remanded.  Judge Renee L. Worke.
            Ramsey County District Court, Hon. DeAnne M. Hilgers.

3.         A19-2045
            Aaron Reimringer, Appellant, vs. Bart Anderson, Respondent.
            Affirmed.  Judge Matthew E. Johnson.
            Wright County District Court, Hon. Kathleen A. Mottl.

4.         A19-1450
            State of Minnesota, Respondent, vs. Cody Lyle Bergendahl, Appellant.
            Reversed and remanded.  Judge Matthew E. Johnson.
            LeSueur County District Court, Hon. Mark Vandelist.

5.         A19-1785, A20-0116
            In the Matter of Xcel Energy's Petition for Approval of Electric Vehicle Pilot Programs
            (A19-1785), and In the Matter of Xcel Energy's Petition for Approval of a Residential EV
            Subscription Service Pilot Program (A20-0116).
            Affirmed.  Judge Tracy M. Smith.
            Minnesota Public Utilities Commission.
 
Order OpinionsCases that involve a few simple issues may be decided by order opinions, which include little discussion of the facts of the case and a brief analysis of the laws that are involved.

RECENT ORDER OPINIONS
September 21, 2020



1.         A19-1987
            Sydney Victoria Martens, and o/b/o minor child, petitioner, Respondent, vs. Tolen
            Jerrard Avery, Appellant.
            Affirmed.  Judge Randall J. Slieter.
            Otter Tail County District Court, Hon. Mark F. Hansen.

 

NO SPECIAL RELEASE OPINIONS FILED

Opinion SetsOpinion sets contain all published, unpublished, and order opinions. The sets are compressed into files that must be unpacked before opening them.

Opinion Sets For Opinions
Filed Monday, September 21, 2020

Opinion Set in a Zipped Word Document Format

  1. Click the above link.
  2. Save the unzipped file to your computer.
  3. Choose the "Open" option on the Download Complete screen.
  4. Extract the files to a location of your choice.
  5. Open the extracted file.

Opinion Set in a Zipped Rich Text Format

  1. Click the above link.
  2. Save the unzipped file to your computer.
  3. Choose the "Open" option on the Download Complete screen.
  4. Extract the files to a location of your choice.
  5. Open the extracted file.