jstorms@gaskinsbennett.com
T 612-333-9536
F 612-333-9579
Download vCardJ.D., University of St. Thomas School of Law, magna cum laude, 2006
B.A., Davidson College, 2003
Major: Sociology, with honors
W.E.B. DuBois Award Winner for Best Student In Major
Jeff is a senior associate attorney practicing primarily in the areas of civil rights litigation, personal injury, commercial litigation and products liability defense. His experience ranges broadly from representing criminal defendants to assisting in the representation of national banks in complex commercial litigation. Jeff has successfully argued motions and second-chaired trials in both Minnesota state and federal court. He has represented the interests of corporate plaintiffs and defendants in commercial and product liability matters throughout the country, and has significant experience litigating and advising corporate clients on non-compete and related employment matters.
Jeff joined G|B|B|S in April of 2008, after practicing at Oppenheimer, Wolff & Donnelly. He attended the University of St. Thomas School of Law as a Dean’s Scholar, and graduated in the top-ten of his class. In law school, he was a member of the National Moot Court and Constitutional Moot Court teams, and received Dean’s Awards for Pretrial Litigation, Negotiation, and Small Firm Practice. Jeff has also served as an Adjunct Professor for the University of St. Thomas School of Law moot court program, and as a mentor for the University of St. Thomas School of Law’s mentor program.
Representative Experience
Personal Injury and Civil Rights
Karim El-Ghazzawy v. Berthiaume et al.
U.S. District Court, District of Minnesota, 708 F. Supp. 2d 874
Eight Circuit Court of Appeals, 636 F.3d 452 (2011)
Total Settlement: $325,000+
Represented a local attorney against a Bloomington police officer, Pawn America, and a Pawn America employee for unlawful arrest and defamation. The District Court for the District of Minnesota (Kyle, J.) denied all defendants’ motions for summary judgment. The denial was preceded by the Court granting El-Ghazzawy’s motion to amend his complaint to seek punitive damages against the employee and vicariously the pawnshop on the defamation count. El-Ghazzawy and the pawnshop subsequently reached a confidential settlement. The defendant officer appealed, and the Eighth Circuit affirmed the denial of qualified immunity. Following the denial, a settlement was reached with the defendant officer in the amount of $325,000. This case was selected by Minnesota Law & Politics as a 2009 “Lawsuit of the Year.”
Kelly v. Dakota County
U.S. District Court, District of Minnesota (2011)
Total Settlement: $315,000
Dakota County Sheriff’s deputy slammed Kelly into a wall, causing her to suffer a concussion, abrasions to her face, and a broken leg. This is the first successful prosecution of a police brutality claim against Dakota County in over 20 years.
Morris v. Saint Paul
U.S. District Court, District of Minnesota (2011)
Total Settlement: $270,000
Saint Paul police officer threw Morris, a woman, through her glass door. As a result, she sustained a severe gash to her arm, which required hundreds of stitches and surgery to repair. Settlement reached after Court denied the City’s Motion for Summary Judgment from the bench. This settlement equals the highest amount Saint Paul has ever paid in a non-death, police brutality settlement.
Besser v. Allstate
U.S. District Court, District of Minnesota (2009)
Total Settlement: $250,000 (UIM Policy Limits)
Plaintiff was a rear-seat passenger in an automobile that collided head-on with a school bus. Plaintiff lost several teeth, and suffered scarring on her arm, hip, and face. Plaintiff underwent three bone graftings and numerous dental procedures and oral surgeries. Plaintiff previously recovered the insurance limits from the driver’s insurance carrier.
Ringwelski v. Drussell Well Drilling
Winona County District Court, Minnesota (2008)
Net Verdict: Approximately $300,000
Second-chaired trial for personal injuries sustained as a result of an LP gas explosion.
Business & Commercial
Lead associate in representation of insurance agency against former executive and executive’s new business venture for claims of breach of duty of loyalty, tortious interference, civil conspiracy, and other claims. Successfully dismissed executive’s counterclaim for unequal pay on summary judgment, and a confidential settlement was subsequently reached.
Lead associate in representation of telecommunications provider in action for breach of contract against a customer for the costumer’s failure to pay for professional services rendered. After successfully defending the customer’s motion for summary judgment, and after successfully dismissing customer’s counterclaim for breach of contract on summary judgment, a confidential settlement was reached.
Brokered, on behalf of a corporate plaintiff, a settlement in excess of $400,000 just prior to arbitration in the course of a confidential, AAA arbitration proceeding for breaches of insurance producer contracts.
Assisted corporate client in successfully resolving State Attorney General investigation.
Obtained ex parte temporary restraining order on behalf of commercial recycling company, alleging claims of tortious interference with business relationships, trespass, and conversion.
Assists clients in responding to subpoenas and settling matters related to copyright “trolling” lawsuits.
Publications
Co-author, “CAFA’s Political Compromise and the Resulting Impact on MDL Transfer,” ABA Mass Tort Newsletter (Summer 2007)
Author, El Monticulo (“The Mound”): The Disparate Treatment of Latin American Baseball Players in Major League Baseball, U of St. Thomas J. Law & Pub. Policy (Spring 2008)
Memberships
Hennepin County Bar Association
Minnesota State Bar Association
American Bar Association
Court Admissions
Minnesota, 2006
U.S. District Court, District of Minnesota, 2007
U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Wisconsin, 2008
U.S. District Court, District of Nebraska, 2009
U.S. Court of Appeals, Eighth Circuit, 2010
U.S. District Court, District of North Dakota 2011
Civic Involvement
Board of Directors, National Ataxia Foundation
