In Minnesota, there are currently 293 district court judges who preside over matters in ten judicial districts. While the Minnesota Rules of Court provide attorneys with significant information applicable to court proceedings, each judge may have his or her individual preferences with respect to motion practice and courtroom conduct.
In an effort to assist attorneys who may be appearing before a judge for the first time, the MSBA Civil Litigation Section Governing Council provided all district court judges with a brief questionnaire. The responses that we received are organized here by judicial district and the judge’s name. We hope you find these responses to be helpful in your preparation for district court appearances.
For information about this project or to report an error in any judicial directory listing, contact Kara Haro, MSBA staff liaison to the Civil Litigation Section.
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Fifth Judicial District Judges
Walker, Bradley
District Court Judge
Counties: Blue Earth
State Court Bio: View Bio
Motion Practice
- How long do you normally allow per party for argument of non-dispositive motions? 15 minutes
- How long do you normally allow per party for oral argument of dispositive motions? 15 minutes
- With respect to oral argument, do you prefer an attorney to not reiterate written material? Yes
- Do you regularly conduct hearings and motions by phone? No
If yes, please describe the procedure you would like attorneys to use to do so, including how testimony is to be transcribed and who puts the teleconference together: If it is a hearing that may need to be transcribed, I order the Plaintiff (usually) to initiate the conference call and do it in the courtroom. If it involves scheduling matters or other types of hearings that will not be transcribed I do it in Chambers. - State any specific procedures you would like attorneys in your courtroom to follow at motion hearings: [No Answer Entered]
- Do you like to receive courtesy copies of motion papers? Yes
Discovery Disputes
- Do you require counsel to "meet and confer" before bringing discovery disputes to a hearing? Yes
- Will you accept telephone calls from attorneys to rule on discovery disputes that occur during the course of a deposition? No
Pretrial Procedures
- When do you normally set the pretrial in relation to the trial? 30 days prior to trial
- Do you normally hear motions in limine at the pretrial? Yes
- When are jury instructions due? At the time of the pretrial
- When are proposed special verdict forms due? At the time of the pretrial
- When do you require that final witness lists be exchanged and filed? Prior to pretrial
- When do you require that final exhibit lists be exchanged and filed? At the time of the pretrial
- Do you discuss settlement of the case with the parties at the time of the pretrial? Yes
- State any specific procedures you would like attorneys to follow at the time of the pretrial: [No Answer Entered]
Continuances and Changes in the Scheduling Order
- For changes in the scheduling order, except date of trial: Adopt an agreement of the parties
- For changes on the date of trial: Generally adopt an agreement of the parties. If no agreement, require a Motion
- Under what circumstances would you consider granting a change in the trial date? I can think of many reasons---Agreement, illness of the Attorney, dramatic change in medical circumstances of the Plaintiff, etc
Civil Jury Trials
- Do you perform preliminary voir dire? Yes
- Do you place a time limit on voir dire by counsel? No
- Is there subject matter you will not permit counsel to ask of the jury? Yes
If yes, please explain: Case by case---If the Attorney gets too far afield, I will direct them to move on - Do you require counsel to sit or stand during questioning of witnesses? It's OK if they stand.
- Do you require counsel to be behind counsel table unless counsel has a specific reason to approach a witness? Yes
- Do you normally require counsel to meet each morning with the court before the jury comes into the courtroom? No
If yes, how many minutes before court commences? 15-30 minutes - I normally start jury trials at: 8:00 a.m.
- I normally give the jury a break of 15 minutes in the morning.
- I normally take a lunch break at: About 12:00 noon
- I normally give the jury a break of 15 minutes in the afternoon.
- I normally finish court for the day at: 5:00 p.m.
- Do you permit jurors to:
Take Notes: Yes
Keep notes during deliberation? Yes
Ask the witnesses questions? Yes - If counsel asks to approach to argue a ruling, do you generally: Allow them to approach and make a record
- Do you place a time limit on final argument? No
If yes, If yes, what is the time limit? [No Answer Entered] - When do you instruct the jury? Before final arguments
- After argument and instructions, do you:
Require counsel to be available by telephone? Yes
Request that counsel remain at the courthouse during deliberations of the jury? No
Take a verdict without counsel present and inform them after the verdict by telephone of the result? Yes
Sanctions of Counsel
- Have you ever sanctioned counsel with imposition of a fine? No
Or jail? No - Have you ever held counsel in contempt of court? No
- Have you ever reported an attorney for unethical behavior? Yes
- When, if ever, would you consider issuing sanctions, formal reprimands, holding an attorney in contempt, or reporting an attorney for unethical behavior? The attorney appeared when his license to practice in Minnesota was suspended and he knew it.