In Minnesota, there are nearly 300 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 survey. The responses that we received are organized on the right by judicial district and then alphabetically by 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.

Sixth Judicial District Judges | Courtroom Preferences

Anderson, Michelle

District Court Judge

Counties:St. Louis

State Court Bio: View Bio

Contact with chambers:

Set forth your preferred method to contact chambers (telephone, email, etc.). email
To whom may attorneys direct scheduling/logistical questions? Shelly Lind, Court Reporter
To whom may attorneys direct substantive questions? Shelly Lind, Court Reporter

Motion practice:

Set forth your practices and procedures for scheduling motion hearings. File written motion papers and contact court administration to get a date for the hearing.
Identify any type of motion for which you do not require a hearing. Agreed upon issues that expedite the court process.
Set forth your preferred method to contact chambers (telephone, email, etc.). michelle.anderson@courts.state.mn.us
To whom may attorneys direct scheduling/logistical questions? Court Administration or my law clerk
To whom may attorneys direct substantive questions? My law clerk
Set forth your practices and procedures for scheduling motion hearings. Contact Court Administration for a date.
Identify any type of motion for which you do not require a hearing.Informal discovery motions.
Do you accept telephone calls from attorneys to rule on discovery disputes that occur during depositions? No.
How much time do you allot for motion hearings?As much time as necessary for the parties to be heard. A half hour is set aside, so if the attorneys anticipate the hearing will take longer, please let court administration know that.
Set forth your practices and procedures with respect to attending a hearing by telephone or video conference.Contact the court for permission to appear remotely.
Set forth your practices and procedures with respect to discovery motions.For issues that can't be resolved by using Rule 115.04(d), a standard motion.
Set forth your practices and procedures with respect to stipulations of the parties, including stipulations for protective orders.Present the stipulation to the Court for approval.
Do you have particular requirements or procedures relating to requests to amend the scheduling order?Amendments that don't affect the trial date, may be done by stipulation. Stipulations must be presented to the Court.
Set forth your practices and procedures with respect to default proceedings.If within ELT, the motion will be heard during the Case Management Conference.
Set forth your practices and procedures with respect to handling emergency motions. Contact Court Administration.

Written submissions:

Do you want to receive paper courtesy copies of the parties' written submissions? If you do, set forth the number and preferred format of courtesy copies and identify any document type you do not want to receive. No.
Set forth your practices and procedures for requests to deviate from the requirements of the General Rules of Practice for the District Courts. Request exemption from the Court.

In-court proceedings:

Set forth your practices and procedures with respect to attorney's use of technology in the courtroom and during trial. I support the use of technology. Contact my law clerk if questions arise as to what technology is available.
Set forth your practices and procedures with respect to the submissions of additional legal authority or other materials at or after oral argument. Submissions are expected to be complete prior to oral argument. If I need additional authority or raise a question not addressed, then additional submissions would be allowed.
Do you permit parties to bifurcate oral argument so different attorneys address different legal issues? Yes.

Pretrial procedures:

Describe your preferred procedures for pretrial settlement conferences, including the timing of such conferences, persons who must attend, whether persons may attend by telephone or video conference, and how you participate in settlement discussions. Approximately two weeks before trial.
Set forth your practices and procedures for handling motions in limine. These are heard at the pretrial.
What is your schedule for a typical trial day?9:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m with a 15 minute morning break, a break from 12:00-1:00, and an afternoon break.
Set forth your voir dire procedures.The court will conduct preliminary voir dire. Counsel is permitted to conduct voir dire. Voir dire should be limited to ferreting out possible biases.
Set forth your practices and procedures with respect to courtroom decorum, including movement in the courtroom, use of a podium, whether attorneys should sit or stand, and how to address witnesses. Counsel should sit or stand behind counsel table, whichever is their preference. Request to approach the witness. Permission is only needed once to approach the witness during questioning.
Do you impose time limits with respect to opening statements and closing arguments? No.
Identify your practices with respect to the use of technology in the courtroom during trial. Use of technology is encouraged. Technology should be arranged ahead of trial to avoid delays during the trial.
Set forth your practices and procedures with respect to marking and using exhibits.Pre-mark exhibits in the morning with the Court Reporter. Make a record regarding stipulations. Otherwise, standard rules regarding the admission and use of exhibits will be expected.
Set forth your practices and procedures for handling objections. Counsel shall stand and state the objection and basis. After the ruling, if a party wants to make an additional record, the record will be made outside the presence of the jury.
Set forth your practices and procedures with respect to the use of deposition testimony.It depends.
May attorneys obtain daily transcripts during trial? If so, what procedure should attorneys follow? This request should be made to the court reporter one month ahead of trial.
Set forth your practices and procedures with respect to attorney requests to contact jurors at the conclusion of trial. It depends.

Other matters:

Set forth any other preferences, practices, or procedures attorneys and parties may find helpful.I expect the attorneys to follow rules of decorum, the General Rules of Practice, and the Rules of Civil Procedure. If there is a specific question about a preference or individual practice, please don't hesitate to ask in a morning conference with counsel before the jurors are brought into the courtroom.