Michael D. Tewksbury was born and grew up in Chicago. After completing two years of college at Knox College, he transferred to the University of Northern Colorado and graduated with honors in 1975. Mike then attended law school at Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington. He graduated cum laude in 1978 and was then hired to teach at the law school. He taught legal writing and advanced legal writing classes for two years.

In 1980, Mike joined the law firm of Rider, Bennett, Egan & Arundel, an insurance defense firm in Minneapolis. He was made a partner of that firm and focused his work on insurance coverage issues, defense of personal injury cases, and also was instrumental in handling the firm’s plaintiffs’ work. In 1988, Mr. Tewksbury joined Schwebel, Goetz & Sieben to work exclusively on claims for injured people.

In 1994, Mr. Tewksbury joined with his friend Keith Kerfeld to create Tewksbury & Kerfeld, P.A. The goal this firm set out to achieve was to provide individual service for its clients in an aggressive, efficient, and fair manner. The firm adopted the practices and procedures that were beneficial to the clients from their previous firms and focused on individual attention for each client.

In addition to representing injured people, Mike Tewksbury is often hired to be an arbitrator or mediator to help resolve other lawyers’ cases. He was appointed by the Supreme Court to the Minnesota No-Fault Standing Committee and served on the Minnesota Trial Lawyers Association Board of Governors. He is often asked to teach, lecture, or write on various areas of the law and trial practice techniques.

Mr. Tewksbury has been repeatedly named as a Super Lawyer by Minnesota Law & Politics and recognized for that achievement in Mpls.St.Paul Magazine, Minnesota Law & Politics, and Business Monthly. He has been named as one of the top arbitrators and mediators, one of the top appellate lawyers, and one of the top personal injury trial lawyers. In 2001, he was named as one of the top 100 lawyers in the state of Minnesota.

Mike’s approach to handling injury claims is to provide an efficient problem-solving technique in an effort to maximize his clients’ recoveries in a prompt and fair manner. He utilizes a highly-trained and well-qualified staff to assist his clients in obtaining the benefits to which they are entitled so they can focus their energies on recovering from their injuries and losses.

MICHAEL D. TEWKSBURY

88 South Tenth Street, Suite 300
Minneapolis, MN 55403
612-334-3399 (Phone)

mtewksbury@tkz.com

Tewksbury & Kerfeld
September 1994-Present

Formed in September 1994 as Tewksbury & Kerfeld the firm’s practice consists of plaintiffs’ personal injury litigation, insurance defense work for a limited number of insurance carriers, insurance coverage litigation and providing alternative dispute resolution services.

Schwebel. Goetz, & Sieben
November 1988-September 1994

Practice focused on plaintiffs’ personal injury litigation, handling all aspects of trial work
from initial pleadings through trial.

Rider, Bennett, Eqan & Arundel
August 1980-October 1988

Litigation Partner practicing insurance defense litigation and insurance coverage
matters. Also worked on most of the firm’s major plaintiff files.

William Mitchell College of Law 1982-1985

Adjunct Faculty. William Mitchell College of Law, St. Paul, Minnesota – Legal Writing and Appellate Advocacy.

Gonzaga University School of Law 1978-1980

Instructor of Law – Legal Writing Programs. Responsibilities included teaching first year writing class “lntroduction to Law” and “Advanced Legal Writing” to second year students.

Education

1975-1978 Juris Doctor, Cum Laude – Gonzaga University School of Law, Spokane, WA

1973-1975 Bachelor of Arts, Cum Laude – University of Northern Colorado, Greeley, CO

1971 -1973 Knox College, Galesburg, lL

Bar Admissions

Colorado 1978
Minnesota 1979
State and Federal District Court Minnesota

Appointments

Special Master Risperdal Drug Settlement Distribution Hearings 2017
Special Master Yaz/Yasmine Drug Settlement Distribution Hearings 2012 – Present
Special Master Cottonwood Bus Crash 2010
Special Master I-35 Bridge Collapse Panel to Distribute Victim Fund, 2008- 2009
Supreme Court No-Fault Standing Committee 2001-2008
Minnesota Trial Lawyers Association Board of Governors 2005-2007

Awards and Recognitions

Lawyer of the Year Best Lawyers in America-2017 Arbitrator of the year Minneapolis
Lawyer of the Year 2013-Best Lawyers in Minnesota – Mediation

National Academy of Personal Injury Attorneys Top 10 2016
International Order of Barristers 2014-present
American Board of Trial Lawyers (ABOTA) 2013- present
U.S. News and World Reports First Tier Rating of Law Firms 2010-present
Best Lawyers in America Personal Injury Litigation and Alternative Dispute Resolution 2008-present
Leading American Attorneys, Minnesota 1997-present
National Trial Lawyers, Top 100 lawyers 2009- present
Super Lawyer, Law & Politics, Twin Cities Business Monthly, Minneapolis-St. Paul Magazine 1996-Present
Top 40 Personal Injury Attorneys in Minnesota 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 Law and Politics
Top 50 Appellate Lawyers in Minnesota. November 2000, Law & Politics
Top 25 Mediators in Minnesota. January 2001, 2002, 2004 Law & Politics
Top 25 Personal Injury Attorneys in Minnesota. April 2001, 2002 Law & Politics
Top 100 Super Lawyers in Minnesota, August 2001, 2003 Law & Politics

Publications and Seminars Taught

Arbitrating No-Fault Cases, July 26, 1985
Fundamentals of Trying a Personal Injury Case, October, 1985
Soft Tissue Injury: Special Diagnostic tests, December 5, 1985
A Potpourri: Guide to Recent Developments in Minnesota Insurance Law, May 14, 1986
Soft Tissue Injury: Defending Against Soft Tissue Claims- Use of the Chiropractor as an Independent Medical Examine. course chair, February 5, 1987
Minnesota Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Coverage /Issues: The Use of Special Releases in UM and UIM Claims, April 29, 1987
Utilizing Legal Assistants: Billing and Profitability, November 6, 1987
Chiropractic Costs Management for the Insurance Professional legal consideration of usual, routine and customary standards of care, December 1, 1987
Liquor Liability – Minnesota 1988. Successful Trial Tactics in a Dram Shop Case, January 16, 1988
UM/UlM Seminar, April 28, 1988
Orthopedics for Lawyers: The Spine, May 13, 1988
Understanding Soft Tissue Injuries – A Medical Perspective, course chair, December 9, 1 988
Defense Lawyer’s Perspective of Plaintiff’s Practice, January 1 1 , 1989
Settlement Strategies: No-Fault, Uninsured Motorist and Underinsured Motorist Claims,February 9, 1989

Innovative Settlement Strategies, February 17, 1989
Handling Motor Vehicle Accident Cases, June 13, 1989; No-Fault Issues
Reflections of an Ex-Defense Lawyer: Avoiding Pitfalls-Measuring Damages in Wrongful Death Cases June 23, 1989
Insurance Law – A Re-examination, July 12, 1989
Minnesota State BarAssociation State Fair Mock Trial Demonstration, September 3, 1989
Personal Injury Institute, voir dire – The Plaintiff’s Perspective October 12-13, 1989
Drafting Settlement and Release Documents, Preserving Claims Against Other Parties and Insurers, December 1, 1989
The Chiropractic Physician in the Courtroom, December 2, 1989
Personal Injury Institute 7th Annual, December 12, 1989
Minnesota Motor Vehicle Accident Seminar, Damages – Plaintiff’s Perspective, May 25, 1 990
Personal Injury Institute, 6th Annual – Before and After the Lawsuit Doing the Paperwork and Avoiding the Traps, October 11-12, 1990
Soft Tissue Injury Seminar, course chair, direct and cross-examination of the independent medical examiner and direct and cross-examination of the treating physician, November 9, 1990
MTLA Mock Trial Seminar, December 5-6, 1991: Demonstration of personal injury trial assumed defense counsel role Handling Motor Vehicle Accident Cases lV – Damages: Plaintiff’s Perspective on Evaluating and Proving Damage Claims, June 5, 1992
Pain and Injury Seminar, September 18, 1992
Pain and Injury Seminar, The Medical Seminar for Attorneys-Chronic Pain 1993
Minnesota Civil Trial Practice: Jury Trial or Court Trial, April 14, 1994
Minnesota Motor Vehicle Accident Desk Book, Chapter 10, “Accidents involving motorcycle’s, buses, rental cars, bicycles, and other specialized vehicles,” June 1994, updated with each republication.
Personal Injury Litigation; Expert Testimony by an Economist, January 6, 1995

Human Anatomy, Handling Brain Injury Claims, January 31, 1995
Claims Handling and Resolution of Claims Seminar for USF&G Claim Representatives, April 20, 1995
The Nuts and Bolts of ADR, A Practical Seminar for Mediators and Arbitrators, Course co-chair June 15, 1995
Settlement Agreements, Motor vehicle accidents in Minnesota, Normandale Community College, Fall 1995
Certified ADR Training, How to Manage The Arbitration Process October 1995
Soft Tissue Injuries, Presentation the Plaintiff’s Case Through the Treating Doctor and
Independent Medical Examiner, February 11, 1996
Advanced UM and UIM, Uninsured Motorist and Underinsured Motorist Subrogation and Settlement, August 8, 1996
Efficient and Productive Handling of Automobile Accident Cases, Handling Settlement Agreements, November 15, 1996
Handling the Auto Accident Case, Handling UM with Multiple Parties and Substitution of Checks in UlM, December 13, 1996
Minnesota No Fault, Arbitration Primer, February 20, 1997
Anatomy of a Personal Injury Trial, March 7, 1997; final argument presenter, written materials by Richard Hunegs and David Fitzgerald UIM Insurance, April 23, 1997
Mediation as ADR Evolves, August 20,1997
Effective and Efficient Litigation Techniques, ADR Use and Misuse, October 8, 1997
Alternative Dispute Resolution Real Life Answers to Real Life Circumstances-Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Subrogation and Settlement Techniques, June 17, 1998
Alternative Dispute Resolution, June 1998
Settling Personal Injury Cases – Complicated Personal Injury Cases, June 23, 1998,
Alternative Dispute Resolution – Recent Case Law- Avoiding The Pitfalls November 5, 1999
Chronic Pain- ADR Techniques in Chronic Pain Cases September 26, 2001
Alternative Dispute Resolution Maximizing Your Return: Settling The Liability/UM Claim With The Best Results, June 14, 2002
Mediations and Arbitrations Brown Bag Seminar February 11, 2004
No-Fault/UlM/UM Update Seminar May 14,2004
2004 Medical Malpractice Seminar- Use of New Jury Instruction in Aggravation of Injury Cases, June 16,2004
ADR: The Law, the Process, the Practice. May 19, 2006. What Every Mediator Wants You To Know.
No Fault Uninsured / Underinsured Motorist Update MTLA. October 12, 2006
Successful Use of Alternative Dispute Resolution in Personal Injury Matters Mn. Assoc. of Justice, February 22, 2008 and Mid-winter Convention, February 29, 2008.
Ethical Witness Preparation and Coaching, Ethics and Elimination of Bias Seminar May 19, 2008 Minnesota Association of Justice.
American Arbitration Association New Arbitrator Training, 2009
Insights from the Bridge Collapse Hearings, MNAJ Annual Convention August 14, 2009
Increasing the Likelihood of a Successful Outcome at Mediation, Minnesota Trial Spring 2010, Minnesota Association of Justice magazine, reprinted in Colorado Trial Lawyer Magazine 2011
Ethical Witness Preparation, MNAJ mid-winter conference, February 2012
2015 ADR Institute Current Issues in Mediation-panel discussion, October2015

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