Top Best Personal Injury Lawyers | 16164 Available

I spent twelve years in pastoral ministry before going to law school.  During my time in ministry, I learned that lawyers were necessary players in solving people's problems, especially in the area of personal injury.  I find it very rewarding to represent injured individuals and families through motion and appellate work.

I received my law degree from Gonzaga University in 1978.  I was hired to teach at the law school for two years before joining Rider Bennett in 1980.  After practicing at Rider Bennett and Schwebel, Goetz & Sieben, Tewksbury & Kerfeld was formed in 1994. Our  firm’s goal is to provide individual service for our clients in an aggressive, efficient, and fair manner.  Our firm has adopted practices and procedures that are beneficial to our clients while focusing on individual attention for each client.. In addition to representing injured people, I am often hired to be an arbitrator or mediator to help resolve other lawyers’ cases.  In that capacity, I was appointed as Special Master by the Supreme Court to distribute the settlement proceeds from the I-35W bridge collapse case, and also served as Special Master for the Cottonwood bus crash and the YAZ/Yasmin birth control cases.. I have repeatedly been named a Super Laywer, has been named a Top 100 Trial Lawyer by the American Trial Lawyers Association, has been named a Best Lawyer by the Best Lawyers in America, was a Minnesota Lawyer of the Year for ADR in 2014 and Tewksbury & Kerfeld has been recognized by U.S. News and World Report as a top tier law firm.

I am a trial lawyer working to help people hurt by defective medical devices and prescription drugs.  People sometimes call this "mass tort" or "class action".  I am licensed to practice in Minnesota, North Dakota, Wisconsin, and many federal courts across the country.

Jim Lavoie exclusively represents persons who have been injured or who have lost loved ones. He has represented people with all degrees of injuries and loss, devoting his sincere attention and best efforts to all. He has successfully represented clients in civil rights cases where they have been harmed by government officers or agents. He takes pride in offering clients the personal attention everyone wants and needs during the difficult time of a life altering injury or loss of a family member.

Trial lawyer Phil Sieff battles for justice when wrongdoers cause serious injury or death. Intense and relentless, he helps clients find the courage they need to face those who have hurt them. He has significant experience representing families coping with the wrongful death of a loved one, particularly a child, having handled hundreds of wrongful death cases. He has particular experience in complex and high profile cases, including: the I-35W Bridge Collapse (lead co-counsel of I-35W Consortium, a group of 17 law firms that provided legal services to over 100 collapse victims); the Red Lake High School Shooting; and the Holidazzle Parade Disaster.. Mr. Sieff has spent nearly three decades in front of judges and juries obtaining justice from wrongdoers and their insurance companies. He has tried—and won— injury and wrongful death cases and has obtained numerous million dollar verdicts and settlements for his clients. He has handled cases involving serious car accidents, passenger injuries, defective products, medical malpractice, violence in schools, drunk drivers, compressed gas dusting abuse, boating accidents, train derailments, construction site accidents, truck accidents, and airplane crashes. Mr. Sieff also has significant experience helping crime victims and people dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder.. His dedication to justice includes tackling underreported significant issues, like the abuse of aerosol dust removers. In 2024, Mr. Sieff was co-lead counsel in a trial that secured a groundbreaking $7.75 million verdict against CRC Industries. The company was held accountable for failing to prevent the improper use of its aerosol dust remover products. This case originated from the tragic death of a Minnesota woman who was struck by a driver impaired by dust remover - highlighting the misuse of these products and the duty of manufacturers to prevent foreseeable harm.

Few lawyers can match Joe’s credentials, with over thirty years of legal experience. Joe has been a partner at Bradshaw & Bryant over ten years, having spent most of his early career at Schwebel, Goetz and Sieben. He has tried and settled cases throughout Minnesota and Wisconsin.. Joe excels in personal injury litigation, securing many millions of dollars in settlements and verdicts for his clients.  In his very first trial, the jury awarded SIX times more than the insurer offered.  Since then, he has secured:. •$1.5 million, a record setting settlement for injuries to a Wisconsin motorcyclist. •$1 million structured settlement after verdict against mother's restaurant for hand injury. •$15 million award, $5 million judgment for injuries from drunk driver. •$510,000 settlement for death and injuries from loose rodeo bull. •$461,000 award for ankle fracture - with Jim Schwebel. •$330,000 verdict for slip and fall on ice. •$87,000 verdict for neck injury. •$60,000 structured settlement for dog bite to 8-year-old. Joe has many other similar verdicts and settlements, some of which are confidential.. Joe is rated AV Preeminent® by Martindale-Hubbell, the very highest rating an attorney can achieve from the most highly respected attorney rating service. He has been Board-certified as a Civil Trial Specialist since 1998. He has been a Super Lawyer almost every year since 1999.. Joe not only knows the law, he teaches it! In addition to the "Practice Pointers" column that he authors for Minnesota Trial Lawyer Magazine, Joe has written many articles relating to No-Fault and Personal Injury. He regularly teaches lawyers, doctors and lay people. He has organized and taught numerous programs in Auto Accident Law and Trial Strategy. He has also taught classes in No-Fault Auto Insurance Law at William Mitchell College of Law.. Joe served as President of Minnesota Association for Justice (previously MTLA), President of the Warren Burger Inn of Court and President of the Minnesota Consumer Alliance.  He has also won such accolades as MTLA’s “Trial Lawyer of the Year” and “Excellence” Awards.