Founded in 1996, Nilan Johnson Lewis has built its reputation by putting clients first, building a practice centered on excellence, and defining the next generation law firm.  Follow our success and milestones by visiting our timeline below.

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  August 1996 — the Midwest’s largest new start-up law firm, Nilan Johnson Lewis (NJL), opens its doors with 27 attorneys and 52 employees.

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  September 1996 — NJL receives its first payment for legal services, $178 from Wingert & Associates — a satisfied NJL client yet today.

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  January 1997 — NJL founding shareholders establish six shared Core Values — Trust, Excellence, Diversity, Innovation, Profitability, and Community — that have guided the Firm ever since.

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  May 1997 — NJL moves its offices to the 6th floor of the Pillsbury Center, a downtown Minneapolis landmark, accommodating the Firm’s growth and ascent in the legal marketplace.

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  December 1998 — NJL obtains complete defense verdict in favor of the downhill skiing industry relating to claims of negligent ski operations.

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  June 1999 — NJL is hired by the University of Minnesota to help investigate charges of academic fraud in the men’s basketball program.

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  July 1999 — NJL successfully defends Lockheed Martin and Unisys in a $1 billion False Claims Act lawsuit, convincing the United States Attorney not to intervene in the case and the relator to dismiss his claims without a monetary payment.

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  September 2000 — NJL obtains defense verdict for Teledyne Technologies after four-week jury trial of wrongful death action.

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  July 2001 — NJL provides the complex transactional expertise supporting the redevelopment of one of Minneapolis’ largest buildings, the Sears Building, into a unique mixed use space at the heart of an urban revitalization program.

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  September 2001 — NJL expands its offices onto the 7th floor of Pillsbury Tower, signifying the Firm’s continued strong growth.

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  November 2002 — NJL wins dismissal of Maryland statewide class action, personal injury and property damage claims involving exposure to lead paint.

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  October 2002 — NJL founding shareholders Brian Johnson and Don Lewis are inducted into the American College of Trial Lawyers, an honor given to only 2% of the trial lawyers in the United States.

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  January 2003 — NJL obtains a jury verdict of approximately $1.3 million in favor of construction company president, on employment contract claims and minority shareholder rights; verdict was later upheld on appeal.

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  May 2004 — NJL obtains a $3.4 million damage award for Kelmoore Investment Company in an arbitration proceeding against The Hartford Financial Services Group.

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  September 2004 — NJL assists a large Midwest pharmaceutical company with the acquisition of a dynamic, similar company located in an East Coast market.

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  November 2004 — NJL assists Minnesota’s premier level 1 trauma center to convert from a county hospital to a public benefit corporation.

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  February 2005 — NJL wins jury verdict in favor of Millennium Inorganic Chemicals, defeating $129 million breach of contract and theft of trade secrets claims and obtaining a $4.2 million counterclaim verdict against the plaintiff.

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  June 2005 — NJL secures a judgment as a matter of law in favor of Siemens Westinghouse after a two-week jury trial on misappropriation of trade secrets claims.

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  September 2006 — NJL secures favorable result for Yamaha Corporation in a five-day jury trial alleging injuries from a motorcycle’s stuck throttle.

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  January 2007 — NJL successfully defends outdoor products retailer REI after presenting evidence to the jury that REI fully complied with handicap accessible parking designs.

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  May 2007 — NJL is honored for the third time with Hennepin County Bar Association’s Diversity Award for the firm’s ongoing commitment to diversity in the practice of law.

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  June 2007 — NJL wins landmark ruling in favor of former lead paint and pigment manufacturer by the New Jersey Supreme Court, rejecting public nuisance claims by governmental entities.

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  June 2007 — NJL scores appellate victory over the City of St. Louis in public nuisance action against former manufacturers of lead pigment.

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  June 2007 — NJL assists a subsidiary of a multi-billion dollar health insurer with the acquisition of a prominent public policy research group.

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  November 2007 — NJL obtains landmark defense verdict in Wisconsin for Millennium Holdings in nation’s first jury trial of a “risk contribution” childhood lead poisoning case; verdict subsequently affirmed on appeal.

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  January 2008 — NJL shareholder Mathew E. Johnson appointed to Minnesota Court of Appeals; later becomes Chief Judge of the Court.

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  July 2008 — NJL obtains landmark victory for lead paint industry client against the State of Rhode Island, reversing a statewide public nuisance jury verdict and rejecting a multi-billion-dollar abatement remedy.

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  July 2008 — NJL founding shareholder Donald Lewis is appointed Dean of Hamline University School of Law in St. Paul, Minnesota.

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  November 2008 — NJL receives its fourth, first-place marketing award from the Minnesota Legal Marketing Association for its innovative advertising and marketing campaigns.

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  September 2009 — NJL successfully defends $10 million damage and injunction claim against Capitas Financial.

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  November 2009 — NJL moves offices to One Financial Plaza, downtown Minneapolis’ renowned example of modernist architecture. Project achieves silver LEED certification (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design).

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  December 2009 — NJL serves as primary investment counsel to a multi-billion-dollar medical device company in connection with strategic transactions.

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  December 2009 — NJL founding shareholder Mike Nilan is inducted into the American College of Trial Lawyers, an honor given to only 2% of the trial lawyers in the United States.

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  April 2010 — NJL becomes first law firm of its size in the U.S. to have a majority of women shareholders and is bestowed the Minnesota Women Lawyers Leadership Award for enhancing the status, influence, effectiveness and equal participation of female attorneys in our workplace.

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  May 2010 — NJL successfully defends the National Football League and various individuals against a variety of claims brought by two Minnesota Vikings and players’ union arising out of administration of the NFL's drug testing program.

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  July 2010 — NJL obtains summary judgment in favor of Siemens Energy on a $15.2 million claim involving an allegedly invalid contract.

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  August 2010 — NJL wins complete defense verdict in Madison County, Illinois, for a major multinational manufacturer against claims that a worker contracted leukemia due to trace benzene exposure.

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  December 2011 — NJL obtains summary judgment for Ford Motor Company in a key automotive asbestos friction case.

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  December 2011 — NJL is recognized in the widely read Drug and Device Law blog for achieving 3 of 2011’s top 20 best drug and medical device decisions nationwide.

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  September 2011 — On behalf of our client, Target Corporation, NJL defeats a motion to conditionally certify a national FLSA collective action lawsuit.

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  December 2011 — NJL is selected by Twin Cities Business Magazine as one of the top ten Small Business Success Stories for 2011.

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  September 2011 — NJL is named by the National Association of Female Executives and Flex-Time Lawyers as one of the top 50 Best Law Firms for Women.