Paul E. Godlewski - Minneapolis, MN

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Paul E. Godlewski Overview

Paul Godlewski, a native of Minneapolis, knew long before he went to law school that he wanted to be a personal injury trial lawyer. Even before graduating from the North Dakota School of Law in 1973, Paul volunteered at the Legal Aid Clinic and worked with the Public Defender's Office. While in law school, Paul was appointed to the Board of Editors of the North Dakota Law Review and had two legal researched articles accepted for publication. Soon after graduation, he began his courtroom career by trying cases assigned through the public defender system, as well as representing people injured in automobile accidents.

Today Paul's practice is dedicated to representing the injured victims of automobile collisions, defective products, and poorly constructed or maintained premises. His clients include surviving family members who have suffered the wrongful death of a loved one. He represents clients from Minnesota in both State and Federal Court, bringing negligence claims for all types of injuries, minor to catastrophic, including traumatic brain injury, disfigurement, loss of limbs, paralysis, and death. Paul has also represented accident victims in many other state and federal courts.

In addition to obtaining fair compensation for his clients, Paul has helped advance the rights of injured people through his involvement in precedent setting cases in the areas of underinsured motorist coverage and products liability. One of his jury trials helped expand the law protecting unsuspecting consumers by requiring that manufacturers of defective products warn the public after the product is on the market.

Paul has seen that continued learning and shared information helps both his clients and all the injured people, and he generously shares his experience and expertise with others. He has been a long-term active participant in the Minnesota Trial Lawyers Association. Paul is frequently invited to speak at seminars for lawyers and other professionals in Minnesota and other states on topics including personal injury, products liability, wrongful death, disfigurement, traumatic brain injuries, paralysis, and jury trial courtroom tactics and techniques. He has published numerous articles for seminars and legal periodicals, and has authored chapters on specific injury-related topics. Paul has been an invited speaker with the 1998 National Convention of American Trial Lawyers Association and the National College of Advocacy.

Practice Areas

• Auto & Motorcycle Accidents
• Aviation & Railroad Accidents
• Personal Injury
• Product Liability
• Slip & Fall Accidents
• Trucking Accidents
• Wrongful Death

Litigation

• 100% of Practice Devoted to Litigation

Current Employment Position(s)

• Shareholder

Bar Admissions

• Minnesota, 1973
• U.S. District Court District of Minnesota, 1973
• U.S. Bankruptcy Court Minnesota, 1973
• U.S. Court of Appeals 8th Circuit, 1974
• U.S. Supreme Court, 1976

Specialties and Certifications

• Civil Trial Specialist, National Board of Trial Advocacy, 1993
• Civil Trial Specialist, Minnesota State Bar Association, 1989

Other Affiliations

• Minnesota Trial Lawyers Association, 1985 - 1996 (Member, Board of Governors)
• American Association for Justice (Member)
• Minnesota State Bar Association (Member)
• Hennepin County Bar Association (Member)
• Anoka County Bar Association (Past President)
• American Board of Trial Advocates (Member)
• Brain Injury Association of Minnesota, 2006 - 2007 (Board of Directors)

Education

• University of North Dakota School of Law, Grand Forks, North Dakota, 1973
  J.D.
  Law Review: University of North Dakota Law Review, Research and Book Review Editor, 1972 - 1973
• Bemidji State University, Bemidji, MN, 1970
  B.A.
  Honors: Dean's List - 1968-70
  Honors: With Distinction
  Major: Psychology

Past Positions

• Barna, Guzy, Hynes, & Giancola, Shareholder, 1973 - 1990

Classes and Seminars

• Guest Speaker, Seeing is Believing, 2005 Annual Convention, MN Paralegal Association, 2005
• Guest Speaker, Factual Development, Investigation and Pre-Lawsuit, Road Grade Crossing and FELA Cases, MTLA Convention, 2003
• Guest Speaker, Exhibits: Illustrative vs. Admissible What Goes Into the Jury Room? The Evidence Factor, MSBA CLE, 2003
• Guest Speaker, Making the Most of Discovery, MILE Seminar, 2002
• Course Chair, Pain and Injury, MILE Seminar, 2000
• Speaker, Closing Argument, Soft Tissue 2000-Winning in this Millennium, MTLA, 2000
• Guest Speaker, Use of Experts After Daubert & Kumbo-How Recent Cases Impact Social and Economic Damages Experts, Wrongful Death Seminar, MICLE, 2000
• Guest Speaker, Low Speed Impacts: Does No Property Damage = No Injuries?, Iowa Trial Lawyers Association Annual Convention, 1999
• Guest Speaker, New Cases in Expert Testimony, Handling The Automobile Accident Cases", MTLA Seminar, 1999
• Course Chair, Pain and Injury Seminar, MILE, 1999
• Guest Speaker, Low Speed Impact: Use and Misuse of Research to Support on Dispute Causation, MICLE, 1998
• Guest Speaker, The Best Laid Plans of Insurance Industry: Strategic Nationwide Planning to fuel Declining Auto Collision Verdicts, National College of Advocacy, ATLA National Convention, Washington D.C., 1998
• Guest Speaker, Handling Motor Vehicle Accident Cases, MSBA Seminar, 1998
• Course Chair, Pain, Injury, and Disfigurement, MILE Seminar, 1998
• Course Chair, Pain and Injury Seminar, MILE, 1997
• Chair, Drafting Settlement and Release Documents, MTLA Seminar, 1989
• Course Chair, A Comprehensive Seminar on Head Injury and Life Care Planning, MTLA Seminar, 1989
• Course Chair, Head Injury Symposium, MTLA Seminar, 1989
• Course Chair, Products Liability, MTLA Seminar, 1988
• Course Chair, Products Liability-A Practical Approach, MTLA Seminar, 1987
• Guest Speaker, Working With Non-Medical Experts, MTLA Seminar, 1987
• Guest Speaker, Settlement of Under Insurance Motorists Claims after Schmidt v. Clothier, MTLA Seminar, 1985
• Guest Speaker, Minnesota Issues and Ideas, MTLA Seminar, 1985

Fraternities and Sororities

• Tau Kappa Epsilon

Photos

Address

5120 IDS Center 80 South Eighth Street
Minneapolis, MN 55402-2227

Phones

612-344-0327

Faxes

612-333-6311

Emails

Contact Us

Offers Free Initial Consultation

Yes

Office Hours

Monday - Friday 8:00 - 7:00, Saturday 8:00 - 4:00

Websites

http://www.schwebel.com
http://www.thepersonalinjurypowerhouse.com (Schwebel, Goetz & Sieben's blog)

Articles

Railroad Passenger Accidents and Injuries, Website Article, 2007

Train Accidents Blamed on Maintenance Cutbacks, Crew Fatigue, Website Article, 2006

Low Speed Impacts: Does No Property Damage = No Injuries?, Trial Lawyer Section of the Florida Bar, 2000

What Every Trial Lawyer Should Know: The Impact of the Joiner and Carmichael Decisions On Expert Testimony, MTLA Magazine, Summer, 1999

Low Speed Impacts: Does No Property Damage = No Injuries?, MTLA Magazine, Spring, 1997

Punitive Damages - A Constitutional Issue in Tort Cases, MTLA Magazine, Summer, 1989

"Biker Lawyers Revving Up for Their Busy Season", Minnesota Lawyer, 2008

"Dram-shop actions are limited to licensed vendors", Minnesota Lawyer, 2006

"Railways sued over Arborg man's death", Winnipeg Sun, 2006

"Catching up: Omen in fire and rain", Minneapolis Star Tribune, 2006

"Railroads, state face lawsuit from fatal crash", Thief River Falls Times, 2006

"TRAFFIC ACCIDENT: Family to file suit", Grand Forks Herald, 1006

"Mixed Signals", FOX 9 Investigators (KMSP), 2006

"Snow-and-ice cases get a chilly reception, but can lead to cold cash", Minnesota Lawyer, 2005

"Schwebel, Goetz & Sieben Dominate Top 40 Personal Injury Poll", 2003

"American Board of Trial Advocates Elects Paul Godlewski Member", 2003

"St. Croix River: North St. Paul man was killed in boat collision", St. Paul Pioneer Press, 2002

"North Branch twins killed in car accident", Post Review, 2002

"Six SGS Attorneys Designated Top 40 Personal Injury Lawyers", Minnesota Law & Politics, 2002

"Schwebel, Goetz & Sieben Names Four New Shareholders", 2002

"Accident-prone plaintiff gets $164K for fourth collision", Minnesota Lawyer, 2000

"Insurers 'get tough' with soft tissue cases", Minnesota Lawyer, 1999

Representative Cases

• Hodder v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co, et al., 426 N.W. 2d 826 (Minn 1983)
• Schmidt v. Clothier, 338 N.W.2d 256 (Minn. 1983)