Daily Dicta: In Pickup Truck v. North Dakota, the Truck Wins—Thanks to Kirkland & Ellis
Partner Craig Primis called the case "an important step in ensuring that states do not cavalierly seize people's property under absurdly low burdens of proof that stack the deck against defendants."
October 21, 2019 at 12:01 AM
4 minute read
I admit, I have a tiny soft spot for asset forfeiture cases because I find their captions amusing—i.e. "United States v. Approximately 64,695 Pounds of Shark Fins" or "State of Texas v. 12 Gold Coins."
But there's nothing funny about State of North Dakota v. 2003 Chevrolet Silverado (OK well except possibly the name).
Working pro bono, Kirkland & Ellis partner Craig Primis and associate Michael Francus succeeded in getting Aaron Dorn his truck back after it was wrongly seized by the state.
On Thanksgiving Day of 2016, Dorn was driving in a convoy of Dakota Access Pipeline protestors. North Dakota police accused him of driving at them and swerving into their lane. Dorn was arrested and charged with reckless endangerment, obstruction of a government function and resisting arrest.
He was exonerated on all the charges—but the state refused to return his truck.
In recent years, multiple media outlets have shined a spotlight on asset forfeiture abuses, where states or the federal government have confiscated private property without basic due process, insisting that it's been involved in a crime. If the property is wrongly seized, many victims find they have little recourse.
But most victims don't have Kirkland & Ellis in their corner.
The firm got involved after Francus, a litigation associate who earned his law degree in 2017 from Stanford, got wind of the case. "He is passionate about property rights and forfeiture laws, and the forfeiture of Aaron Dorn's truck struck Michael not only as wrong but as unconstitutional," Primis said in an email.
With approval from the firm, Francus reached out Dorn and offered to take on his case pro bono.
It's something of a mini-trend—this is the second case I've written about of late where a Kirkland associate initiated a pro bono representation to combat law enforcement overreach. The firm's work on behalf of a Kansas family that was subject to a SWAT-style drug raid based on a visit to a garden store and drinking loose-leaf tea (seriously, that was it) was also sparked by an associate.
Working with local counsel Mark Friese of the Vogel Law Firm, Francus and Primis convinced a Morton County, North Dakota judge to order the truck's return. On Friday, Dorn was finally able to drive it home.
This was not a case with a lot of money at stake—or at least not a lot of money by typical Kirkland client standards. The Kelley Blue Book value for a 2003 Silverado ranges from $3,800 to $6,300.
But the principle—that was huge.
Primis called the case "an important step in ensuring that states do not cavalierly seize people's property under absurdly low burdens of proof that stack the deck against defendants, particularly ones with limited means like Aaron Dorn."
North Dakota, Primis continued, "had one of the most aggressive civil asset forfeiture laws in the country. To seize an individual's property, the state needed only to show that it had 'probable cause' to believe the property was used in a crime. That is about as low a burden of proof a state can have, and we believed it to be unconstitutionally low."
The case has had a wider impact, spurring a movement in North Dakota to reform the state's forfeiture laws, culminating in new legislation this year that greatly increased protections for defendants in forfeiture cases.
Primis said the case sends two messages. "The first is that states need to ensure that their forfeiture laws do not make it so easy for the state to seize property that they violate basic due process protections," he said. "The second is that individuals can fight back against state overreach like this, and there are talented young attorneys like Michael Francus who are ready to take on their cases pro bono and can deliver outstanding results."
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View AllTalking Shop About Faegre Drinker's New Arizona Design Lab with Trial Partner David 'DJ' Gross
How Do You Get Experience Leading an MDL Without Experience Leading an MDL?
Litigation Leaders: Quinn Emanuel's Michael Carlinsky on Training Associates to Think and Act Like Trial Lawyers
Leveling the Playing Field: Insights From Celebrated Women Legal Leaders
4 minute readTrending Stories
- 1Infant Formula Judge Sanctions Kirkland's Jim Hurst: 'Overtly Crossed the Lines'
- 2Abbott, Mead Johnson Win Defense Verdict Over Preemie Infant Formula
- 3Preparing Your Law Firm for 2025: Smart Ways to Embrace AI & Other Technologies
- 4Meet the Lawyers on Kamala Harris' Transition Team
- 5Trump Files $10B Suit Against CBS in Amarillo Federal Court
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250