Robyn A. Millenacker , Retired Judge, Ramsey County District Court, JAMS Mediator and Arbitrator

Robyn A. Millenacker, Retired Judge, Ramsey County District Court, joins JAMS in Minneapolis as a highly experienced dispute resolution professional with nearly four decades of litigation and judicial service in state and federal courts. She brings 37 years of combined civil and criminal experience, including more than 14 years on the Minnesota District Court bench and 17 years as an assistant U.S. attorney in Minneapolis and Los Angeles.

As a federal prosecutor, Judge Millenacker handled civil enforcement, defensive litigation and False Claims Act matters, and later prosecuted complex gun, drug and gang cases. Earlier in her career, she litigated mass tort, product liability, intellectual property, business and commercial matters.

On the state bench, Judge Millenacker presided over a broad range of matters, including business and complex commercial; employment discrimination; unfair competition; civil rights; medical and legal malpractice; contract; insurance; personal injury; estates, probate and trusts; and attorneys’ fees disputes. She also regularly heard civil actions involving Minnesota state agencies. She is known for her balanced, direct and results-focused approach that allows parties to feel heard and that their positions are fully understood.

A recognized leader in juvenile and family justice, Judge Millenacker pioneered Minnesota’s judicial response to sex-trafficked youth and trained judicial officers across the Upper Midwest. She has presented on this subject at national forums, including a White House conference and the National Conference of State Supreme Court Justices. She also played a key role in expanding family court resources, including establishing a pro bono clinic, a self-help center and the early neutral evaluation Program in her county.

Judge Millenacker’s inquisitive style, creativity and ability to make parties feel heard allow her to design practical, durable resolutions. In her ADR practice, she brings the insight of a seasoned trial judge and litigator to help parties resolve disputes efficiently and effectively.

ADR Qualifications and Experience

Judge Millenacker is a Minnesota Rule 114 Qualified Neutral who actively promotes the resolution of disputes through both early- and late-stage settlement conferences. She employs creative, pragmatic approaches tailored to the needs of the parties and encourages innovative, case-specific solutions to help resolve matters short of trial.

Representative Matters

While she was a state court judge, in private practice and an assistant U.S. attorney, Judge Millenacker handled a variety of civil litigation, including commercial and contract, employment discrimination, personal injury and product liability disputes. She also filed cases under the False Claims Act and other affirmative civil enforcement statutes against corporate entities doing business with the United States. A sample of the cases Judge Millenacker has presided over include the following:

Business Commercial

- BNSF Railway Company v. PFM Integrators, Inc. and Belknap Electric, Inc. (No. 62- CV-16-2040): Case with multiple parties and disputes over property damage and liability
- Needham Distributing Company, Inc. v. Summit Brewing Co. (No. 62-CV-17-2292): Franchise litigation over distribution contract termination
- Outsource Receivables, Inc., a Minnesota Business Corporation v. Healthcare Management Resources, Inc., a Minnesota Business Corporation (No. 62-CV-19-401): Contract dispute concerning the sale of a business
- Rory Johnson v. Irongate Solutions, N. Abdul, John Botnen and Woodbury Capital (No. 62-CV-18-262): Business dissolution, forced buyout and employment dispute regarding a data storage center
- Dorso Building Company, LLP, Temperature Controlled Storage, Inc., and Travelers Online, Inc. v. City of Roseville (No. 62-CV-18-364): Lengthy dispute with the City of Roseville regarding the condition and use of property for commercial purposes
- Devoe, D.D.S. v. E. Jimenez and E. Jimenez Dental Lab, Inc., a Minnesota Corporation (No. 62.CV-19-3602): Contract dispute
- Spriggs Plumbing & Heating, Inc., a Minnesota Corporation v. Bruce Follestad, an individual residing in Minnesota, and Follestad & Barrett Associates, Inc., a Minnesota Corporation (No. 62-CV-17-1897): Contract and negligence action regarding alleged design deficiencies in the design and installation of a heating and air conditioning system in a commercial office building

Education Law

- Jacobson v. Saint Catherine’s University (No. 62-CV-16-5533): Educational discrimination matters resolved by a creative settlement approach
- Crawford v. Cretin Durham Hall (No. 62-CV-19-5921): Wrongful expulsion claim

Environmental Law

- United States Steel Corporation v. John Linc Stine, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (No. 62-CV-17-989): Environmental litigation concerning complex environmental regulatory matters
- Docks of White Bear Lake, LLC v. Dockside Waterski Company d/b/a Tally’s Dockside; City of White Bear Lake (No. 62-CV-20-2273): Litigation regarding above-ground fuel storage tank

False Claims Act and Affirmative Civil Enforcement

- Securities and Exchange Commission v. Thomas J. Petters, et al. (09-CV-1750 ADM/SRN) (companion to (08-CR-00364 RHK-AJB)): Largest Ponzi scheme in Minnesota history, involving Thomas Petters and associated entities; managed complex litigation across federal district and bankruptcy courts, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals and Minnesota state family court to preserve assets for fraud victims; also handled related civil suits brought by creditors
- United States ex rel. Long v. Mayo Clinic (Civil No. 02-522 (ADM/SRN)): Prosecuted federal grant fraud litigation involving government medical research grants from the National Institutes of Health awarded to a major research institution, eventually resulting in a $6.5 million settlement payment
- United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission v. Charles E. Hays a/k/a Chuck Hayes and Crossfire Trading, LLC (Civil No. 09-0259 (DWF/AJB)): Brought a complaint for injunctive and other equitable relief as well as an ex parte restraining order in a day trading Ponzi scheme
- Immanuel St. Joseph Hospital of Mankato v. Leavitt (Civil No. 06-1039 (PAM/JSM)) (July 18, 2007) and Mary’s Hospital of Rochester v. Leavitt, 535 F.3d 802 (8th Cir. 2008): Defended federal agencies, including claims against the United States Department of Health and Human Services brought by the Mayo Clinic for increased payments for medical residency programs; both involved successful dispositive motions brought on behalf of the agency
- United States v. Cargill (1999–2001): Investigated and civilly pursued crop insurance fraud claims in Minnesota and Iowa against Cargill and 30 other defendants enrolled in the federal crop insurance program; worked extensively with the United States Department of Agriculture’s Risk Management Agency and the Office of Inspector General; negotiated settlements with all defendants and the whistleblower under the False Claims Act
- United States v. Washington Mint, LLC, et al., 115 F. Supp.2d 1089 (D. Minn. 2000): Represented federal agencies in Freedom of Information Act litigation; also represented the United States in copyright and trademark infringement litigation
- Collaborated with counsel for the Securities and Exchange Commission and Commodity Futures Trading Commission in prosecuting civil fraud cases involving entities operating under various investment and foreign exchange fronts; litigated across multiple federal civil actions and secured the appointment of a receiver to investigate fraudulent conduct and marshal assets for recovery on behalf of victims

Family Law, Trust and Probate

- Managed a docket of 390 cases with over 500 hearings while assigned to the Family and Juvenile Court. Issues included:
  - Early stages of divorce (ADR and discovery)
  - Dissolution
  - Physical and legal custody
  - Third-party custody
  - Parenting disputes
  - Spousal maintenance
  - Property and asset division
  - Business valuation and division
  - Orders for protection
  - Harassment restraining orders
- In re Matter of the Welfare of the Children of James Vin Zant, Father (No. 62-JV-19-1996): Post-decree motion to modify parenting time
- Carlson v. D. Carlson (No. 62-FA-11-2332); High-conflict case with ongoing custody and parenting time issues
- In Re Marriage of Z. Zhao, M.D. v. P. Mi, M.D. (No. 62-FA-15-1286 and 62-HR-CV-15-217): High-net-worth dissolution with custody, parenting time, spousal maintenance, and property and asset division issues, as well as a harassment restraining order
- Lynda J. Stern v. Larry S. Stern, M.D. (No. 62-F1-99-002848): High-net-worth case with a motion to reopen spousal maintenance brought in 2017 because respondent wished to retire
- Vaillancourt v. K.A. Vaillancourt (No. 62-FA-13-3179): Issues of custody, parenting time, parental alienation and spousal maintenance
- In the Matter of Trust A Under Will of Albert Herschler (No. 62-TR-CV-17-60)
- In re Matter of Merrill Lynch First Franklin Mortgage Loan Trust, Mortgage Loan Asset-Backed Certificates Series 2007-5 (No. 62-TR-CV-19-30)

Health Care

- Medica Health Plans v. Minnesota Department of Human Services, Emily Johnson Piper (No. 62-CV-17-1478): Administrative law dispute involving procurement practices under Minnesota health care marketplace statutes
- Porter v. Allina Health Systems d/b/a United Hospital, United Hospital (No. 62-CV-16- 4601): Minnesota Government Data Practices Act and Minnesota Health Care Records Act litigation
- Marshall Everson, Jr., M.D.; Jeffrey Stephens, M.D.; and Eugene Gullingsrud, M.D. v. Minnesota Valley Surgical Center, LLC; Nueterra Holdings, LLC; Nueterra Healthcare Management, LLC; NueHealth, LLC; Stephen Olmstead, M.D.; Robert Hartman, M.D.; Jason Holm, M.D.; Edward Kelly, M.D.; and Karen Howrey, Defendants (No.62-CV-18-1075).: Dissolution of physician practice group

Product Liability, Personal Injury and Professional Negligence

- Lewis-Goetz and Company, Inc.; Able Hose and Rubber, Inc.; and Pro-Flow Dynamics, LLC, and Campbell Fittings, Inc.; Conti-Tech North America, Inc.; The Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company; Conti-Tech USA, Inc., Defendants and Summit Brewing Company, Third-Party Defendant (No. 62-CV-16-4613): Presided over a personal injury action as a result of a defective product
- Dameh v. Sabal Financial Group L.P.; Slate Energy Park Holding, LLC; Cassidy Turley Real Estate Services, Inc., d/b/a Cushman & Wakefield; Cushman & Wakefield, Inc.; and Cushman & Wakefield U.S., Inc. (No. 62-CV-19-2005): Insurance subrogation issues on a premises liability case
- Puro v. Minnesota Surgical Associates PA, et al. (No. 62-CV-16-5906): Medical malpractice case involving an alleged negligent surgical procedure; involved discovery disputes over electronic information and devices
- K. Rhodes v. The Metropolitan Council and The Metropolitan Council, Third-Party Plaintiff v. Z. Bradford and V. Nickerson, Third-Party Defendants (No. 62-CV-16-6615): Personal injury case

Honors, Memberships and Professional Activities

Memberships and Affiliations

Member, National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, 2014–2026
Member, Minnesota State Bar Association, 1996–2026
Member, Ramsey County Bar Association, 1996–2026
Member, Federal Bar Association, 1996–2026
Member, Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Ethics Board, 2015–2021
Board Member, Joint Committee of Ramsey County Court and Ramsey County Board of Commissioners, 2016–2023
Secretary and Board Member, Project Remand Pre-trial Release Program, Second Judicial District, 2015–2022
Board Member, Supreme Court Committee, Alternative Dispute Resolutions (ADR) Ethics Board, 2016–2022
Member, Minnesota Safe Harbor Detention Working Group, 2014–2024
Second Judicial District Representative, Tubman Legal Services Advisory Council Think Tank, 2014–2024
Planning and Programming Advisor, Minnesota Judicial Branch Addressing the Sex Trafficking of Children in Minnesota, 2014–2024
Member, Minnesota Department of Education School Safety and Technical Assistance Council, 2012–2015
Member, Ramsey County Juvenile Delinquency Oversight/Case Processing Committee, 2014–2020
Member, Second Judicial District Family Court Early Case Management Steering Committee, 2014–2020
Member, Ramsey County Court Security Committee, 2014–2024
Juvenile Detention Alternative Initiative Committee, 2014–2018
- Member
- Chair Selection Committee
Member, Board of Trustees, Ramsey County Law Library, 2012–2024
Master-Level Member and Table Host, Warren Burger Inn of Court, 2011–2024
- Emeritus Member, 2025–2026
Subcommittee on Board of Judicial Standards for Minnesota District Judges Association
- Chair, 2018–2026
- Member 2011–2017

Bar Admissions

Minnesota
California (Inactive)
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
U.S. District Court for the Central District of California

Background and Education

District Court Judge, Second Judicial District, State of Minnesota, Saint Paul, 2010–2024
Assistant U.S. Attorney, District of Minnesota, Minneapolis, 1996 – 2010
Affirmative Civil Enforcement (ACE) Unit and Civil Immigration Coordinator, 2006–2010
Assistant U.S. Attorney, Central District of California, Los Angeles, 1994 – 1996
Litigation Associate; Pillsbury, Madison & Sutro; 1989-1994
Law Clerk, U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge Janice Symchych, 1988–1989
Law Clerk; Arthur Chapman Kettering Smetak & Pikala, P.A.; 1987
J.D., cum laude, University of Minnesota Law School, 1988
B.A., University of Minnesota, 1984

Robyn A. Millenacker , Retired Judge, Ramsey County District Court

ADR Qualifications and Experience

Representative Matters

Honors, Memberships and Professional Activities

Background and Education

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Minneapolis, Minnesota

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