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Thursday, Feb. 8
11:30 a.m.
Check-in opens
12 p.m.
Lunch and Conversation with MACA Officers and League General Counsel
MACA Officers will address questions from attorneys new to the municipal law practice.
1 p.m.
What is Brady-Giglio and How it Impacts Cities
Moderator: Peter Zuniga, Panelists: Jennifer Cross and George Henry
In this session we will discuss what Brady-Giglio is and how it intersects with the Minnesota Rules of Criminal Procedure and the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act. We will also discuss what county attorneys, city attorneys, and judges are doing in response to the changing landscape of Brady-Giglio in Minnesota.
2 p.m.
Post-Puce: Imposing Exactions like Park Dedication Fees with an ‘Essential Nexus’ and ‘Rough Proportionality’*
John M. Baker and Soren M. Mattick
In certain contexts, exactions cities impose on land-use approvals must have an essential nexus to a legitimate state interest, and bear a rough proportionality to the approval’s impact. With recent guidance from the Minnesota Supreme Court (and a pending U.S. Supreme Court case), what should your city do to improve the chances that an exaction survives these tests if challenged? *Real Property Law Credit
3 p.m.
Break
3:15 p.m.
Office of Cannabis Management Update
Katie Knutson, Chief of Staff, Office of Cannabis Management; and Eric Taubel, General Counsel, Office of Cannabis Management
Representatives from the newly formed Office of Cannabis Management will provide an update on its progress on rule making related to Minnesota’s new Adult Use Cannabis legislation. In addition, OCM will provide an update on working with local governments and what the future holds for cannabis.
3:45 p.m.
Extreme Risk Protection Orders
William Everett, Attorney, Everett Law
Minnesota’s version of a red flag law went into effect on January 1, 2024, authorizing courts to issue extreme risk protection orders (ERPOs). An ERPO prohibits a respondent from purchasing or possessing firearms while the order is in effect, and the law also authorizes law enforcement to execute search warrants and seize firearms under specified conditions. City attorneys and local police departments are among those who can petition for these orders. This session will give you fast-paced overview of the new law and a preview of the vexing questions that are bound to come up!
4:45 p.m.
Evening Remarks
Pamela Whitmore, MACA President
5 p.m.
Networking Reception
Friday, Feb. 9
8 a.m.
Check- In Opens
8 a.m.
Networking Breakfast
8 a.m.
Less-Risky Business: New Construction Manager At Risk Legislation*
Elisa Hatlevig and Jim Strommen
(Session concurrent with breakfast)
Join us to hear about construction manager at-risk contracts in light of the new legislative requirements, including potential benefits to cities, the need for informed contract negotiation, the management of project cost and litigation risk. *Real property credit
Breakout Sessions
9 a.m.
Criminal Topic
DWIs: Proving Impairment in Court
David Bernstein and Amy Tripp-Steiner
Learn how to persuasively argue both alcohol and drug-related impairment to a judge or jury. The presentation will include tips for voir dire, direct examination of law enforcement, and closing statements in DWI cases. The presenters will highlight effective uses of key words tied to the jury instructions to help you prove your case.
Civil Topic Option One
Unresolved Legal Issues for Municipal Cannabis Dispensaries: Banking, Federal Regulations, and Insurance
Mitchel Chargo
The 2023 Minnesota Cannabis Act provided that cities can open and operate municipal cannabis retail stores. However, the act provides little guidance given the complexities surrounding licensing and compliance, especially given the ongoing federal prohibition. This session provides an overview of some of the difficulties of running a legal-at-state-level-only business, and how to navigate these complexities.
Civil Topic Option Two
Walking the Tightrope: Strategies for Giving Legal Advice That is Contrary to Community Pressure and Council Wishes (and Keeping Your Job in the Process)
Michael Couri, Thomas Jacobson, and Charles Ramstad
This session will discuss the inherent difficulty in giving legal advice that is contrary to community pressure and council wishes, magnified when counsel is serving as an at will independent contractor, as well as the difficulties in serving as a part time City Attorney while being a member of a private practice. Does your advice cost you your job? Does your advice damage your firm’s business? The presenters will suggest methods to avoid those unwelcome outcomes.
10:00 a.m.
Break
10:05 a.m.
Criminal Topic
Hot Topics for Today’s City Prosecutor
Moderator: Katie Nolting, Panelists: Blair Buccicone, Heather Monnens, and Karen Skoyles
This knowledgeable panel will discuss a wide array of issues prosecutors face daily and important changes happening in the criminal justice system. The focus of the panel will be on the new incompetent defendant statute, DWI trends including low supply of blood kits and what that can mean for a refusal case, Driving While Impaired cases, and changes in prosecution of cannabis cases. There will be plenty of time for questions on any prosecutorial topic.
Civil Topic Option One
Sacred Communities and Micro Unit Dwellings – Navigating the New Landscape*
Therese Skarda and Rachel Tierney
On Jan. 1, 2024, the new “Sacred Community” law went into effect, requiring cities to allow faith communities to install micro-unit dwellings to house chronically homeless and extremely low-income individuals; and preempting almost all city regulation. What are these new rules, what decisions are left for cities, and what questions remain unanswered? We will discuss two examples of communities, one in St. Paul and one in Roseville. *Real Property Credit
Civil Topic Option Two
Land Use 101: A Crash Course in the Best Practices and Nuances of Zoning Applications*
Jason Kuboushek
This session will cover the types of land use applications, the nuances of Minn. Stat. Sec. 15.99, creating a solid record and issues around public hearings. *Real Property Credit
11:05 a.m.
Break
11:10 a.m.
Criminal Topic
Responding to Requests for Adult and Juvenile Data
Taya Moxley-Goldsmith
Cities with “agencies that carry on a law enforcement function,” such as police departments, fire departments, or ambulance services, are creating and maintaining comprehensive law enforcement data subject to the MGDPA. Learn about responding to requests for adult and juvenile data, common situations that get tricky, and best practices for complying with the law.
Civil Topic Option One
Abatement, Civil Injunctions, and Criminal Prosecution: An Overview and Best Practices for Handling Tricky Code Violations*
Henry Schaeffer III, Alina Schwartz, and Jared Shepherd
Code violations: sometimes your City can’t live with them, and sometimes it seems like you can’t get rid of them. Learn more about non-prosecution related ways to address tricky code violations such as hazardous buildings, slumlords, and backyard hoarders. Hear also from a prosecutor on ways the criminal court system can assist with these types of situations. *Real Property Credit
Civil Topic Option Two
Everything You Need to Know About the First Amendment and Social Media
Jana O’Leary Sullivan
The First Amendment and Social Media. A city attorneys’ tool kit to responding to elected and public officials’ use of social media, public discourse, and going viral.
12:15 p.m.
Networking Lunch
1:15 p.m.
Annual Business Meeting
1:30 p.m.
Earned Sick and Safe Time
Susan Hansen and Mary Tietjen
The new Earned Sick and Safe Time law went into effect Jan. 1, 2024. Is your city in compliance? Learn about the new law, strategic decisions to make, as well as policies and notices you will need to implement. This presentation will help you sort everything out, provide you some templates and identify key decisions you will need to make along the way.
2:30 p.m.
Break
2:45 p.m.
2024 Minnesota Legislative Preview
Brooke Bordson
The Minnesota legislature passed significant legislation in 2023 that many of us are still absorbing. Hear from the League of Minnesota Cities about what they anticipate being top priorities for new legislation and where there will be necessary amendments to existing law.
3:15 p.m.
Facing Forward Series: City Reparations Initiatives
Moderator: Bridget Nason, Attorney, Kennedy & Graven Chartered
Presenters: Nicholas Cummings, Attorney & Founder, Osiris Professional Services; Tasheik Kerr, Assistant to the City Manager, City of Evanston, IL; Nicholas Muhammad, Executive Director, Black Civic Network
This session will inform attendees about reparations initiatives undertaken by local governments, including information about what reparations are, why reparations initiatives have been undertaken, the impact of previous legislation, policy, and practices on Black Americans, and why legislative reparations initiatives are an important tool for addressing the impact of past discriminatory policies on Black Americans.
*Bias Credit
4:15 p.m.
Closing Remarks
4:30 p.m.
Adjourn