Eric John Magnuson (born January 27, 1951) is an American lawyer in private practice. He was the Chief Justice of the

Minnesota Supreme Court The Minnesota Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The court hears cases in the Supreme Court chamber in the Minnesota State Capitol or in the nearby Minnesota Judicial Center. History The court was first assemb ...

from 2008 to 2010.

Education and professional background

Magnuson was born in

Morris, Illinois Morris is a city in and the county seat of Grundy County, Illinois, United States and part of the southwest Chicago metropolitan area. The population was estimated at 15,053 in 2019. Description Morris is the Grundy County seat and has a larg ...

. He graduated from Osseo High School, Osseo, Minnesota in 1968 and the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. ...

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

in 1972, and from

William Mitchell College of Law William Mitchell College of Law was a private, independent law school located in St. Paul, Minnesota, United States, from 1956 to 2015. Accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA), it offered full- and part-time legal education in pursuit of ...

Saint Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

in 1976. During his third year of law school, Magnuson clerked for future state Chief Justice

Douglas Amdahl Douglas K. Amdahl (January 23, 1919 – August 24, 2010) was an American lawyer and judge from Minnesota. He served as Chief Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court from December 1981 to January 1989. Early life and education Amdahl was raise ...

, then a

Hennepin County Hennepin County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. Its county seat is Minneapolis, the state's most populous city. The county is named in honor of the 17th-century explorer Father Louis Hennepin. The county extends from Minneapo ...

district judge. The following year, he clerked for then-Chief Justice

Robert Sheran Robert J. Sheran (January 2, 1916 – January 25, 2012) was an American lawyer, politician, and judge. He was appointed Chief Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court by Governor Wendell Anderson, serving from December 1973 to December 1981. He p ...

. Magnuson joined the

law firm of

Rider Bennett Rider Bennett, LLP was a 47-year-old law firm based in Minneapolis, Minnesota that closed in May 2007. It was founded in 1960 by Stu Rider, Gene Bennett and Bill Egan, all three of whom had attended the University of Minnesota Law School together. ...

in 1977. An appellate lawyer in the state and federal courts, he served as president of the

American Academy of Appellate Lawyers The American Academy of Appellate Lawyers is a non-profit organization consisting of the Fellows who have been elected to the Academy. It was founded in 1990 and incorporated as a 501(c)(3) in 1991. Its mission is to "advance the highest standards ...

and founded the Eighth Circuit Bar Association. Governor

Tim Pawlenty Timothy James Pawlenty (; born November 27, 1960) is an American attorney, businessman, and politician who served as the 39th governor of Minnesota from 2003 to 2011. A member of the Republican Party, Pawlenty served in the Minnesota House o ...

chose him to chair the state Commission on Judicial Selection from 2003 to 2008. In 2007, after Rider Bennett dissolved, he joined the Minneapolis law firm of Briggs & Morgan.

Judicial service

Eric Magnuson on the State Canvassing Board for the US Senate election in Minnesota - 20081230

On March 17, 2008, Governor Pawlenty appointed Magnuson Chief Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court to succeed the retiring Russell A. Anderson. He was sworn in on June 2, 2008. Magnuson served on the State Canvassing Board for the

United States Senate election in Minnesota, 2008 The 2008 United States Senate election in Minnesota took place on November 4, 2008. After a legal battle lasting over eight months, the Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL) candidate, Al Franken, defeated Republican incumbent Norm Coleman ...

. On March 11, 2010, Magnuson announced that he would be stepping down as chief justice on June 30, 2010, returning to the private practice of law. In his resignation letter to the governor, he cited "reasons personal to me and my family." On May 5, 2010, Magnuson authored a 4-3 decision of the Minnesota Supreme Court, ruling that Minnesota Gov.

had overstepped his authority by rescinding funding passed by the Minnesota legislature. Pawlenty was Magnuson's former law partner.

Post-Supreme Court

Magnuson became a partner at Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi, L.L.P., and teaches at

Humphrey School of Public Affairs The Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs is a public policy and planning school at the University of Minnesota, a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota. It is named after Hubert ...

. In 2014, the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansi ...

hired Magnuson and Chris Madel to lead an independent investigation concerning the Vikings' termination of Chris Kluwe.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Magnuson, Eric J 1951 births Living people University of Minnesota alumni William Mitchell College of Law alumni Minnesota lawyers People from Morris, Illinois Chief Justices of the Minnesota Supreme Court Minnesota state court judges