Sumerford, Rees Mahone

Wayne Studer is an attorney in the litigation department of Henningson & Snoxell, Ltd., located in Maple Grove, Minnesota. For more than 30 years, Wayne has concentrated his practice on workers' compensation and personal injury matters. He represents individuals who have been injured in the workplace or as a result of the negligence of others.

Wayne's experience as defense counsel in workers’ compensation and personal injury cases brings a unique perspective to his practice. For 6 years, he worked as a defense attorney at Aetna, where he became head of staff counsel, and then worked another 7 years at a private firm, still doing defense work. Wayne’s years of legal experience dealing with insurers, attorneys, employers, claims professionals and judges have earned him a strong reputation of being an honest, knowledgeable, and fair attorney who also provides exceptional client service to his clients.

Today, Wayne focuses his practice solely on plaintiff representation, advocating on behalf of clients who have sustained injuries, including but not limited to:

• Motor vehicle accidents that occurred while on the job (and related subrogation claims).
• Construction site accidents.
• Back and neck injuries.
• Occupational diseases.
• Repetitive injuries.
• Head trauma.

He is also skilled in applying Minnesota workers’ compensation laws to out-of-state injuries and is known for his ability to navigate a myriad of complex rules, procedures and delays.

In his personal injury practice, Wayne often represents clients in car accidents involving issues of no fault insurance; uninsured and underinsured motorists; and back and neck injuries, repetitive injuries or cases of head trauma. He also assists clients with slip and fall incidents (premises liability), occupational diseases, medical malpractice claims and animal bite cases. As a complement to his personal injury work, Wayne also practices in the area of products liability. Recent client representation in this area includes:

• A truck driver who suffered physical and emotional injuries when a woman crossed the centerline, crashed into his truck, and unfortunately died before his eyes.
• A bicyclist riding on a paved path when hit by a crossing motorcycle driven by a 10 year old.
• A motorcyclist with brain injury and fractures after a car abruptly turned left in front of him.
• Family members injured when their car was T-boned by teen driver.
• A social worker who slipped and fell on an icy sidewalk at a County Social Services building while assisting his client.
• A student injured inside the high school when slipping on a puddle left in the hallway.
• An employee who suffered a collapsed lung while working.
• An employee who needed back surgery 8 years after her work injury.

Wayne is admitted to practice in all Minnesota state district and appellate courts. Throughout his career, he has appeared before the Minnesota Supreme Court and the Minnesota Workers' Compensation Court of Appeals arguing key issues in various areas of the law including cases that:

• Established new attorneys’ fee paid by insurance company in certain cases (1997).
• Clarified limits on attorneys’ fees in multiple injury matters (1999).
• Established new District Court right of subrogation in work related injury cases (1985).
• Clarified law on cancellation fees for missed adverse examinations (1986).

He is a member of the Minnesota State Bar Association (MSBA) and the Minnesota Association for Justice for which he serves on a Workers’ Compensation Committee. He is a member of the Maple Grove Lions Club and serves as its third vice president and co-chair of the club’s Charitable Giving Committee. He is also a former youth soccer coach.

Wayne grew up in southern Minnesota and has been a Twin Cities resident since 1975. He received his B.A., cum laude, from the College of St. Thomas and his law degree from the William Mitchell College of Law. A resident of Maple Grove, Wayne works to give his clients small town personal service with big city legal representation. He and his wife enjoy spending time with their three daughters at school and community events. The family also enjoys soccer, fishing, hiking, and the occasional vacation.