Michael A. Collyard

Mike is a battle-tested trial lawyer who has won headline-grabbing cases and secured the largest jury verdict in Minnesota history—a $564 million verdict and total award of over $1.1 billion. 

He has been described publicly by colleagues as a “once in a generation trial lawyer” who “absolutely outworks everyone.” A former Robins Kaplan trial lawyer described Mike in the Star Tribune newspaper as “the best trial lawyer I have encountered in 42 years of practice…His ability to take complexity and reduce it to lay language for jurors is unmatched.” A major client described Mike as “a rock” who is “tenacious.” A court reporter who handled one of Mike’s trials years ago (that successfully settled before verdict) commented that Mike’s opening statement and cross-examinations were among the best she’s seen in 20 years of handling federal jury trials. 

Financial and Commercial Litigation

Mike has successfully handled multi-billion and multi-million-dollar cases on both sides of the “v.” On the plaintiff side, Mike recently tried and won a $1.1 billion award against BMO Harris Bank for BMO’s role in the Petters Ponzi scheme, one of the biggest Ponzi schemes in U.S. history. Mike tried the case to a jury for a month and proved BMO aided and abetted breaches of fiduciary duty. During that case, Mike also proved that BMO intentionally destroyed millions of pages of evidence with the intent to keep that evidence out of the courtroom and two federal judges granted Mike’s client an adverse inference jury instruction where the jury was allowed to presume the destroyed evidence was harmful to BMO. BMO has reserved over a billion dollars to pay the judgment and was ordered to post a $1.158 billion bond as it tries to appeal the jury’s verdict. 

In another recent plaintiff case, Mike served as co-lead counsel for John. F. Kennedy, the Receiver for Education Corporation of America (ECA) where he helped secure a $28 million settlement without having to take a single deposition in the case. 

On the defensive side, Mike successfully handled a multi-billion-dollar defense case for a major bank against the People of the State of California where his client paid $0 to settle the case, while another major bank in a companion case (who used a large, international defense firm) had to pay eight figures to settle. As part of Mike’s strategy to win that case, Mike brought a third-party suit against nearly every major bank in the country who ultimately paid the state of California to settle the case.  

Mike isn’t afraid to take the biggest, most complex cases to a jury in order to hold bad actors accountable and to seek justice for his clients. His broad range of experience includes representing receivers, bankruptcy trustees, litigation trusts, banks, hedge funds, individuals, and companies of all sizes. 

He has sued (and defended) some of the biggest corporations in the world and he has sued nearly every major bank in the country, as well as officers and directors of companies. His breadth of knowledge and experience has allowed him to handle cases in a variety of diverse areas including:

• Commercial litigation
• Fraud
• Breach of fiduciary duty
• Ponzi schemes
• General business disputes
• Unfair competition
• Antitrust
• Intellectual Property disputes

Mike takes a hands-on approach to every case and runs his teams lean. He takes great pride in doing things differently than other lawyers typically do. He does so with creativity and a very strategic endgame in mind; whether it’s writing briefs, taking depositions, preparing witnesses, arguing motions, or talking with judges and juries. His refusal to become complacent with anything he does in life contributes to his success and shows in his results. 

Education

• Mitchell Hamline School of Law, J.D., magna cum laude; Primary Editor, Hamline Law Review
• University of St. Thomas, B.A. in Business and Political Science

Representative Matters

Kelley v. BMO Harris Bank, N.A.
Served as lead counsel for Douglas Kelley, the Trustee of the BMO Litigation Trust in the largest Ponzi scheme cases in U.S. history. In November 2022, Mr. Collyard secured a $564 million jury verdict, the largest in Minnesota history. In June 2023, a federal judge in St. Paul issued an Order for BMO Harris Bank to pay pre- and post-judgment interest on the $564 million jury verdict, bringing total liability to over $1 billion in favor of Mr. Collyard’s client.

John F. Kennedy Receiver for Education Corporation of America
Served as co-lead counsel for John F. Kennedy, the Receiver for Education Corporation of America (ECA), a privately held company that operated for-profit colleges across the United States. The company abruptly announced its closure in late 2018, leaving thousands of students unable to complete their education. The claims brought against former officers and directors of ECA alleged that they breached their fiduciary duties of care. Mr. Collyard helped secure a favorable $28 million settlement.

The People of the State of California v. U.S. Bank National Association, et al.
Served as lead counsel for U.S. Bank in a multi-billion-dollar case brought by the People of the State of California for alleged unfair competition related to foreclosed properties. The case settled on the eve of a several-month trial, after Mr. Collyard sued a dozen of the largest banks who serviced the properties at issue. The plaintiff sought billions of dollars in alleged fines and a permanent injunction that would change the way trustees and servicers do business together. The case settled after the plaintiff agreed to drop its request for an injunction and agreed that U.S. Bank as trustee should pay $0.

MASTR Adjustable Rate Mortgages Trust 2006-OA2, et al. v. UBS Real Estate Securities, Inc.
Served as lead counsel for U.S. Bank as a securitization trustee in a mortgage backed securities case against UBS. That case was being handled by Quinn Emanuel and Mr. Collyard was brought in to first chair a $2 billion-dollar evidentiary hearing in New York federal court where his client was accused of intentionally destroying critical evidence. The judge found that Mr. Collyard proved U.S. Bank acted in good faith and denied UBS’s request for terminating sanctions in its entirety. His client subsequently received nearly a billion dollars in a settlement on behalf of the trusts at issue.

Rubloff Development Group, Inc., et al. v. SuperValu, Inc., et al.
Represented SuperValu, Inc. in a complex antitrust and racketeering case in federal court in Illinois. The plaintiffs’ initial demand was approximately $30 million. Mr. Collyard argued, and won, a motion to dismiss the case, removing it from the claims against SuperValu. As a result, the plaintiffs agreed to dismiss their remaining claims and settling the case for $0.

• Listed in "500 Leading Plaintiff Financial Lawyers in America," Lawdragon (2024)
• Named to "Power 30: Best Business Litigators in Minnesota," by Minnesota Lawyer (2023)
• Listed in The Best Lawyers in America (2024-2025 editions)
• Listed in “500 Leading Litigators in America,” Lawdragon (2024-2025)
• Named to "Top Lawyers List," Minnesota Monthly (2024)
• Named a "Minnesota Super Lawyer," Super Lawyers (2023-2024)
• Listed in the “Top 100 Verdicts for 2022,” The National Law Journal (2023)
• Named to annual list of “Plaintiffs' Attorneys Trailblazers,” The National Law Journal (2023)
• Named a “Stand-out Lawyer,” Thomson Reuters (2023-2024)
• Named an "Attorney of the Year," Minnesota Lawyer (2022)
• Listed as a "Top Trademark Professional," World Trademark Review 1000 (2019-2020)

Civic

Mr. Collyard is involved in various community affairs. He has served on the Deans Advisory Board at the Mitchell Hamline School of Law. In addition, he has mentored law students at the University of St. Thomas Law School for more than a decade. He has also served as a Guest Professor at the University of St. Thomas Law School.  

Mr. Collyard also frequently serves as a faculty member on Robins Kaplan’s Exceptional Advocate Training Program, which teaches trial skills to the firm’s associates. 

Mr. Collyard is a member of The Sedona Conference® Working Group on Electronic Document Retention and Production (WG1).

Professional

• American Bankruptcy Institute
• American Bar Association (Intellectual Property Section)
• American Intellectual Property Law Association
• Commercial Receivers Association
• Federal Bar Association
• Hennepin County Bar Association
• International Trademark Association
• Minnesota Intellectual Property Law Association
• New York Intellectual Property Law Association
• National Association of Federal Equity Receivers (NAFER)
• Turnaround Management Association (TMA)

Speeches

• Anatomy of a Trial – Kelley v. BMO Harris Bank: Taking a Case to Verdict and Recovering for Stakeholders
  NAFER 2024 Conference, Santa Barbara, California (October 30, 2024)
• Criminals, Bad Bankers, and Document Destruction
  Robins Kaplan LLP 2023 Trial Advocacy Seminar, Minneapolis, Minnesota (November 16, 2023)
• Unlocking Trial Strategies: Inside the $1 Billion BMO Harris Case
  • Mitchell Hamline School of Law, St. Paul, Minnesota (November 14, 2023)
  • University of St. Thomas School of Law, Minneapolis, Minnesota (November 13, 2023)
  • University of Minnesota School of Law, Minneapolis, Minnesota (November 9, 2023)
• The Aiding and Abetting that Led To a $1 Billion Dollar Judgment and the Biggest Jury Verdict in Minnesota History
  Lying, Cheating, and Stealing Seminar 2023: Secrets and Solutions for Handling Messy Business Disputes, Minneapolis, Minnesota (October 4, 2023)
• Scandals & Stories that Make Receivers Infamous
  Commercial Receivers Association (CRA) Annual Conference, St. Louis, MO (August 22, 2023)
• Patent Litigation Cost Containment
  Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi L.L.P., (March 21, 2013)
• Chief Judge Rader's Model Order: Considerations and Applications in Ediscovery
  Co-Presenter, Minnesota Intellectual Property Law Association CLE, Minneapolis, Minnesota (May 21, 2012)

Media Mentions

• "Windels Marx Accused Of Double-Dealing In NYC TaxiDeal," Law360 (May 16, 2024)
• "Alum Wins Largest Jury Award Ever in Minnesota," Mitchell Hamline Alumni (October 31, 2023)
• "Interest Charges Raise BMO Harris’ Liability Above $1B in Petters Case," Minnesota Lawyer (June 29, 2023)
• "BMO Harris Sees Ponzi Verdict Stick, Hit $1B With Interest," Law360 (June 26, 2023)
• "Michael A. Collyard: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at a Case That Made Minnesota History," Attorney at Law Magazine (April 3, 2023)
• "Settlement in for-profit college case secured," Minnesota Lawyer (March 23, 2023)
• "Litigator who won largest Minnesota jury verdict got no-frills start," Star Tribune (March 21, 2023)
• "How Robins Kaplan Helped Secure $28M Settlement for Ga. State Senator," Law.com (March 20, 2023)
• "St. Anthony: Minneapolis litigator who won largest Minn jury verdict got no-frills start," Star Tribune (March 21, 2023)
• "Education Corporation of America Hit With $28M Settlement," Inside Higher Ed (March 15, 2023)
• "For-Profit College Operators Will Pay $28 Million After Students Were Locked Out," Republic Report (March 14, 2023)
• "Shuttered for-profit college firm to pay $28M settlement over closures," Higher Ed Dive (March 13, 2023)
• "2022 Attorneys of the Year: Michael Collyard," Minnesota Lawyer (February 16, 2023)
• "Simplicity and Sanctions: How Robins Kaplan Won a $524 Million Verdict Against a Ponzi Schemer," The National Law Journal (November 28, 2022)
• "BMO Harris Bank Hit With $563M Verdict In Ponzi Scheme Trial," Law360 (November 8, 2022)
• "Jury Orders BMO Harris To Pay More Than $550 Million in Ponzi Scheme Case," American Banker (November 8, 2022)
• "BMO Harris Bank Found Partly Liable in Petters Ponzi Plot," Bloomberg Law (November 8, 2022)
• "Canada's BMO Books $834 Mln Charge Over U.S. Ponzi Lawsuit Loss," Reuters (November 9, 2022)
• "BMO Ordered to Pay $563M In Petters Fraud; It's Largest Financial Penalty by a Minnesota Jury," Star Tribune (November 8, 2022)
• "BMO Harris Hit With Record $564 Million Verdict in Tom Petters Ponzi Scheme Case," Twin Cities Business Journal (November 9, 2022)
• "Federal Jury Awards Record $564M Verdict Against BMO Harris Bank in Tom Petters Case," Pioneer Press (November 9, 2022)
• "BMO to Take Billion-Dollar Charge After Losing Ponzi Lawsuit in U.S.," The Globe and Mail (November 8, 2022)
• "Jury Awards $563 Million Verdict in Lawsuit Related to Tom Petters Ponzi Scheme," KARE11 (November 8, 2022)
• "BMO Harris handed setback in multibillion-dollar court battle," American Banker (July 25, 2022)
• "Defunct Colleges' Owners Can't Escape $50M Self-Dealing Suit," Law360 (October 1, 2021)
• “Defunct College Owners Accused Of Self-Dealing In $50M Suit,” Law360 (April 1, 2021)
• "Bankruptcy judge orders trial for BMO Harris Bank in Tom Petters Case," Minneapolis Star Tribune (July 4, 2019)
• "Judge Orders Trial for BMO Harris Bank Over Lost Data in Petters Scheme," Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Business Journal (July 5, 2019)
• "5 Ways to Slash Ediscovery Costs," Law360 (June 9, 2010)