Shawn Wanta

Bar / Professional Activity

• 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals
• 8th Circuit Court of Appeals
• 1st Circuit Court of Appeals
• Minnesota Supreme Court
• American Bar Association, Labor & Employment Law Section
• U.S. District Court, Central District of Illinois
• National Employment Lawyers Association, Minnesota Chapter
• Minnesota State Bar Association, Consumer Litigation Section 
• Minnesota Association for Justice
• 4th Circuit Court of Appeals
• U.S. District Court, District of Minnesota
• Federal Bar Association, Minnesota Chapter
• Employee Lawyers Association of the Upper Midwest, Past Secretary-Treasurer
• Minnesota State Bar Association, Labor & Employment Law Section
• Minnesota State Bar Association, Solo & Small Firm Law Section
• National Association of Consumer Advocates  
• U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois

Verdicts / Settlements (Case Results)

• Class Counsel in Dennings v. Clearwire Corporation, No. C10-1859 (D. Wash.)
• Executive Committee Member for Wright et al. v. Owens Corning, No. 09-cv-01567 (W.D. Pa.)
• Executive Committee Member and Co-Chair of the Discovery Committee in In re HardiePlank Fiber Cement Siding Litigation, MDL No. 2359 (D. Minn)
• Cruz et al. v. Lawson Software, Inc., No. 08-5900 (D. Minn.)
• Egtvedt et al. v. West Publ’g Corp., No. 19HA-CV-09-1660 (Dist. Ct. Minn. 2009)
• Davis et al. v. SOH Distribution Co., No. 09-cv-237 (M.D. Pa.)
• Orieux v. CertainTeed Corporation, No. 11-cv-00234 (E.D. Pa)
• In re CertainTeed Fiber Cement Siding Litigation, MDL No. 2270 (E.D. Pa.)
• In re IKO Roofing Shingles Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2104 (C.D. Ill.)
• Pagliaroni v. Mastic Home Exteriors et al., No. 12-cv-10164 (D. Mass.)
• Class Counsel in Harrison v. Legal Helpers Debt Resolution, LLC et al., No. 12-cv-02145 (D. Minn.)
• Class Counsel in Hartshorn et al. v. MW Manufacturers, Inc., No. 2012-cv-30122 (D. Mass.)
• Class Counsel in Gulbankian et al. v. MW Manufacturers, Inc., No. 10-cv-10392 (D. Mass.)
• Class Counsel in Chavez v. West Side Comm. Healthcare Svcs., Inc., No. 14-cv-00207 (D. Minn.)
• Class Counsel in Low v. San Diego Union Tribune, No. 11-cv-01090 (S.D. Ca.)
• Class Counsel in Yarbrough v. Martin’s Famous Pastry Shoppe, Inc., No. 11-cv-02144 (M.D. Pa.)

Representative Clients

• Class Counsel in Noll et al. v. Flowers Foods, Inc. et al., No. 1:15-cv-00493-JAW (D. Me.) (class certification granted in class action brought by distributors of Flowers Foods, who are challenging their classification as independent contractors, rather than employees)
• Ketty v. Parkinson’s Specialty Care, LLC, No. 14-CV-04849, 2016 WL 3034158 (D. Minn. May 27, 2016) (final court approval of collective action settlement awarding a group of certified nursing assistants unpaid overtime premium pay and full liquidated damages pursuant to the Fair Labor Standards Act)
• Class Counsel in Coyle v. Flowers Foods Incorporated, et al., 2:15-cv-01372-PHX-DLR (D. Ariz.) (conditional class certification granted in class action brought by distributors who are challenging their classification by Flowers Foods as independent contractors, rather than employees)
• Class Counsel in Neff et al. v. Flowers Foods, Inc. et al., No. 5:15-cv-00254-GWC (D. Vt.) (conditional class certification granted in class action brought by distributors who are challenging their classification by Flowers Foods as independent contractors, rather than employees)
• Class Counsel in Rosinbaum et al. v. Flowers Foods, Inc. et al., No. 7:16-cv-0023-FL (E.D.N.C.) (conditional class certification granted in class action brought by distributors who are challenging their classification by Flowers Foods as independent contractors, rather than employees)
• Class Counsel in Noll et al. v. Flowers Foods, Inc. et al., No. 1:15-cv-00493-JAW (D. Me.) (conditional class certification granted in class action brought by distributors who are challenging their classification by Flowers Foods as independent contractors, rather than employees)
• Class Counsel in Carr et al. v. Flowers Foods, Inc. et al., No. 2:15-cv-06391-LS (E.D. Penn.) (conditional class certification granted in class action brought by distributors who are challenging their classification by Flowers Foods as independent contractors, rather than employees)
• Class Counsel in Rehberg et al. v. Flowers Foods Inc. et al., No. 12-cv-00596 (W.D.N.C.) (class action settlement for distributors who challenged their classification by Flowers Foods as independent contractors, rather than employees)
• Lead Plaintiffs’ Counsel for In re Life Time Fitness, Inc. Telephone Consumer Protection Act Litigation, MDL 2564 (class action settlement awarding a maximum of $15 million for class members who received unsolicited text messages in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act); settlement affirmed (8th Cir. 2017)

Special Licenses / Certifications

• Minnesota Super Lawyers, 2024
• Minnesota Super Lawyers, 2023
• Minnesota Super Lawyers, 2022
• Minnesota Rising Stars, 2021
• Minnesota Rising Stars , 2020
• Minnesota Rising Stars, 2019
• Minnesota Rising Stars, 2018
• Minnesota Rising Stars, 2017
• Minnesota Rising Stars, 2016
• Minnesota Rising Stars, 2015
• Minnesota Rising Stars, 2014
• Minnesota Rising Stars, 2013
• Minnesota Rising Stars, 2012

Pro bono / Community Service

• Federal Bar Association, Minnesota Chapter Pro Se Project Volunteer Attorney

Educational Background

• University of Wisconsin- Madison, Madison, WI, B.A., 2004

Scholarly Lectures / Writings

• Something to chew on How newly legal THC edibles interact with Minnesota employment laws, Minnesota Bench and Bar, December 2022
• Minired BP Carwash Voucher Sets Off $5 Million Class-Action Suit, Pioneer Press, Interview, 2011
• Minnesota Lawsuit Alleges Deception in Groupon Business Model, Minnesota Public Radio, Interview, Mar. 24, 2011
• CBS Minnesota WCCO Radio, Discussion of Minnesota and Federal Consumer Protection Laws, Interview, Feb. 22, 2012
• Who’s the Boss? The ever-shifting landscape of Independent Contractors, Misclassification and Joint Employers, Minnesota State Bar Association, Co-presenter with Zaylore Stout and Gina Janeiro, 2021
• Faculty for the 2019 Employment and Labor Law: Federal and Minnesota seminar. The program is designed specifically to help prepare attorneys for the Labor & Employment Law Specialist Certification Examination, but attended by attorneys in various practice areas., Faculty, Employment and Labor Law: Federal and Minnesota, Minnesota Continuing Legal Education, Attorneys, 2019
• Maine Bakery Drivers Lawsuit Will Become Class Action, Portland Press Herald, Interview, 2019
• Whistleblower, Reprisal, Retaliation, Minnesota CLE, Presenter, 2019
• Consumer Law 101, MSBA Consumer Litigation Section, Moderator, 2019
• “How Do Lawyers Get Paid by a Class of Plaintiffs When There is No Fee Shifting Statute?,” Mitchell Hamline Law Review, Author, 2018
• Practical E-Discovery Strategies for the Plaintiff’s Lawyer, Eighth Circuit National Employment Lawyers Association Conference, Panelist with Bert Braud and Rebekah Bailey, 2018
• Are Political Texts Legal? And How Can I Stop Them? NBC KARE11 News, Interview, 2018
• E-Discovery for the Solo and Small Firm Attorney: The Basics of Doing More with Less, Minnesota CLE Solo and Small Firm Conference, Co-presenter, 2017
• Wisconsin Company Offers Optional Microchips for Employees, Al Jazeera, Interview, 2017
• Judge Adds Protections for N.C. Workers in Employee Lawsuit Against Bakery, The Charlotte Observer, Interview, February 19, 2016
• Class Actions: Enter the Consumer Lawyer, Minnesota Lawyer, Co-author with Christopher Jozwiak, March, 2015
• Consumer Arbitration Agreements, NBC Affiliate KARE 11, Interview, 2015
• Cost-Effective Discovery of Electronically Stored Data CLE Series, Employee Lawyers Association of the Upper Midwest, 2015
• Lepage Bakeries' Parent Company Challenges 'Class Action' Ruling, Maine Business Journal, Interview, April 9, 2015
• Wage and Hour Battles on the Rise, Minnesota Lawyer, Commentator, June 19, 2014
• Developing Trends in Wage and Hour Cases in Minnesota, Minnesota Chapter of the National Employment Lawyers Association, Panelist , 2014
• Social Media Discovery, 8th Circuit National Employment Lawyers Association Conference, 2014
• Expired BP Carwash Voucher Sets Off $5 million Class-action Suit, Pioneer Press, 2012
• Minnesota and Federal Consumer Protection Laws, CBS Minnesota WCCO Radio, February 22, 2012
• Wage and Hour Law, The Legal Journal Radio Show, Guest Speaker, 2012
• Consumers' Rights When Gift Certificates Expire, ABC affiliate KSTP, Interview, 2011
• Expiration of Groupon Gift Certificates, NBC affiliate KARE, Interview, March 24, 2011
• Gift Certificate Laws in Minnesota, CLE Class Action, Consumer Rights, 2011
• Class Action Lawsuit Against Groupon for the Expiration of Gift Cards, Minnesota Public Radio, Interview, 2011
• Federal and State Laws that Regulate Gift Cards, Crain's Chicago Business, Interview

Honors

• Super Lawyers® Super Lawyer, Class Action/Mass Torts, 2022
• The National Trial Lawyers Top 10, Wage and Hour, 2022-23
• The National Trial Lawyers Top 100, Civil, Plaintiff, 2022-23
• Best Lawyers in America©, Consumer Law, 2021-2023; Mass Tort Litigation/Class Action-Plaintiffs, 2023
• Super Lawyers® Rising Star, Class Action/Mass Torts, 2012-2021

“A leader representing plaintiffs in complex wage and hour disputes.”

“Shawn will go to bat for mistreated employees who have no one else to help them.”

“Shawn has valuable experience as lead counsel on many nation-wide class actions, and has obtained some very large class-wide recoveries. Great all-around lawyer.”

“Shawn and I have worked together since his second year of practice. Shawn navigates the complex world of consumer class actions and collective actions with ease. As a young attorney, it is particularly impressive that his reputation within the class action practice on a national level is quite good. Lawyers of much wider /longer experience seek Shawn out as co-counsel on a regular basis.”

“I have worked with Shawn for four years. He currently manages our law firm's consumer class action practice. Shawn researches every potential class case thoroughly before we become involved in the case. He understands the abuses that can happen in class practices and ensures that his practice and our firm work to minimize that abuse. Shawn works with attorneys from all over the country - most of whom have many more years of experience then he. He is very well respected for his legal work as well as his skills and interactions with cocounsel and opposing counsel.”