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Employment Rulings in the Eighth Circuit

The Eighth Circuit covers the federal courts in Arkansas, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. The rulings below come from the circuit's court of appeals and the federal trial courts within it.

Of the 1,462 published rulings we track here (19732026), the breakdowns below show how they were decided. They describe published opinions only — not the odds of any particular situation.

How These Rulings Ended

Of the 1,462 published rulings we track in the Eighth Circuit.

Defendant Win
660 (45%)
Plaintiff Win
255 (17%)
Mixed Result
244 (17%)
Dismissed
176 (12%)
Remanded
100 (7%)
Settlement
27 (2%)

What Happens at Each Stage

A workplace lawsuit moves through stages, and a ruling can end it at any of them. Here is where the 1,452 rulings we could classify by stage were decided.

Appeal
647 (45%)

A higher court reviewing an earlier decision. Many published opinions come from this stage, after a lot has already happened in the case.

Summary judgment
310 (21%)

A ruling where the judge decides the case — or part of it — without a trial, because one side argues the key facts are not in dispute. For workers, getting past this step is often the biggest hurdle.

Of the 310 summary-judgment rulings here, 196 ended the case in the employer’s favor and 114 let the worker’s claims continue.

Motion to dismiss
385 (27%)

An early request — usually by the employer — to throw the case out before any evidence is gathered.

Trial verdict
49 (3%)

A judge or jury heard the evidence and reached a decision. Relatively few disputes get this far.

Settlement / consent decree
26 (2%)

The two sides resolved the dispute by agreement, sometimes with court approval. Most settlements are private and never show up in published opinions.

Default judgment
24 (2%)

A decision entered because one side did not respond to the case at all.

Other rulings
11 (1%)

Procedural decisions and orders that do not fit the main stages above.

States in This Circuit

Browse rulings from courts in each state the Eighth Circuit covers.

Recent Rulings in the Eighth Circuit

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. CRST Van Expedited, Inc.

May 13, 2009N.D. IowaMixed Result

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. CRST Van Expedited, Inc.

Apr 30, 2009N.D. IowaSettlement

Olsen

Apr 27, 2009S.D. IowaDismissed

Elam

Mar 25, 2009S.D. IowaDefendant Win

Liu

Mar 16, 2009S.D. IowaDefendant Win

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. UMB Bank Financial Corp.

Mar 13, 20098th CircuitDefendant Win

United Steel, Paper, & Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial & Service Workers International Union, AFL-CIO-CLC v. Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp.

Mar 11, 2009D. Minn.Defendant Win

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. CRST Van Expedited, Inc.

Feb 19, 2009N.D. IowaPlaintiff Win

Davis

Feb 18, 2009E.D. Ark.Defendant Win

MERFELD

Feb 12, 2009S.D. IowaMixed Result

Dock

Feb 11, 2009S.D. IowaDefendant Win

Johnson v. BE & K CONSTRUCTION CO., LLC

Jan 16, 2009S.D. IowaRemanded

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Southwestern Bell Telephone, L.P.

Dec 19, 20088th CircuitPlaintiff Win

EEOC v. Southwestern Bell Telephone

Dec 19, 20088th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Thompson

Dec 15, 2008N.D. IowaDefendant Win

Reynolds

Dec 12, 2008S.D. IowaDefendant Win

R.M. Ex Rel. R.M. v. Waukee Community School District

Dec 5, 2008S.D. IowaDismissed

Helm

Nov 24, 2008W.D. Ark.Plaintiff Win

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. CRST Van Expedited, Inc.

Nov 19, 2008N.D. IowaPlaintiff Win

Lewis

Nov 13, 2008S.D. IowaDefendant Win

Standing Rock Housing Authority v. United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

Nov 10, 2008D.N.D.Dismissed

Albert Ray Steward, III v. Royal Bank of Canada

Oct 8, 20088th CircuitDismissed

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Ceridian Corp.

Sep 16, 2008D. Minn.Defendant Win

Western Pennsylvania Electrical Employees Benefits Funds v. Ceridian Corp.

Sep 11, 20088th CircuitDefendant Win

JCB, INC. v. Union Planters Bank, NA

Aug 26, 20088th CircuitPlaintiff Win

JCB

Aug 26, 20088th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Adams

Aug 15, 20088th CircuitDefendant Win

Rebecca Adams v. O'Reilly Automotive

Aug 15, 20088th CircuitDefendant Win

Thornton Drilling Co. v. National Union Fire Insurance

Aug 12, 20088th CircuitDefendant Win

Collins v. Missouri Electric Cooperatives Employees Credit Union

Aug 11, 20088th CircuitRemanded

Great Plains Real Estate Development, L.L.C. v. Union Central Life Insurance

Aug 7, 20088th CircuitDefendant Win

Hylla

Aug 6, 20088th CircuitDefendant Win

Cole

Jul 17, 20088th CircuitDefendant Win

McAdams

Jul 17, 20088th CircuitDismissed

Commission v. Allstate Insurance

Jun 10, 20088th CircuitPlaintiff Win

EEOC v. Allstate Insurance Company

Jun 10, 20088th CircuitPlaintiff Win

National Labor Relations Board v. Bolivar-Tees, Inc.

Jun 4, 20088th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Bolivar-Tees

Jun 4, 20088th CircuitPlaintiff Win

National Labor Relations Board v. Five Star Manufacturing, Inc.

May 20, 20088th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Contractors, Laborers, Teamsters & Engineers Health & Welfare Plan v. Killips

May 14, 20088th CircuitDefendant Win

Union County, Iowa v. Piper Jaffray & Co., Inc.

May 13, 20088th CircuitDismissed

Union County, Iowa v. Piper Jaffray & Co.

May 13, 20088th CircuitDefendant Win

Tiengkham

May 6, 2008S.D. IowaRemanded

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Merchants State Bank

Apr 22, 2008D.S.D.Mixed Result

Travelers Property Casualty Co. v. National Union Insurance Co. of Pittsburgh

Mar 27, 2008W.D. Mo.Defendant Win

Teasley

Mar 10, 2008E.D. Mo.Defendant Win

Heyne

Mar 7, 2008S.D. IowaDefendant Win

Union County v. Piper Jaffray & Co.

Mar 3, 2008S.D. IowaDefendant Win

Pearson

Mar 3, 2008E.D. Ark.Remanded

International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace & Agricultural Implement Workers v. Rousselot, Inc.

Feb 29, 2008N.D. IowaPlaintiff Win

Browse Other Circuits

Explore employment rulings from the other federal circuits.

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These figures summarize publicly available published court opinions only. Published opinions over-represent summary-judgment rulings (decisions made without a trial) and appeals, because those are the stages where judges most often write formal opinions. Most workplace disputes settle privately and never appear here at all. A ruling’s outcome reflects many case-specific factors and is not a prediction for any other situation. Read more about how we source and classify rulings.

Data sourced from public federal court records via CourtListener.com. Case outcomes extracted using AI analysis. This information is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. The classification of outcomes and case stages is based on automated analysis and may not reflect the full scope of each case.