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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 752 published rulings we track here (1973–2026), 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 752 published rulings we track in the Eighth Circuit.

Defendant Win
372 (49%)
Plaintiff Win
147 (20%)
Mixed Result
87 (12%)
Dismissed
74 (10%)
Remanded
36 (5%)
Settlement
36 (5%)

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 752 rulings we could classify by stage were decided.

Appeal
301 (40%)

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
180 (24%)

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 180 summary-judgment rulings here, 112 ended the case in the employer’s favor and 67 let the worker’s claims continue; the rest resolved in other ways.

Motion to dismiss
175 (23%)

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

Trial verdict
35 (5%)

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

Settlement / consent decree
35 (5%)

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
22 (3%)

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

Other rulings
4 (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

Seals

Jul 28, 2023D. Neb.Mixed Result

Adams

Jul 26, 2023D. Minn.Defendant Win

Asberry

Jul 20, 2023E.D. Ark.Remanded

Brown

Jul 19, 2023D. Neb.Dismissed

Johnson v. Walmart Inc

Jul 12, 2023E.D. Ark.Defendant Win

Winesburg

Jun 8, 2023W.D. Mo.Defendant Win

Carter

May 26, 2023D. Neb.Mixed Result

Sorensen

May 19, 2023D. Minn.Mixed Result

Smith v. Hammer & Steel, Inc

May 2, 2023E.D. Mo.Defendant Win

Mitchell v. University of Arkansas at Little Rock

Apr 6, 2023E.D. Ark.Defendant Win

Petrone

Jan 10, 2023D. Neb.Dismissed

Poorfakhraei

Dec 9, 2022E.D. Mo.Dismissed

Knight

Oct 28, 2022D.S.D.Mixed Result

Meyers

Oct 7, 2022E.D. Ark.Dismissed

Standifer

Oct 4, 2022W.D. Ark.Dismissed

Anderson

Sep 29, 2022E.D. Mo.Plaintiff Win

Rosa

Sep 23, 2022E.D. Mo.Defendant Win

Local 513, International Union of Operating Engineers, AFL-CIO v. Checkered Flag Excavation, Inc.

Sep 22, 2022E.D. Mo.Defendant Win

Meza

Sep 12, 2022D. Neb.Defendant Win

Icenogle

Sep 12, 2022W.D. Ark.Settlement

Adams

Sep 12, 2022E.D. Ark.Defendant Win

St. Louis-Kansas City Carpenters Regional Council v. Millenium Installation Group, LLC

Aug 29, 2022E.D. Mo.Plaintiff Win

Benford

Aug 23, 2022E.D. Mo.Dismissed

Sanders

Aug 17, 2022D. Neb.Plaintiff Win

Sanders

Aug 17, 2022D. Neb.Plaintiff Win

Sanders

Aug 17, 2022D. Neb.Plaintiff Win

Spann

Aug 16, 2022E.D. Mo.Defendant Win

Narcio

Jul 26, 2022W.D. Mo.Dismissed

Friedly

Jul 25, 2022D. Neb.Settlement

White

Jul 25, 2022D. Minn.Settlement

Walls

Jul 22, 2022D. Neb.Plaintiff Win

Shklyar

Jul 21, 2022E.D. Mo.Defendant Win

Streza

Jul 8, 2022W.D. Mo.Defendant Win

Hufker

Jun 29, 2022E.D. Mo.Plaintiff Win

United States Department of Labor v. Federal Armament, LLC

Jun 28, 2022W.D. Ark.Plaintiff Win

City Union Mission, Inc. v. Mike Sharp

Jun 10, 20228th CircuitDefendant Win

Iron Workers St. Louis District Council Pension Trust Fund v. Elite Rebar, LLC

Jun 10, 2022E.D. Mo.Plaintiff Win

Greater St. Louis Construction Laborers Welfare Fund v. Eason Construction, LLC

May 25, 2022E.D. Mo.Plaintiff Win

Mason v. D & D Pizza, Inc.

May 10, 2022E.D. Mo.Settlement

NLRB v. Noah's Ark Processors, LLC

Apr 22, 20228th CircuitPlaintiff Win

McGuire

Apr 21, 2022E.D. Ark.Defendant Win

Connors

Apr 20, 2022W.D. Ark.Defendant Win

Greater St. Louis Construction Laborers Welfare Fund v. Buccaneer Excavating, LLC

Apr 8, 2022E.D. Mo.Plaintiff Win

Adkinson

Apr 7, 2022W.D. Ark.Settlement

Trustees of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, and Transportation Workers (SMART) Local Union No. 36 Pension Plan v. H & H Sheet Metal & Contracting Company

Apr 6, 2022E.D. Mo.Plaintiff Win

St. Louis-Kansas City Carpenters Regional Council v. Millenium Installation Group, LLC

Apr 4, 2022E.D. Mo.Plaintiff Win

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Werner Enterprises, Inc.

Apr 1, 2022D. Neb.Mixed Result

Daniel

Mar 31, 2022E.D. Ark.Defendant Win

Scott

Mar 31, 2022E.D. Ark.Defendant Win

Jamerison

Mar 30, 2022E.D. Mo.Defendant Win

Showing 101–150 of 752 rulings · Page 3 of 16

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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.