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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

Hopman

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

Greater St. Louis Construction Laborers Welfare Fund v. B.F.W. Contracting, LLC

Mar 21, 2022E.D. Mo.Plaintiff Win

Allen

Mar 17, 2022W.D. Ark.Settlement

Mosley

Mar 8, 2022W.D. Ark.Settlement

Urbanec

Mar 7, 2022D. Neb.Defendant Win

Adkinson

Feb 25, 2022W.D. Ark.Settlement

Overby

Feb 18, 2022E.D. Mo.Defendant Win

Taylor

Feb 7, 2022W.D. Ark.Dismissed

Peel

Feb 2, 2022E.D. Ark.Defendant Win

Fry

Jan 27, 2022E.D. Mo.Settlement

Laber

Jan 26, 2022E.D. Mo.Remanded

Jones

Jan 19, 2022E.D. Mo.Dismissed

Nagel

Jan 18, 2022D. Minn.Defendant Win

Alverson

Jan 13, 2022W.D. Ark.Dismissed

Hartman

Jan 11, 2022E.D. Mo.Plaintiff Win

Sahara Burton v. Nilkanth Pizza Inc.

Dec 15, 20218th CircuitMixed Result

Smith v. Simmons Prepared Foods, Inc.

Dec 6, 2021W.D. Ark.Plaintiff Win

Elizabeth Placzek v. Mayo Clinic

Nov 30, 20218th CircuitDefendant Win

Canulla

Nov 16, 2021E.D. Ark.Dismissed

Nauss

Nov 9, 2021E.D. Mo.Defendant Win

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

Nov 3, 2021E.D. Mo.Dismissed

Construction Industry Laborers Pension Fund v. Danna Excavating, LLC

Nov 2, 2021E.D. Mo.Plaintiff Win

Smith v. Simmons Prepared Foods, Inc.

Oct 21, 2021W.D. Ark.Plaintiff Win

Ross

Oct 6, 2021W.D. Ark.Settlement

Ramos

Sep 30, 2021D. Neb.Dismissed

Baxter

Sep 30, 2021E.D. Ark.Mixed Result

Walsh

Sep 29, 2021E.D. Mo.Dismissed

Breckenridge O'Fallon, Inc. v. International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local Union No. 682

Sep 21, 2021E.D. Mo.Dismissed

Elnora

Sep 20, 2021D.S.D.Dismissed

Armstead

Sep 3, 2021D. Neb.Dismissed

Greater St. Louis Construction Laborers Welfare Fund v. Anderson & Anderson Backhoe Service/Demolition, LLC

Sep 2, 2021E.D. Mo.Plaintiff Win

Williams v. Unemployment Securities

Aug 30, 2021E.D. Mo.Dismissed

National Union Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburg, Pa. v. Cargill Inc

Aug 24, 2021D. Minn.Defendant Win

Jackman

Aug 19, 2021D. Minn.Dismissed

Parada

Aug 17, 2021D. Minn.Plaintiff Win

Snyder

Aug 10, 2021D. Neb.Defendant Win

Gist

Aug 9, 2021E.D. Mo.Dismissed

Bohner

Aug 3, 2021E.D. Mo.Defendant Win

Thompson

Aug 2, 2021E.D. Mo.Defendant Win

Craven

Aug 2, 2021W.D. Ark.Settlement

Holstad

Jul 30, 2021D. Minn.Defendant Win

Benford

Jul 19, 2021E.D. Mo.Defendant Win

Skender

Jul 14, 2021E.D. Ark.Settlement

R. Henson v. Union Pacific Railroad Company

Jul 8, 20218th CircuitDefendant Win

Rodolfo Quiles v. Union Pacific Railroad Company

Jul 6, 20218th CircuitDefendant Win

Jackson v. Union Pacific Railroad Co.

Jun 28, 2021D. Minn.Mixed Result

Ross

Jun 23, 2021W.D. Ark.Settlement

Henne

Jun 18, 2021D. Minn.Defendant Win

Grabill

Jun 4, 2021W.D. Mo.Remanded

Del Toro v. Centene Management Company

May 5, 2021E.D. Mo.Settlement

Showing 151–200 of 752 rulings · Page 4 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.