Ryan O. Vettleson

Ryan solves problems. He has been litigating and trying civil cases for nearly 25 years. He uses his extensive litigation experience and people skills to resolve complex cases when possible, and he relies on his trial skill when settlement is not an option. Throughout the litigation process, he uses his writing talents, honed by years of drafting briefs in complex matters and teaching legal writing, to successfully convey his clients’ positions to opposing counsel and the court. Ryan has practiced extensively in various areas of civil rights, personal injury, commercial litigation and product liability litigation. He has tried numerous cases to verdict both on his own and as part of a trial team. Throughout this representation, one thing has been constant: his determination to achieve the best results possible for his clients. His drive and work ethic have been recognized by his peers as he has been named a “Super Lawyer” the last seven years and was a “Rising Star” numerous times before that.  Moreover, he was named one of the Attorneys of the Year by Minnesota Lawyer in 2025 for his work on civil rights cased, including a large jail misconduct case. Ryan graduated with honors and high distinction from the University of Minnesota Morris and attended the University of Minnesota Law School, graduating cum laude in 2001. He then clerked for Judge Thomas Kalitowski at the Minnesota Court of Appeals before moving to private practice. He was a partner at a mid-sized litigation firm in Minneapolis and then went to a small boutique law firm. In addition to his private practice experience, Ryan has taught legal writing as an instructor at the University of Minnesota Law School. Ryan has represented wrongfully injured individuals in police misconduct cases and jailor deliberate indifference matters. He represented a young man in jail whose diabetic and mental health crisis went ignored for a day and a half while he languished in his cell covered in urine, feces, vomit and blood that settled for more than $1.6 million.  He represented a woman injured in a no-knock warrant who suffered terrible burns to her legs from a flash-bang grenade, resulting in a $1,000,000 settlement. He also represented a woman who suffered multiple fractures to her wrist after an officer pushed her down even though she was already on crutches and was making no threatening movements—which resulted in a $450,000 settlement. He received a total judgment after trial of over $290,000 for a woman who was struck in the face by an officer in downtown Minneapolis just for seemingly standing on the sidewalk at bar close. He also received a total judgment after trial of over $270,000 for a young man who was hit in the head with a police flashlight for no reason. Ryan has significant experience representing individuals in automobile crash cases as well as other negligence matters. In 2021, he settled a wrongful death suit for $1.5 million where the defendant driver crossed the centerline into oncoming traffic and caused a head-on crash resulting in a death. Previously, he helped recover $3 million for a husband and wife after the wife was severely injured when her vehicle was struck by a commercial truck. Ryan also represented a couple and obtained all available insurance in a pre-suit settlement of $500,000 stemming from a terrible crash where the at-fault driver died. He similarly received all available insurance in a settlement of $500,000 after a 16-year old rear-seat passenger was injured when the car she was riding in drifted over the centerline and crashed into a school bus.