Edward Q. Cassidy

Ed has over 40 years of litigation experience in a variety of jurisdictions on matters ranging from state and federal OSHA, workers’ compensation, general litigation in state and federal court involving many jury trials, to post-conviction habeas corpus death penalty representation.

Ed practices in the Employment & Labor and Litigation Groups at Fredrikson. He is a litigator with more than 4 decades of experience in civil litigation, workers’ compensation defense, employment and OSHA defense.

Ed’s workers’ compensation practice focuses on advising and representing employers in all phases of risk assessment and management, implementation and maintenance of modified duty programs, defending workers’ compensation claims through trial. He defends civil matters related to workers’ compensation such as retaliatory discharge, disability discrimination (ADA) claims, third-party liability suits, and subrogation.

In addition, Ed represents healthcare, manufacturing, and construction clients in a wide variety of state and federal OSHA jurisdictions. He works with clients throughout the OSHA inspection, citation and litigation process through trial. Within the last few years, Ed has successfully contested through trial willful violations for a construction client and willful violations involving a fatality for a railroad client. Ed has also recently handled state and federal OSHA trials in Florida, Massachusetts, Texas, Arizona, Kentucky, North Dakota, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. These trials included state and federal citations alleging willful repeat and serious violations of the act and involved fatalities, fall protection, confined space issues, chemical exposure, toxicological issues, scaffolding and related allegations.

Ed also represents clients in state and federal court in general litigation matters.

Pro bono and community involvement has been an integral part of Ed’s practice. He has represented indigent parties in family law matters, capital post-conviction criminal proceedings, and he has been appointed by the court many times as a guardian ad litem in Ramsey County child protection proceedings. In 2023, he received the Fredrikson & Byron Distinguished Service Award for Pro Bono.

Ed represents healthcare, manufacturing, and construction clients in a wide variety of state and federal OSHA jurisdictions. He works with clients throughout the OSHA inspection, citation and litigation process, through trial.

• Within the last few years, Ed successfully contested through trial willful violations for a construction client and willful violations involving a fatality for a railroad client.
• In the last two years, Ed handled state and federal OSHA trials in Florida, Massachusetts, Texas, Arizona, Kentucky, North Dakota, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. These trials included state and federal citations alleging willful repeat and serious violations of the act and involved fatalities, fall protection, confined space issues, chemical exposure, toxicological issues, scaffolding and related allegations.
• Ed successfully represented a client in a disability class action stemming from a workers’ compensation case.
• He represented through trial a railroad in a fatality that OSHA had cited as a willful violation.
• In the last two years he has successfully handled OSHA trials in Florida, Massachusetts, Texas, Arizona, Texas, Kentucky, North Dakota, and Minnesota.
• Ed successfully represented through trial a general contractor cited with willful OSHA violations.
• Ed successfully represented hundreds of workers’ compensation claims through hearing and appeal for a wide variety of clients in Minnesota and Wisconsin.
• Ed represents clients in state and federal court in general litigation matters.
• He successfully defended clients in state and federal civil jury trials.
• Ed regularly advises clients on balancing workers’ compensation and employment law concerns.

Pro Bono Representation

Pro bono and community involvement have been an integral part of Ed’s practice.

• He has represented indigent parties in family law matters, post-conviction criminal proceedings, and he has been appointed by the court many times as a guardian ad litem in Ramsey County child protection proceedings.
• In July 2009, the Louisiana Supreme Court appointed Ed lead counsel to represent an inmate on Louisiana’s Death Row at Angola State Penitentiary. Ed leads a team of five Fredrikson & Byron lawyers that in July, 2010 filed a State Habeas Corpus Petition with the local district court, seeking a new trial and related relief. A hearing on that Petition was completed in June 2013.
• On March 7, 2016, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) vacated the conviction in this case. Ed was counsel of record at SCOTUS.
• In 2014, Ed was appointed lead counsel to a second inmate on Angola’s Death Row in the State Habeas Corpus Petition.
• In 2015, Ed was appointed lead counsel to a third inmate on Angola’s Death Row. The Habeas Corpus hearings in this case start in December 2017.
• In December 2016, Ed was certified as a Certified Capital Defender in Louisiana, for lead trial counsel in capital cases and post-conviction lead counsel.

Education

• Hamline University School of Law, J.D., 1981
• University of Minnesota, B.A., 1973

Admissions

• Minnesota, 1981
• U.S. Supreme Court, 1985

• Fredrikson & Byron Distinguished Service Award for Pro Bono, 2023
• AV Preeminent® Peer Review Rated, Martindale-Hubbell, 2023  
• North Star Lawyer, Minnesota State Bar Association, 2012-2018, 2020, 2022-2023
• Attorney of the Year, Minnesota Lawyer, 2016
• Certified Capital Defender, Louisiana, 2016
• AV Preeminent^® Peer Review Rated, Martindale-Hubbell, ‘2013 Top Rated Lawyer in Labor & Employment’
• Certified Trial Specialist, Civil Trial Litigation Section, Minnesota State Bar Association, 1989-1995
• Certified Volunteer Guardian Ad Litem in Ramsey County District Court, 1999-2010
• Annual Pro Bono Award, Minnesota Legal Services Coalition, 1995

Professional Activities

• Minnesota State Bar Association, Member
• Ramsey County Bar Association, Member

Community

• Legal Assistance to the Disadvantaged Committee, Chair, 1992-1995
• Ramsey County Child Protection Proceedings, Volunteer Guardian Ad Litem, 1999-present
• Ramsey County Correction Board, Chair, 2006-2009
• Supreme Courts Legal Services Advisory Committee (LSAC), 2006-2012