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David M. Aafedt, Esq.
David M. Aafedt, Esq.
WINTHROP & WEINSTINE, P.A.
(612) 604-6447
dbo.fn jc Profile(vBoNetContact.ID)
Profile
David M. Aafedt, Esq.
WINTHROP & WEINSTINE, P.A.
225 South Sixth Street, Suite 3500 Minneapolis, MN 55402
(612) 604-6447
(612) 604-6847

Phone: (612) 239-7860
Regulatory Cnsl Mbr
Business Transactions, Legislative, Litigation, Regulatory
Minnesota
Bio
David served as an Assistant Attorney General with the Minnesota Attorney General’s office until 2003, when he joined Winthrop & Weinstine, P.A. While at the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office, David served as counsel to the Minnesota Department of Commerce and the Minnesota Department of Health, and represented the State of Minnesota, the Governor, the Attorney General, and various state agencies in business, consumer and charities litigation, as well as in investigations, market conduct examinations, and civil enforcement proceedings. David was also heavily involved in numerous Attorney General audits and consumer investigations pursuant to the Office’s consumer, non-profit, and charitable organization oversight.

Since joining Winthrop & Weinstine, P.A., David represents insurers, reinsurers, and producers in their interactions with state insurance departments, Attorneys General, revenue departments, and other state and federal regulators. A significant part of his practice is devoted to working with industry clients in conjunction with market conduct examinations, unclaimed property audits, investigations, civil investigative demands, enforcement actions, surplus lines regulation, premium tax and premium assessment issues, licensing and appointment matters, and insurance fraud investigation and reporting.  David also handles a wide variety of insurance litigation, including class action and coverage disputes in all lines of insurance; unfair and deceptive business practices; sales and suitability; bad faith and unfair claims handling; excess and surplus lines; and producer commission and non-compete disputes. 

David also co-chairs the firm’s Health Law practice and serves as outside general counsel to many dozens of health care practices and businesses advising them on, among other issues, mergers and acquisitions, state and federal privacy laws, including data breaches; public and private payer reimbursement issues; fraud, waste and abuse, anti-kickback and Stark; credentialing, privileging and peer review processes; the purchase or sale of their practice or business; and general corporate governance, management, and employment issues. He also represents these health care providers and businesses in litigation and enforcement proceedings, licensing board investigations, compliance and regulatory matters, as well as federal, state, and private payer billing audits and investigations. 

David has been recognized by Best Lawyers in America© as “Lawyer of the Year” for Administrative/Regulatory Law in 2017, and is also recognized by Best Lawyers in America© in the area of Insurance Law.  He has also consistently been selected to the Minnesota Super Lawyers list for Administrative and Regulatory Law, and by Benchmark Litigation as a “Local Litigation Star” for the past three years.

David serves as Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Federation of Regulatory Counsel ("FORC"), as Chairman of the Board of Directors for the Better Business Bureau of Minnesota and North Dakota, and as a member of the Executive Council for both the Health Law and Administrative Law Sections of the Minnesota State Bar Association.

Representative Matters
• Fresenius Medical Care Holdings, Inc. v. Minnesota Department of Commerce and Minnesota Department of Health, OAH Docket Nos. 80-1000-33755 and 80-0900-33754 (2016) – Represented health care providers in successful unpromulgated rulemaking challenge leading to rescission of Administrative Bulletin 2016-3 issued by the Minnesota Departments of Commerce and Health under which they provided guidance on the circumstances under which carriers could accept or reject third-party payments toward a policyholder’s or certificate holder’s insurance premium or out-of-pocket expenses. 
• In the Matter of the Excess Surplus Status of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota, 624 N.W.2d 264 (Minn. 2001) — Represented the Minnesota Commissioner of Commerce in victory before the Minnesota Supreme Court under which non-profit health service plan corporation challenged the Commissioner’s authority directing the non-profit to divest itself of $470 million in tobacco settlement proceeds as a result of exceeding its statutory surplus requirements.
• Lumbermens Mutual Casualty Co. et al. v. Minnesota Special Compensation Fund, Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry, et al., 2006 WL 3371968 — Obtained a $5.2 million recovery against the State of Minnesota and its workers’ compensation regulators as a result of erroneous premium assessments made against a group of client insurance companies.
• State of Minnesota, by its Attorney General v. Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America, Hennepin County District Court File No. 27-CV-07-581 — Represented a life insurance company in conjunction with a Minnesota Attorney General lawsuit relating to the suitability of the sale of equity indexed annuities to Minnesota consumers.
• State of Minnesota, by its Attorney General v. American International Group, Inc., Ramsey County District Court File No. 62-CO-06-001632, and Workers’ Compensation Reinsurance Association (WCRA) et al. v. American International Group, Inc., et al., Hennepin County District Court File No. 27-CV-08-10705 — Represented AIG and various insurers in litigation relating to alleged underreporting of workers’ compensation premiums to state and quasi-public agencies.
• Corey Baker et al., v. Best Buy and Chartis Warranty Guard, Inc., 812 N.W.2d 177 (Minn. Ct. App. 2012), rev. denied (Minn. April 25, 2012) — Obtained Court of Appeals’ affirmance of the dismissal of a putative class action brought against Chartis Warranty Guard for alleged breach of contract, as well as consumer fraud and false statement in advertisement act claims, in conjunction with service plan contracts offered by electronics retailer.

Published Articles

Published Alerts

TitlePublish Date
Minnesota Legislature Materially Modifies Market Conduct Examination Process7/27/2017
Winthrop's COVID-19 Resource Center5/14/2020

Positions in FORC

CommitteePosition
OfficersVice President10