FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
December 23, 2022
Contact: Claire Lancaster
claire.lancaster@state.mn.us
651-219-2975
Commission on Judicial Selection Recommends Workers’ Compensation Court of Appeals Candidates to Governor Walz
[ST. PAUL, MN] – The Commission on Judicial Selection announced today that it is recommending three candidates for consideration to fill a vacancy on
the Workers’ Compensation Court of Appeals. This vacancy occurs at the
end of Chief Judge Patricia J. Milun’s term in January 2023.
Janis Douglass: Janis
Douglass is a compensation attorney principal at the Minnesota Workers’
Compensation Court of Appeals, where she assists in the resolution of
workers’ compensation appeals. She also serves as a deputy court
administrator, where she manages day-to-day court operations. Douglass
currently volunteers her time to efforts that support the rights of
gender nonconforming youth and to initiatives that increase diversity in
the legal profession and in state employment. Her community involvement
has included service on the boards of several non-profit community organizations in St. Paul’s Frogtown neighborhood.
Sandra Grove:
Judge Sandra Grove is a workers’ compensation judge at the Minnesota
Office of Administrative Hearings. She was previously a lead attorney at
the Law Offices of Stilp & Grove. Judge Grove practiced as a civil
litigator for more than 25 years and has represented both employees and
employers/insurers. She has also served as an adjunct professor of legal
writing at William Mitchell College of Law and on
the faculty for various continuing legal education (CLE) programs.
Judge Grove’s community involvement has included serving as a mentor to
students and new attorneys through the Minnesota Lavender Bar
Association. Judge Grove has also served on the board of directors of Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers, including as chair in 2016. Her other volunteer work includes service on the MSBA Professionalism Committee and as a MSBA High School Mock Trial competition judge.
Patricia Milun:
Chief Judge Patricia Milun serves as the Chief Judge of the Minnesota
Workers’ Compensation Court of Appeals. Governor Dayton initially
appointed her to the Workers’ Compensation Court of Appeals in 2011,
designating her as Chief Judge at the same time. She was reappointed by
Governor Dayton to both positions in 2017. She previously was the chief
workers’ compensation settlement judge for the Department of Labor and
Industry. Chief Judge Milun has also served as a workers’ compensation
and administrative law judge for the Office of Administrative Hearings.
Her community involvement includes mentoring students at the University
of St. Thomas School of Law and the University of Minnesota Law School.
She also serves on the Customer Experience Certificate Program Advisory Panel at Minnesota State University, Mankato.
For more information about the judicial selection process, please visit the Governor’s Judicial Appointments webpage.
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