Eric Christian Tostrud
How Judge Tostrud decides
Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
What persuades
Tostrud applies Noerr-Pennington rigorously in sham-litigation antitrust claims: a plaintiff must plausibly allege that the defendant's prior lawsuit was 'objectively baseless,' and a complaint that does not clear that bar is dismissed with prejudice. Counsel pleading a sham-litigation theory before him should plead specific facts showing objective baselessness, not merely bad motive.
“Olson has failed to allege facts in his Amended Complaint plausibly showing that the state-court case is objectively baseless.”
Tostrud will not grant summary judgment on a thin pre-discovery record where genuine fact questions remain, even when the movant presses a clean legal theory; he prefers to deny without prejudice and invite a renewed motion once the record is developed. A defendant moving early for summary judgment in his court risks a denial that is explicitly 'not the final word.'
“At least on this record, the better answer is that Allstate owed the estate a duty of good faith, and fact questions preclude a dispositive ruling that Allstate did not breach that duty.”
Tostrud declines to dismiss requests for injunctive relief at the pleading stage where the plaintiff has alleged plausible underlying claims, treating the availability of a remedy as a question better resolved later. A 12(b)(6) movant trying to strike a remedy prayer (rather than attacking the claim) should expect that argument to fail.
“courts on balance seem reticent to dismiss requests for injunctive relief at the pleading stage”
Signed rulings
A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.
“Defendant Tennant Company's Motion to Dismiss [ECF No. 12] is DENIED.”
“PowerBlock's motion to dismiss [ECF No. 29] is GRANTED IN PART. Olson's claim for sham litigation monopolization and attempted monopolization in violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act, 15 U.S.C. § 2 (Count I) is DISMISSED WITH PREJUDICE. Olson's claim for tortious interference with business advantage (Count II) is DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE.”
“PowerBlock's alternative motion to stay is DENIED AS MOOT.”
“Olson's motion for preliminary injunction [ECF No. 35] is DENIED AS MOOT.”
“PowerBlock's motion to dismiss [ECF No. 14] is DENIED AS MOOT.”
“Defendant Allstate Indemnity Company's Motion for Summary Judgment [ECF No. 11] is DENIED.”
“Defendants' Motion to Dismiss [ECF No. 35] is GRANTED. ... The Complaint [ECF No. 1] is DISMISSED with prejudice.”
“Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment [ECF No. 31] is GRANTED; ... Plaintiff's Complaint [ECF No. 1] is DISMISSED WITH PREJUDICE.”
“The Government's Motion to Dismiss [ECF No. 7] is GRANTED.”
“Defendants' Partial Motion to Dismiss [ECF No. 12] is GRANTED.”
“The MEnD Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment [ECF No. 98] is GRANTED.”
“The Sherburne County Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment [ECF No. 107] is GRANTED.”
“Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Judgment [ECF No. 27] is DENIED;”
“Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment [ECF No. 36] is GRANTED;”
“Defendant Timothy Kerr's Motion for Summary Judgment [ECF No. 151] is GRANTED.”
“Defendant Park Christian School, Inc.'s Motion for Summary Judgment [ECF No. 157] is GRANTED IN PART and DENIED IN PART.”
“Plaintiff Jimmy Morton's Motion for Summary Judgment [ECF No. 173] is DENIED.”
“Defendants' Joint Motion to Exclude Expert Testimony of Dr. Arndt [ECF No. 127] is GRANTED IN PART and DENIED IN PART as explained in Part III.B., above.”
“Petitioner Nicholas L.L.'s Emergency Motion for Temporary Restraining Order and Preliminary Injunction [ECF No. 2] is DENIED.”
“Defendant Morrison Sund PLLC's Motion to Dismiss [ECF No. 24] is GRANTED.”
Caseload & timing
From public federal docket records for this judge.
Median case duration in the sampled dockets: 354 days (N = 2).
Median motion-to-ruling time: 81 days (N = 1).
The 30-docket sample is weighted toward recent matters and is not exhaustive. May and June 2026 filings are dominated by alien-detainee habeas petitions, including Tovar-Cardozo v. Blanche, Wattara v. Brott, Flores Monrroy v. Blanche, Picazo Jimenez v. Blanche, Ortiz Diaz v. Stasko, and Rodriguez-Sigala v. Warden FCI Sandstone. The sample also includes civil-rights, personal-property, product-liability, insurance, and criminal matters. Older terminated civil cases represented in the outcome sample include Olson v. PowerBlock, an antitrust case, and Petersen v. Allstate, an insurance case. The sample does not establish the full nature-of-suit mix or comprehensive dispositive-motion timing.
Put Judge Tostrud's record to work
Ezel drafts and answers grounded in this exact profile: how Judge Tostrud actually rules, not a generic AI guess.
Opens in Ezel Pro. Every answer is grounded in Judge Tostrud's own signed orders and cites them.