Judge Rau was appointed to the position of U.S. Magistrate Judge by U.S. District Court Judge Michael J. Davis on January 14, 2011.
Steve's business litigation practice is broad. Steve has appeared in state and federal courts throughout the country and has also represented individuals and securities broker-dealers before self-regulatory bodies. He has litigated trade secret and restrictive covenant cases on behalf of national financial institutions. Representing individuals and corporations with employment or regulatory issues has also been a staple of Steve's practice. He also represents and counsels clients with corporate and business disputes, including lawyers and law firms. He is a Qualified Neutral (mediator/arbitrator) under Rule 114.
After law school Steve clerked for the Honorable Chief Justice Douglas K. Amdahl at the Minnesota Supreme Court. He started his legal career at Lindquist & Vennum in Minneapolis. Steve joined Flynn, Gaskins, & Bennett, L.L.P., in 2000.
Steve has served as a mentor for law students at the University of St. Thomas School of Law. He taught as an adjunct faculty member at William Mitchell College of Law and Hamline University teaching courses in Antitrust and Sales. He currently is an adjunct faculty member at the University of St. Thomas Law School teaching a course on Complex Litigation with Dean Thomas Mengler.
Steve has also been an active member of the Minnesota Chapter of the Federal Bar Association and has chaired and spear-headed the chapter's Pro Se Litigant Program and the Federal Transport Program which allows the minor children of women in the federal prison system to maintain contact with their mothers.