BIO

Ronald J. Schutz was the Chairman of a 200 lawyer national litigation from 2019-2024. He is currently a candidate for the position of Attorney General of Minnesota.

Mr. Schutz is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, which is the preeminent organization of trial lawyers in North America. Becoming a Fellow is by invitation only and membership is limited to 1% of the total lawyer population.

He has frequently been recognized as one the top lawyers in the country. In 2024 he was named to Forbes’ inaugural list of America’s Top 200 Lawyers and he was named to the same list in 2025.  For over two decades he has been included on the list of Minnesota Super Lawyers and most years has been listed among the top ten Super Lawyers in the state.  Lawdragon named Mr. Schutz a “Lawdragon Legend” in 2021 and frequently lists him among the “500 Leading Lawyers in America” (2010-2018, 2021-2024). Based on his $89 million trial victory in Grantley v. Clear Channel, The National Law Journal named Mr. Schutz to its annual list of the “Top 10 Winning Litigators in the United States.”

Mr. Schutz attended Marquette University on an ROTC Scholarship where he graduated magna cum laude with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. Mr. Schutz graduated with honors from the University of Minnesota Law School where he was a member of the Law Review.

After law school, he fulfilled his ROTC military commitment by serving four years in the United States Army JAG Corps.  He was commissioned as a Captain and was stationed with the 7th Infantry Division at Fort Ord where he tried twenty jury trials. His notable military trial victories include a murder acquittal when he was serving as defense counsel and a conviction and 50-year prison sentence in a rape case when he was serving as a prosecutor.  He also prosecuted many drug and assault cases as well as two child molestation cases.

Mr. Schutz is extensively involved in community and public affairs. He is a former chair and current board member of the Center of the American Experiment and a member of the Board of Directors of Tee It Up for The Troops. He is also a member of the University of St. Thomas Law School Board of Advisors, a former member of the Advisory Board of the Minnesota Law Review, and a past president of the University of Minnesota Law School Alumni Association.

Mr. Schutz has been extensively involved in Republican Party politics.  He has been a member of innumerable candidate finance committees and has frequently been a delegate to the Republican State Convention.  In 2008 he was a delegate to the Republican National Convention.  In addition, he served as chair of the Minnesota Commission on Judicial Selection (appointed by Governor Pawlenty). Mr. Schutz also served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Pawlenty for President (2011-2012).

Mr. Schutz is an advisor to the Upper Midwest Law Center and has been a member of the Federalist Society since 1993.

Mr. Schutz is married to his high school sweetheart Janet, and they have three adult children. Mr. Schutz has run several marathons and triathlons and enjoys hunting and other outdoor adventure activities. He has trekked to Mount Everest Base Camp, Machu Picchu, and the Refugio on Mt. Cotopaxi.  He has also climbed Mount Kilimanjaro and the Gran Paradiso (Italian Alps).  And in a moment of temporary insanity, he did a solo sky dive:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8WjA4XvPIPA&ab_channel=RonaldSchutz

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