Joshua A. Newville, known as simply Josh Newville (born August 9, 1984),[1] is an American attorney, mediator, adjunct law professor, and investigative podcaster. He owns Newville PLC, a Minneapolis, MN-based law firm that focuses on employment law, civil rights and mediation.[2][3]
In 2014, Newville gained national attention for taking on the last two unchallenged state bans on same-sex marriage in the United States.[6][7][8]
On May 22, 2014, Newville filed a federal lawsuit, Rosenbrahn v. Daugaard, on behalf of six same-sex couples against South Dakota officials, seeking the right to marry and recognition of marriages performed in other jurisdictions.[9]
On June 6, 2014, Newville filed a similar lawsuit, Ramsay v. Dalrymple, on behalf of seven same-sex couples in North Dakota.[10]
U.S. District Court Judge Karen Schreier heard arguments in Rosenbrahn v. Daugaard on October 17, 2014. The state defendants argued she was bound by the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit's decision in Citizens for Equal Protection v. Bruning (2006), which Newville argued did not address the questions the plaintiffs raised in his case.[11] On November 14, Judge Schreier denied the defense's motion to dismiss.[12] She found that the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Baker V Nelson was no longer valid precedent and that Bruning did not address due process or the question of a fundamental right to marry. She dismissed the plaintiffs' claim that South Dakota violated their right to travel. She set a briefing schedule to conclude December 8.[13]
After the first same-sex marriage licenses were issued in South Dakota on June 26, 2015, Newville told reporters that he was ecstatic for his clients and as a gay man himself.[17]
On June 29, 2015, the U.S. District Court in North Dakota issued an order in Ramsay v. Dalrymple holding that North Dakota’s ban on same-sex marriage was unconstitutional.[18]
Other Notable Civil Rights Cases
In 2016, Newville represented a whistleblower and helped the government recover $6.2M in a Medicare fraud case.[19] Newville's client was awarded more than $1.2 million.[20]
In 2017, Newville won a case at the Minnesota Supreme Court that clarified that undocumented workers are entitled to protection under a Minnesota law that prohibits retaliatory employment discharge.[21][22]