Issuing or filing party: Minnesota District Court, Seventh Judicial District
Case number: 56-CV-25-198
Document date: July 1, 2026
Document type: Order denying dispositive relief for lack of damages
Length: 3 pages

About this document

This order is part of the public record in Precision Locating, LLC v. Starkebaum, Otter Tail County Court File No. 56-CV-25-198. It addresses a dispositive request directed at the plaintiffs' proof of damages.

Why this document matters

The ruling left damages issues for further development instead of terminating the case. It is a central source for comparing how the court treats requests to remove disputed civil claims before trial.

Scope note: This page summarizes a public court record for access and discovery. Consult the original PDF for authoritative wording, citations, signatures, exhibits, and formatting.

Read the extracted text transcript

Accessible document transcript

[Page 1]
STATE OF MINNESOTA IN DISTRICT COURT

COUNTY OF OTTER TAIL SEVENTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT
______________________________________________________________________________

Precision Locating, LLC and Arvig
Enterprises, Inc.,

Plaintiffs, ORDER DENYING MOTION TO
DISMISS CLAIMS FOR LACK
OF DAMAGES

vs.

Martin D. Starkebaum,

Defendant. Court File No. 56-CV-25-198
______________________________________________________________________________

The above-entitled matter came before the Honorable Kevin M. Miller, Judge of District
Court, on April 6, 2026, for a motion hearing at the Otter Tail County Courthouse in Fergus
Falls, Minnesota. Kurt Erickson, Esq., and Collin Abress, Esq., appeared on behalf of Plaintiffs
Precision Locating, LLC and Arvig Enterprises, Inc. Lauren Meder, Arvig representative,
appeared. V. John Ella, Esq., and Zachary Hennen, Esq., appeared on behalf of and with
Defendant Martin Starkebaum.
Based on the arguments of counsel and all the files, records, and proceedings herein, the
Court makes the following:
Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law
1. On December 4, 2025, Defendant filed a memorandum of law in support of motion to
dismiss claims for lack of damages.
2. On December 19, 2025, Defendant filed a memorandum of law in opposition to
Defendant’s motion to dismiss claims for lack of damages.
3. The issues in this case revolve around a Facebook post written by an anonymous user on

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a page called “The Cable Vine” stating, “Seems that Percision Locating / Arvig of Minnesota .
Like to hire pedophiles/rapist…while they locate school fibers . ..Google there names Richard
Jenkins jr , Derek Schmidt , Matthew Guthmiller”.
4. The anonymous user who made the Facebook post has been determined to be Christopher
Mayen. However, Plaintiffs have alleged that Defendant caused Mr. Mayen to make the
anonymous post regarding Plaintiffs in “The Cable Vine” group.
5. In their amended complaint, Plaintiffs have asserted a breach of contract, breach of duty
of loyalty, defamation per se, and defamation.
6. Defendant has utilized a motion in limine to request dismissal of Plaintiffs’ claims for
lack of damages as a dispositive motion.
7. The Court finds the motion to dismiss Plaintiffs’ claims for lack of damages is not a
motion in limine but is a dispositive motion and would have been more appropriately addressed
through a motion for summary judgment.
8. The deadline for filing dispositive motions in this matter was August 31, 2025. Therefore,
the deadline for filing a dispositive motion is past.
9. However, when it is time to discuss jury instructions in preparation for trial, Plaintiffs
will need to identify damages for the Court, as the Court does not believe that a jury trial must be
held to find out Plaintiffs have no identifiable damages.
Based on the above Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, the Court makes the
following:
Order
1. The motion to dismiss claims for lack of damages is hereby denied.

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Dated:________________ By the Court:
___________________________
Kevin M. Miller
Judge of District Court