Missouri Lawyers Weekly articles from June 2004

Missouri Lawyers Weekly archives from June 2004

Bar Assn. of Metropolitan St. Louis Annual Golf Outing to be held June 21.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff The Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis will host its annual golf outing on Monday, June 21. The tournament will be held at the Pevely Farms Golf Club located at 400 Lewis Road. Competition...

Polsinelli-Suelthaus Merger Approved, Reaches Across Missouri And Into Illinois, Kansas.(merger of Polsinelli Shalton & Welte, PC and Suelthaus PC)(Brief article)
June 7, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Polsinelli Shalton Welte Suelthaus PC announced that shareholders have approved the merger of Polsinelli Shalton & Welte, PC and Suelthaus PC, effective June 1. The merger creates a 200-attorney...

Bresnahan Named St. Louis Judge.(Richard C. Bresnahan)(Brief article)
June 7, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Gov. Bob Holden announced May 27 that he has appointed Richard C. Bresnahan of St. Louis as a circuit judge for the 21st Judicial Circuit in St. Louis County, effective June 25. Bresnahan's appointment...

Mo. Court of Appeals' Western District Rules Chiropractor Could Assert Lien Against Insurance Cos.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Kenneth C. Jones A chiropractic clinic that required patients to grant a lien on the proceeds of their auto accident cases could enforce the lien against the patients' insurance companies, the Missouri Court of Appeals' Western...

Bank Gets Favorable Verdict In Platte County Case After Admitting Its 'Mistake'.(Chase Manhattan Bank)
June 7, 2004... Byline: Anne C. Vitale Admitting a mistake proved to be good trial strategy for a bank accused of selling contaminated property to an unsuspecting buyer in a recent Platte County case. Chase Manhattan Bank sold the residential tract...

Mo. Court of Appeals' Eastern District Rules Man Standing By Truck When Hit By Car Gets UM.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Anne C. Vitale A man who was retrieving tools from his truck when he was struck by an unidentified vehicle was covered by the uninsured motorist provisions of his insurance policy, the Missouri Court of Appeals' Eastern District...

Mo. Court of Appeals Eastern District Case Summaries: June 7, 2004.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Change Of Judge - Timely Application Where a mother in a juvenile court proceeding filed a timely application for a change of judge, the judge failed to disqualify himself and...

Mo. Court of Appeals Southern District Case Summaries: June 7, 2004.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Hearsay - Business Records Exception - Credit Agreement Where a credit card holder signed a credit card agreement with a bank and was later sued by the subsequent owner of the...

Mo. Court of Appeals Western District Case Summaries: June 7, 2004.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Administrative Disciplinary Fine - Political Contributions - Gaming Commission Where a casino made a $100 contribution to an alderman candidate in violation of a city ordinance, the evidence...

U.S. Court Of Appeals 8th Circuit Case Summaries: June 7, 2004.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Rights Qualified Immunity - Crime Lab Officials - Duty To Disclose Where a criminal defendant claimed that crime laboratory officials violated his civil rights by failing to disclose...

Verdicts & Settlements: June 7, 2004: Car Rear-Ended Near School.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Defendant's Verdict A woman who was involved in an automobile accident near a school parking lot sued the other driver. On Sept. 18, 2002, Amanda Howard, the defendant, made a left out of the Union...

Verdicts & Settlements June 7, 2004: Woman Tripped In Hole Near Sidewalk.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff $43,200 verdict A woman injured when she fell in front of her apartment building sued for premises liability. Dolores Cortez rented a unit in a two-family home at 4931 Oleatha in St. Louis. The...

Verdicts & Settlements June 7, 2004: Buyer Claimed Land Was Contaminated.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff $52,000 Verdict A man who purchased allegedly contaminated real estate as part of a foreclosure transaction sued the bank for fraud. In January 1999, Chase Manhattan Bank acquired a 4-acre tract of...

Verdicts & Settlements June 7, 2004: Woman Fell Into Traffic Control Box.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff $350,000 Verdict A woman who was injured after falling into a traffic control box sued the City of Kansas City. On April 29, 1997, Katherine Dayton was waiting for a traffic light to change at the...

Verdicts & Settlements June 7, 2004: Man Had Vitamin B-12 Deficiency.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff $750,000 Settlement The four sons of a 34-year-old man who allegedly died of vitamin B-12 deficiency sued his neurologists and family doctor for medical malpractice. In December 1999, the man...

Murdered Woman's Parents Win $30M Vs. Son-In-Law In Platte County Court.(Brandy Swope and Todd Johnson)
June 7, 2004... Byline: Aaron Brown In a case that invites comparison to the OJ Simpson saga, the parents of a murdered Kansas City woman won a $30 million verdict against their son-in-law, who previously was acquitted in a criminal trial. Outraged...

Missouri Lawyers In The News: June 7, 2004.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Anthony Martin has joined the St. Louis office of Blackwell Sanders Peper Martin as an associate in the firm's Litigation Department, where he specializes in intellectual property. Martin earned his...

Mo. Bar to present CLE: 'Trials Of The Century'.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Need more CLE credits before the June 30 reporting deadline? On June 24-25, The Missouri Bar will present a CLE entitled "Trials of the Century II," credited for 7.8 CLE hours including 1.2 ethics...

Partner in Bryan Cave's St. Louis office Nominated U.N. Ambassador.(John C. Danforth of Bryan Cave L.L.P.)(Brief article)
June 14, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff On June 4, President George W. Bush nominated John C. Danforth to be the United States ambassador to the United Nations, Bryan Cave LLP reports. If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Danforth will...

Missouri Lawyers In The News: June 14, 2004.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Levy & Craig PC in Kansas City recently expanded its legal practice with the addition of Patrick T. Smith. Smith, who earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Kansas in 1994 and his law...

U.S. District Court in Missouri Rules Joinder Not Fraudulent.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Kenneth C. Jones An individual defendant in an auto products liability case was not fraudulently joined to defeat federal diversity jurisdiction even though he had previously settled his case with the plaintiffs, a U.S. District...

Mo. Labor and Industrial Relations Comm. Awards Worker Gets Comp For Fall While.(Labor and Industrial Relations Commission)
June 14, 2004... Byline: Kenneth C. Jones A worker who fell as she was running to the employee parking lot after being told that a co-worker was vandalizing her car could get workers' compensation, the Labor and Industrial Relations Commission has ruled in...

Woman Sues DCSE In Mo. Supreme Court For Overpayment Of Support.(Division of Child Support Enforcement)
June 14, 2004... Byline: Anne C. Vitale A woman who paid child support following an administrative order from the Division of Child Support Enforcement could sue to recover an overpayment, the Missouri Supreme Court has ruled. DCSE argued that it was...

Dogged St. Louis Lawyer Snatches Victory From $135M Defeat.(Steven Sanders)
June 14, 2004... Byline: Anne C. Vitale St. Louis attorney Steven Sanders has proven that it is possible to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. In March his client, Rockwell Automation Inc., was hit with a $135 million tort verdict in a Jackson...

Mo. Court of Appeals Eastern District Case Summaries: June 14, 2004.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Unemployment Compensation Benefits - Disqualification - 'Good Cause' Where an unemployment compensation claimant left his job after being cursed at by a supervisor but the worker refused...

Mo. Court of Appeals Southern District Case Summaries: June 14, 2004.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Contract Credit Card Account - Truth- In-Lending Act - Non-Delivery Where a couple were sued for breach of contract by their credit card issuer after they stopped making payments on home...

Mo. Court of Appeals Western District Case Summaries: June 14, 2004.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Public Utilities Regulation Plan - Reasonableness - Authority Where the Public Service Commission interpreted an experimental alternative regulation plan that was used to calculate credits...

Mo. Labor Industrial Relations Comm. Case Summaries: June 14, 2004.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Workers' Compensation Penalty - Noncompliance - Double Award Where an employer in a workers' compensation case was ordered in a temporary or partial award to provide treatment according to the...

Mo. Supreme Court Case Summaries: June 14, 2004.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Criminal Law Death Penalty - Deliberation - Kidnapping (1) Where a murder defendant gave written statements to police and the first was without a Miranda warning, the first statement was made...

U.S. Bankruptcy Court Appellate Panel Case Summaries: June 14, 2004.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Bankruptcy Mootness - Sale Order Where the sale of property of a bankruptcy estate was completed, an appeal of the bankruptcy court order denying a request for stay of the sale order was moot...

U.S. Court Of Appeals 8th Circuit Case Summaries: June14, 2004.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Judgment - Finality - Pending Counterclaim Where a counterclaim was still pending in the district court in a contract case at the time an appeal was filed, the judgment was not...

U.S. District Court Western District Case Summaries: June 14, 2004.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Diversity - Fraudulent Joinder - Settling Party Where plaintiffs entered into a settlement with an individual defendant in a wrongful death case releasing all claims against him...

Verdicts & Settlements June 14, 2004: Pregnant Woman Broke Ankle On Stairs.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff $130,000 Settlement A mobile home tenant who fell on a wooden stairway and broke her ankle sued the landlord for premises liability. Melissa Andersen, 25, rented a mobile home from Ralph and Jacque...

Verdicts & Settlements June 14, 2004: Passenger Killed In Accident.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff $450,000 Settlement The parents of a 23-year-old woman sued after she died in a car accident. On Nov. 10, 2002, Dawn Nicole Lococo was a passenger in a pickup driven by her boyfriend, Matthew Burk....

Verdicts & Settlements June 14, 2004: Man Died Of Heart Attack In ER.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Defendant's Verdict The adult children of a man who died of a heart attack in an emergency room sued for medical malpractice. On Aug. 31, 1997, Cornelius Whitted fell from a ladder, injuring his...

Verdicts & Settlements June 14, 2004: Woman Disabled After Cerebral Angiogram.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Defendant's Verdict The conservatorship estate of a 41-year-old woman who became severely disabled after a cerebral angiogram sued for medical malpractice. On April 7, 1997, Deborah K. Berner of...

Verdicts & Settlements June 14, 2004: Baby Suffered Brachial Plexus Injury.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff $1.69 Million Verdict A medical malpractice suit was filed after a baby suffered a shoulder injury during delivery. Teresa Guerra-York gave birth to a baby boy, Michael, on Jan. 20, 2002. The...

Missouri Defense Attorney Switches Sides.(Don M. Downing joins Gray, Ritter & Graham PC)
June 21, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff "A former Missouri chief deputy attorney general, whose role in one of the area's largest corporate litigation firms has largely centered on defending corporations against lawsuits, is shifting gears...

Missouri State Highway Patrol Crash Reports Available Online.(Missourinet)
June 21, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff In 2000, Missourinet -- a statewide radio news network -- began posting Missouri State Highway Patrol crash reports on its website, www.Missourinet.com. "Prior to that time, the only way to get an...

Mo. Healthcare Professionals Wary About Abuse Reporting Law.(child abuse reporting)
June 21, 2004... Byline: Geri L. Dreiling Should healthcare professionals call the child abuse hotline every time they treat an injured toddler? That's what doctors and nurses have been asking since a southwest Missouri emergency room nurse was charged...

Mo. Court of Appeals' Western District Orders New Trial For Juror's Misconduct.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Anne C. Vitale A juror in a medical malpractice case committed misconduct when she failed to disclose in voir dire that her husband had sued a company for products liability, the Missouri Court of Appeals' Western District has...

Mo. Court of Appeals' Western District Rules Horseback Riding Suit Not Barred.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Kenneth C. Jones A woman who fell from a horse while taking riding lessons could sue for negligence even though she signed a form releasing the stable owner from "any and all liability," the Missouri Court of Appeals' Western...

Mo. Court of Appeals Eastern District Case Summaries: June 21, 2004.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Constitutional Standing - Park Renovation Where patrons of a park pavilion challenged the renovation of the pavilion, the patrons failed to show how their interest in the pavilion was legally...

Mo. Court of Appeals Southern District Case Summaries: June 21, 2004.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Criminal Law Methamphetamine - Discarded Container - Evidence Where an officer found a change purse containing methamphetamine on the ground outside of a car involved in a traffic stop and the...

Mo. Court of Appeals Western District Case Summaries: June 21, 2004.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Criminal Law Murder - Rule Of Completeness - Evidence - Intent (1) Where a murder defendant made a statement to police at his home and at the police station after he was arrested, the exclusion...

U.S. Court Of Appeals 8th Circuit Case Summaries: June 21, 2004.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Bankruptcy Punitive Damages - Fraud - Prejudgment Interest Where the district court granted prejudgment interest to plaintiffs in a bankruptcy case but the plaintiffs' claims were not readily...

Verdicts & Settlements June 21, 2004: Woman Said Hip Replacement Faulty.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Defendant's Verdict A woman who had problems after a hip replacement sued for medical malpractice. In 1984, Nicole Booth-Rodman broke her hip when she fell on a school field trip to The Learning...

Verdicts & Settlements June 21, 2004: Hunter Fell From Tree Stand.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff $487,500 Verdict A man who was injured when he fell from a tree stand sued for products liability. Mark Rarrick, 46 years old, owned an archery shop in Springfield. In 1999 he bought several tree...

Verdicts & Settlements June 21, 2004: Woman Incorrectly Diagnosed With Cancer.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Defendant's Verdict A woman who was incorrectly diagnosed with lung cancer sued for medical malpractice. Carol Armstrong, 52, was admitted to North Kansas City Hospital on Jan. 28, 2002 complaining...

Verdicts & Settlements June 21, 2004: Dodge Viper Crashed On Country Road.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff $1.275 Million Settlement The family of a man who died in a single-car accident sued the driver's estate for wrongful death. On May 21, 2002, Jack Everhart was visiting his cousin Elmer "Bud"...

Woman Who Fell At Parish Gym Loses Premises Case In St. Louis City Circuit Court.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Aaron Brown A recent defense verdict for a Catholic parish in a premises liability case shows that the priest sex-abuse scandal may not have affected potential jurors as much as some have predicted. In this St. Louis City...

Missouri Lawyers In The News: June 7, 2004.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Reuben Shelton, Assistant General Counsel with Monsanto Company in St. Louis, and Paul L. Wickens, a partner with Foland, Wickens, Eisfelder, Roper & Hofer PC in Kansas City, have been elected Fellows...

American Medical Association Won't Shun Attorneys.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff During its annual meeting June 13 in Chicago, the American Medical Association considered a proposal that called for doctors to refuse medical treatment to attorneys involved in medical malpractice...

Missouri Law Grad Chases Olympic Dream.(Scott Schatzman )
June 28, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff In the midst of his preparations for final exams, graduation and the Missouri Bar exam next month, 2004 Mizzou Law grad Scott Schatzman managed to squeeze in trying to qualify for the U.S. Olympic...

Mo. Supreme Court Rules Trust Doesn't Fail Despite Closing Of Dental School.(charitable trusts)
June 28, 2004... Byline: Anne C. Vitale Where a dentist established a trust for the lives of three relatives with the remainder to his dental school for its "exclusive use," the gift did not fail even though the dental school had closed by the time the...

Mo. Court of Appeals' Western District Rules Plaintiff's Privacy Was Violated By Discovery.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Kenneth C. Jones Interrogatories that requested a plaintiff in a premises liability case to disclose all other accidents and serious illnesses she ever had were overbroad and invaded the plaintiff's right to privacy, the Missouri...

Trust Law Overhaul In Missouri Seen As Great Aid To Lawyers.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Anne C. Vitale An overhaul of state trust laws, expected to be signed shortly by the governor, will be a boon to attorneys, experts say -- especially to general practitioners who do only occasional estate planning. "Legal...

Mo. Court of Appeals Eastern District Case Summaries: June 28, 2004.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Appellate Practice Rule 84.04 - Brief - Failure To Comply Where the brief of a husband in a dissolution contained an improper statement of facts and the points relied on failed to meet the...

Mo. Court of Appeals Southern District Case Summaries: June 28, 2004.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Contract Breach Of Contract - Negligence - Roof Installation Where homeowners sued a construction company that replaced their roof for negligence and breach of contract because of leaks in the...

Mo. Court of Appeals Western District Case Summaries: June 28, 2004.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Discovery - Interrogatories - Scope Where a trial court ordered a plaintiff in a premises liability and negligence action to answer interrogatories seeking plaintiff's entire...

Mo. Supreme Court Case Summaries: June 28, 2004.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Criminal Law Sentencing - Drug Treatment Program - Eligibility Where counsel for a drug defendant consistently told him he would serve only a small part of his prison term because he would be...

U.S. Court Of Appeals 8th Circuit Case Summaries: June 28, 2004.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Statute Of Limitations - Tolling - Fraud - Arkansas Law Where borrowers who claimed they were fraudulently induced to take out loans for a farming business admitted that they...

Commentary: Sweating The Small Stuff.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Emily Eichenhorn Risk management is not as complicated as one might assume. While that may sound like blasphemy to my peers, there's no denying that the most effective risk management techniques often are the simplest ones. With...

Verdicts & Settlements June 28, 2004: Falling Shelf Hit Shopper.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Confidential Settlement A 43-year-old who was injured when shelving fell on him in a store sued for premises liability. The plaintiff was a union sheet metal worker. On May 30, 2000, he was...

Verdicts & Settlements June 28, 2004: Woman Died Of Ectopic Pregnancy.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Defendant's Verdict The mother of a woman who died from a ruptured ectopic pregnancy sued for medical malpractice. On Dec. 4, 1996, an 18-year-old St. Louis woman came to her family practitioner's...

Verdicts & Settlements June 28, 2004: Motorcycle Crash Killed Driver.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff $645,000 Settlement The family of a 77-year-old man who died in a motorcycle accident filed a products liability lawsuit. In 1998, John Day of Perryville, Mo., bought a conversion kit that added...

Verdicts & Settlements June 28, 2004: Trailer Broke Loose And Hit Plaintiff.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff $850,000 Settlement A man who was hit by a trailer that became detached from a truck filed suit for his injuries. On June 24, 2003, Charles Riden was sitting on his motorcycle in the parking lot of...

Death In Portable Climbing Wall Case In Boone County Circuit Court Settles For $700K.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Geri L. Dreiling The parents of a 22-year-old woman who died after a fall from a portable climbing wall have settled their Boone County case against the wall's owner for $700,000. Christine Ewing's death triggered not only a...

Missouri Lawyers In The News: June 28, 2004.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Evans & Dixon LLC announced that Tracy A. Beckham and Eric Selig have joined the firm as associates in its St. Louis office. As part of the firm's Workers' Compensation Practice, Beckham represents...