Kansas

With offices in Kansas City, Topeka, and Wichita, Foulston Siefkin remains one of the most distinguished firms in the state of Kansas. One client highlights the firm’s capabilities: “They have an extraordinary amount of knowledge of our business based upon our long term relationship with the firm [and] are cognizant of our business model in providing advice/strategy.” Veteran litigator James Armstrong was lead attorney defending The Boeing Company in an employment litigation brought by former Boeing employees and two of the labor unions that represent them. Seventeen putative class members filed individual claims against Boeing, which defeated plaintiffs’ motion for summary judgment on all claims. Attorneys Holly Dyer and Jay Fowler represent Aeroflex Wichita in an intellectual property and employment law matter involving a former employee. After a six-week trial, a Sedgwick County jury awarded Aeroflex Wichita $3.325 million for damages caused by tortious interference and breach of contract for their improper use and disclosure of Aeroflex Wichita’s confidential and proprietary business information. Fowler and David Rogers were lead counsel representing Dr. Gregory Meister in a commercial litigation where the primary issue stemmed from a breach of contract action related to a forced buy/sell event that removed Dr. Meister from his ownership in the Kansas Spine & Specialty Hospital. Dr. Meister contends that the forced buyout violated his contract rights resulting in damages of up to $15 million. A damage claim of $15 million was implemented and a declaratory judgment claim for reinstatement of units. The court overruled all parties’ motions for summary judgement and the case was settled the weekend before trial was to start in November 2017 with a confidential settlement. Wyatt Hoch is lead counsel representing Cargill Meat Solutions in a construction litigation that arises from an industrial-piping project at a beef-processing facility in Dodge City, Kansas. Jeffery Jordan is lead attorney representing Montgomery County in a property tax dispute over the proper classification of property used by the taxpayer as a nitrogen fertilizer plant. The primary issues at hand in this tax appeal are whether the property is to be taxed as real property or personal property, and the issue of the fair market value appraisal of those assets being in excess of $10 million per year in tax revenue. Amy Lemley is lead attorney representing the Wichita Firemen’s Relief Association in an insurance coverage case based on accidental death policy claims and failure to pay insurance benefits without just cause or excuse. Initially, summary judgment on coverage was granted by the trial court in favor of the insurance company, and the Tenth Circuit reversed. After remand, a jury found that the insurance company breached the insuring agreement, awarding policy limits of $100,000, and the jury verdict appeal was dismissed. Plaintiff’s claim for attorneys’ fees has been denied by the trial court and that order is on appeal to the Tenth Circuit. Michael Norton represents Hidden Marsh in a real estate litigation matter that involves the value of a property owner’s exclusive rights to use its recreational hunting land in Kansas. A trial over the 150 acres of recreational/agricultural land in Stafford County is scheduled for late 2018. Todd Tedesco represents Otto Aviation Group in a commercial litigation case for breach of contract and promissory estoppel, a claim of which the plaintiff is seeking $12,000,000 in damages. The case was settled on the first day of trial for a small fraction of plaintiff’s settlement demand.

Hite Fanning & Honeyman has more than 20 attorneys in its Wichita office. It has earned its reputation as one of the top insurance and medical malpractice defense firms in the state. Litigation lies at its core. Its professionals handle many subject areas including business torts, intellectual property, creditors’ rights, employment, healthcare, toxic torts, aviation, defamation, securities fraud, professional liability, construction litigation, personal injury, product liability, workers’ compensation, and insurance-coverage disputes. The majority of the firm’s attorneys are litigators. Founding member and senior partner Richard Hite’s practice primarily concerns business, commercial, and oil and gas litigation. He also appears as an arbitrator and mediator in business, contract, environmental, and professional-liability affairs. Closing in on a 50-years career, founding partner Richard “Dick” Honeyman primarily focuses on civil litigation with an emphasis on disputes. He frequently serves as an alternative dispute resolution mediator. F. James “Jim” Robinson, Jr. comes with nearly 30 years of experience behind him. He has successfully litigated many high-profile cases, currently concentrating in business, construction, professional liability, and product liability. He has additional experience with contracts and corporate law. The senior partner represents clients who reflect many industries, including banking, aerospace, construction, equipment manufacturers, health care, and oil and gas.

Rouse Frets White Goss Gentile Rhodes, previously known as Rouse Frets Gentile Rhodes before a merger with Kansas City firm White Goss, was founded in 1995 and is still recognized for its litigation capabilities. One client opines, “They are very good at what they do. They take a level of “ownership” of the issues. We feel they are always acting in our best interest.” Another client details the reasons behind selecting Rouse Frets, “We chose this firm for multiple reasons: expertise in construction law, vital for a structural engineering firm such as ours, responsiveness is unparalleled, [and] vast wealth of knowledge and practice areas, so, they are also able to handle our HR needs, employment law, real estate, etc. questions.” Timothy Frets successfully obtained summary judgement in federal court for a police officer who was working off-duty as a security guard at a local hospital in a case that alleged the client, specifically, used excessive force and conspired with the other officers to violate the plaintiff’s constitutional rights. Douglas Gentile has tailored his practice to representing numerous Fortune 500 companies in the defense of product liability cases at the local and national level. He has been significantly active in product liability cases relating to the use of children’s car seats in automobile accidents. Greg Musil is a member of the local counsel team defending an aviation insurance company in an insurance bad faith case. This matter resulted after a general aviation accident in Oklahoma in 2013 where both the pilot and passenger were killed, which led to the filing of a wrongful death action on behalf of the passenger’s family and his estate. Plaintiffs entered into a settlement and assignment agreement, and judgment was subsequently entered against the pilot’s Estate. The passenger’s Estate subsequently filed a request for garnishment with the pilot’s Estate and its insurance company as garnishees asserting the garnishees negligently or in bad faith failed to settle the wrongful death claim. Mary O’Connell was a lead counsel member who obtained a defense jury verdict after less than an hour of jury deliberations in a case involving North Kansas City Hospital. This matter involved an elderly woman who fell while walking down a hall in the hospital with her daughter on the way to a doctor’s appointment. The woman alleged that she tripped on a metal plate that covered a drain in the hallway of the hospital. O’Connell and her team argued and introduced evidence that no employee at North Kansas City Hospital negligently created the condition of the plate, and that no employee of the hospital knew or should have known of the space until after the fall. The attorneys were also successful in precluding plaintiff’s expert from offering new opinions at trial. Randall Rhodes was lead counsel in a second nine-figure judgment obtained in 2017 for a plaintiff who claimed a former Scoutmaster and physician sexually abused him hundreds of times throughout childhood. Rhodes tried the case to a judge who awarded the plaintiff $20 million in compensatory damages and $100 million in punitive damages. This was the second successful case tried in front of a judge in lieu of a jury trial.