Ellen Bruntrager is an associate attorney in the St. Louis office and represents clients in a wide range of civil litigation matters, including employment discrimination and wage and hour disputes. Prior to joining the firm, Ellen worked as an associate in a St. Louis area law firm and represented individuals in civil rights litigation. Additionally, […]
Heidi Eckert represents clients in all aspects of employment, labor, and civil rights disputes. Heidi is an active litigator who has defended claims in state and federal courts as well as before governmental agencies. She has also arbitrated and mediated numerous matters to successful resolution on behalf of her clients. Her litigation experience includes assisting […]
Jim Ferrick is a seasoned litigator who represents clients in high stakes litigation throughout the country. He works to understand your business and how your goals drive strategy. Mr. Ferrick is experienced in handling all phases of litigation, from the temporary restraining order/injunction phase through trial and appeal. He has tried numerous cases to verdict, including in both bench and jury trials. He has argued before the Missouri and Illinois Appellate Courts and the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals.
Mr. Ferrick has brought and/or defended claims of virtually every type in the commercial and employment law contexts, including having handled claims for breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, fraud, unfair competition (including in relation to trade secrets and restrictive covenants), commercial torts, violation of wage payment obligations, discrimination and retaliation, defamation, and many others. He also has substantial experience in products liability litigation.
Mr. Ferrick is at the forefront of counseling and litigation involving restrictive covenants and trade secrets in both the employment and sale-of-business contexts. He has represented clients across multiple industries and in various forums, including state and federal courts throughout the country as well as in arbitrations before FINRA and the AAA. He has particular expertise in disputes and counseling related to financial advisor transitions. In his day-to-day role counseling clients on risk management and other issues, Mr. Ferrick frequently drafts non-solicitation, non-compete and non-disclosure agreements.
Mr. Ferrick’s securities litigation experience involves defending brokerage firms in class actions and arbitrations alleging state and federal securities law violations, unsuitability and fraud in courts and tribunals throughout the country. In addition, he has represented broker-dealers, registered representatives, and investment advisors in matters involving non-solicitation agreements, trade secrets, and breach of loyalty or fiduciary duty throughout the country. Jim regularly appears on clients’ behalf in the FINRA arbitration forum as well as state and federal court. Mr. Ferrick also provides pre-employment counseling to effectively avoid litigation.
Mr. Ferrick has litigated trust and estate disputes on behalf of both beneficiaries and fiduciaries. He has handed a variety of different cases including disputes over trust distributions, will contests, fiduciary duty claims, and cases involving a promise to make a gift and the Deadman’s Act.
Mr. Ferrick has handled class actions throughout the country involving wireless telephone service, the securities industry, consumer products, insurance coverage and tax issues. He has handled all stages of class action defense, including class certification, dispositive motions, expert discovery, and settlement administration.
Julie Chambers is an associate attorney in the St Louis office and represents clients in civil litigation.
Julie joined the law firm after serving as Lead Counsel for ReubenLaw LLC, providing legal counsel related to regulatory matters, employment contracts, family law litigation, and landlord-tenant disputes while supervising legal staff and managing a volume of 350+ traffic and criminal cases for clients in Missouri and Illinois.
Julie previously served as a judicial law clerk for The Honorable Mary Barzee Flores in Florida’s Eleventh Judicial Circuit Court.
Julie attended the University of Missouri School of Law where she served as the Note and Comment Editor for the Journal of Dispute Resolution and the President of the Women’s Law Association.
Andrew is an experienced trial attorney who focuses his practice on complex commercial and employment disputes, as well as emerging issues related to digital assets. He has successfully tried cases to resolution in federal and state court, in arbitration, and before administrative bodies.
Prior to joining the firm, Andrew founded the first practice group dedicated exclusively to digital assets and blockchain technology in the Midwest and has represented businesses, developers, and investors across the country in matters related to digital assets and decentralized protocols.
Andrew is an Adjunct Professor at the Washington University School of Law where he teaches Trial Practice and Procedure.
Andrew is an active member and Past President of the St. Louis Chapter of the Federal Bar Association and The Theodore McMillian American Inn of Court.
Representative Matters
As lead counsel, Andrew successfully obtained a jury verdict in a business dispute where the opposing party was found to have fraudulently induced Andrew’s client into a business deal and later tried to retain the profits from the venture. The jury returned verdicts in favor of Andrew’s client on all counts – both on the claims submitted by the client, as well as defendant’s counterclaims. As part of the judgment, the court awarded the client its attorney’s fees.
As lead counsel for the founder of a decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol, Andrew obtained the dismissal of a putative class action complaint filed in the Eastern District of New York alleging the founder and co-defendants were members of a general partnership operating an illegal lottery in violation of New York state law. The lawsuit and dismissal were covered in the Wall Street Journal.
Andrew successfully obtained a jury verdict on competing claims for declaratory judgment between former business partners where the client was alleged to have improperly revoked the membership interest of the former partner and breached their fiduciary duties. Andrew drafted the special interrogatories that were submitted to the jury. The jury’s answers to the special interrogatories resulted in the court entering judgment in favor of the client, which included its attorney’s fees.
As lead counsel, Andrew successfully arbitrated a claim between two law firms where a dispute had arisen related to their business relationship. Andrew argued the case before a three-member arbitration panel. The case ultimately settled on confidential terms.
Andrew successfully obtained summary judgment for a local college where plaintiffs alleged that the college failed to protect them against stalking and sexual harassment by a fellow student under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. The case was appealed and summary judgment in favor of the client was affirmed by the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals. Pearson v. Logan Univ., 937 F.3d 1119 (8th Cir. 2019).
In a case of first impression, Andrew obtained the reversal of an adverse summary judgment ruling for a client that asserted it was a third-party beneficiary to a contract and entitled to payment for its services. The Court of Appeals found that the client materially changed its position in justifiable reliance on the contract entitling it to payment for its services and reserved the trial court’s summary judgment ruling. Hilliker Corp. v. Watson Prop., LLC, 667 S.W.3d 117 (Mo. Ct. App. 2022).
Andrew successfully defended the State of Missouri when a political action committee and one of its founders brought action against the Missouri Ethics Commission and several of its members, seeking to enjoin a state enforcement proceeding. The federal district court abstained from hearing the case and the decision was affirmed by the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals. Geier v. Missouri Ethics Comm’n, 715 F.3d 674 (8th Cir. 2013).
Andrew obtained summary judgment where the client was alleged to have subjected the plaintiff, a laborer, to a hostile work environment and racial discrimination under Title VII when he was removed from a construction project. The client moved for summary judgment on the grounds that plaintiff failed to establish a prima facie case for disparate treatment and because there was a legitimate, non-discriminatory reason for his removal. Furthermore, the client was not plaintiff’s employer as it did not control the terms and conditions of plaintiff’s employment. The district court agreed and granted summary judgment in favor of the client.
Andrew favorably resolved alleged False Claims Act (FCA) violations against a testing laboratory. After meeting with the United States Attorney’s Office and Missouri Medicaid Audit & Compliance, the client’s license was restated and the FCA violations were resolved pre-suit.
Kelley Farrell is a member in the St. Louis office, concentrating her practice in real estate, employment, trust and estates and commercial litigation.
Kelley’s extensive real estate practice includes representing condemning authorities, developers, and property owners in eminent domain cases involving total and partial takings of commercial, residential, and industrial properties, landlord-tenant actions, and neighboring property disputes.
Her employment practice focuses on the defense of employment disputes in federal courts, state courts and administrative agencies. She also advises many retail, manufacturing, bank and service-oriented clients on a wide variety of issues, including hiring, wrongful termination, sexual harassment, discrimination laws, wage and hour laws, employee leave rights and workers’ compensation, among others. Her most recent jury trial victory was representing a large insurance company accused of race discrimination and retaliation in Jackson County in August 2023. After six days of trial, the jury rendered unanimous defense verdicts in favor of Kelley’s client.
Kelley has also litigated a wide variety of matters in the trust and estate area, including trust and will contests, claims for tortious interference with inheritance or expectancies, trust and will constructions, trust reformations and actions against Trustees for breach of fiduciary duties. In 2015, Kelley was a key member of the BBD trial team that secured a defense judgment in a multi-million dollar trust case in the Circuit Court of St. Louis County. That win was identified by Missouri Lawyer’s Weekly as one of the top five defense verdicts of that year.
Kelley’s commercial litigation experience includes serving as trial counsel in lawsuits for Fortune 500 companies and other corporations, privately held companies and individuals. Kelley prosecutes and defends a variety of commercial, business torts, contract and insurance-related litigation.
Kelley received her Bachelor of Arts degree magna cum laude from the University of Missouri in 1991. She earned her law degree from Washington University School of Law in St. Louis in 1994, where she was a member of the Order of the Coif. Kelley currently serves as Adjunct Professor for Trial Practice for Washington University School of Law (2011-present). She is also a Master Member in the Theodore McMillian Inn of Court, the St. Louis Chapter of the American Inns of Court.
Anthony “Tony” Bonuchi’s litigation practice focuses on business disputes and appellate matters. He also leads the firm’s Kansas City office, where business and community leaders, fellow lawyers, and individual clients turn to Tony’s broad experience and talent for understanding the big picture when faced with complex and thorny problems.
Tony is recognized as one of the Kansas City region’s leading appellate lawyers. He has briefed and argued a wide range of appeals at the state and federal levels. Both before and during trial, other lawyers often call on Tony for strategy advice or counsel about the law, procedures, and motion practice critical to their cases. And he is regularly retained to provide these services and more as embedded appellate counsel at trial in high stakes litigation.
In addition to his thriving appellate practice, Tony handles all aspects of litigation for his clients – from investigation through trial. His clients range from startups, entrepreneurs, and individuals to some of the country’s most successful companies. Over the years, Tony’s cases have covered a broad scope of subjects, including commercial and business disputes; corporate governance; business ownership disputes; officer, director, fiduciary, and professional liability; construction; antitrust; intellectual property; administrative and constitutional law, consumer protection, mass torts, class actions, personal injury, and employment.
Tony’s diverse practice mirrors his background and career arc. Born and raised in a small town in North Central Missouri, he was the first in his family to earn a college degree. He went on to graduate near the top of his law school class at the University of Missouri, after which he clerked for the Honorable Phillip Garrison on Missouri’s Court of Appeals for the Southern District.
Tony began private practice at a regional, Kansas City-based firm, which soon grew to one of the nation’s largest. He spent eight years as an associate and partner in the firm’s the appellate and litigation practice groups. Tony then founded and ran his own firm, growing a successful appellate and business litigation practice.
Tony and his wife Becca live in Kansas City, Missouri and have two daughters, Avi and Frankie.
Thomas (Tom) Limbrick is an associate attorney in our St. Louis office and represents clients in a wide range of civil litigation, including business torts, class actions, employment disputes, and personal injury. Prior to joining the firm, Tom served as a law clerk to Judge Ronnie L. White of the U.S. District Court for the […]
Mark Sanders is a member of the St. Louis Office who concentrates his practice in commercial, real estate, and fiduciary litigation. His diverse experience extends to a broad range of matters including probate and fiduciary litigation, the uniform commercial code, business torts, contract disputes, shareholder disputes, non-compete litigation, trade secrets, and real estate disputes. Mark […]
Chris Pieper is a trusted advisor and counsel, skilled in developing and executing effective strategies for highly complex legal, policy, and public relations challenges and opportunities. As a member of the firm, Chris’s practice is focused on regulatory & government solutions, real estate, public finance and incentives, local government, environmental, tax advice and controversies, energy and utilities, international business, administrative law, and appellate litigation. Chris recently returned to private practice following service at the highest levels of state government, including directing the Missouri Department of Economic Development and as Chief of Staff to the Governor.
Chris began his legal career at a large St. Louis law firm before being recruited to the incoming administration of Missouri Governor Jay Nixon, where he served in various roles, including Legislative Director for the Missouri Department of Revenue, Special Assistant Attorney General, Deputy General Counsel for the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, and Trustee for the Petroleum Storage Tank Insurance Fund (PSTIF), one of the largest insurers of storage tank liability in the country.
In 2010, Chris was appointed General Counsel and later to act as Director of the Missouri Department of Economic Development (DED), a cabinet-level agency with more than 900 employees and overall budget and programs of more than $1 billion. Chris directed programs related to job creation, real estate and infrastructure development, workforce development, international trade, military installations, the arts, and tourism. As director, Chris served as a member of the Missouri Development Finance Board (MDFB), the Missouri Technology Corporation (MTC), the Missouri Workforce Investment Board, the Missouri Military Preparedness and Enhancement Commission, the Missouri Partnership, and the Hawthorn Foundation. As General Counsel, Chris provided strategic and legal counsel as part of the executive management team, directed all outside litigation, and represented the department before the Administrative Hearing Commission. Chris developed and drafted policy and legislation, including the Missouri Manufacturing Jobs Act, which helped to revitalize Missouri’s automotive industry, Missouri Works, which streamlined Missouri’s business incentives and workforce training programs, and the Aerospace Industry Jobs Act, which strengthened Missouri’s aerospace industry by bring the first-ever commercial aircraft production to the State.
During his time with DED, Chris gained unique expertise in federal, state and local economic development programs, including Historic Tax Credits, Low Income Housing Tax Credits, Brownfield Tax Credits, Missouri Works, New Markets Tax Credits, BUILD, Missouri Development Finance Board (MDFB) Tax Credits, State Tax Increment Financing (TIF), Private Activity Bonds, Community Development Block Grants (CDBG), Neighborhood Assistance Program (NAP), Tax Increment Financing (TIF), Chapter 100, Chapter 353, Community Improvement Districts (CIDs), Transportation Development Districts (TDDs), Neighborhood Improvement Districts (NIDs), among others.
Following his time as DED director, Chris was appointed Senior Policy Advisor and ultimately Chief of Staff to the Missouri Governor, engaging in all aspects of State government—a budget of more than $27 billion and more than 44,000 employees. In these roles, Chris drove passage of legislation enabling a historic bond issuance to invest more than $500 million in capital improvement projects throughout the state; coordinated the administration’s successful efforts to secure the new headquarters of the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency—resulting in a $1.7B redevelopment and more than 3,000 high-paying jobs; and spearheaded administration efforts in key economic development initiatives such as City Arch River, CORTEX, and the $4.4 billion redevelopment of the former Bannister Mall in Kansas City into a global headquarters creating 15,000 new jobs.
Chris graduated with dual degrees, magna cum laude, from the University of Missouri-Columbia, and worked a news reporter and editor for Pulitzer Publishing before attending law school. He graduated cum laude from the University of Missouri School of Law and was a member of the Order of the Coif and Lead Articles Editor for the Missouri Law Review.
Chris served as law clerk for the Hon. Ronnie L. White, Chief Justice of the Missouri Supreme Court, now U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of Missouri, and as law clerk to the Hon. John R. Gibson, Senior Circuit Judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit.
Chris is a member of the Boone County Bar Association, the Cole County Bar Association, the Elwood Thomas Inn of Court, and was recently appointed to a four-year term on the Missouri Arts Council.