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Baker Sterchi Cowden & Rice adds five attorneys from firm

From left: Joseph Swift, Ashley Moya, John McLeod, Zachary Faires and Kenneth Wilks.

Baker Sterchi Cowden & Rice has announced that Joseph Swift, Zachary Faires, John McLeod, Ashley Moya, and Kenneth Wilks have joined the firm in St. Louis.

Swift, Faires, and McLeod join as members, with Moya and Wilks joining as associates.  All five attorneys come to Baker Sterchi from the St. Louis office of Brown & James.

Previously chair of Brown & James’ Transportation practice group, Joseph Swift joins Baker Sterchi with more than 30 years of experience as a successful trial lawyer and numerous favorable jury verdicts under his belt.  With a practice focused on representing several of the largest for-hire and private transportation carriers in the United States, he is an active member of the Trucking Industry Defense Association, Trucking Lawyers Association, and the Transportation Committee of the Claims and Litigation Management Alliance.   His practice also includes the defense of premises and product liability matters, and he is routinely called upon by clients and industry groups to speak on transportation and product liability matters.  Swift earned his J.D. from Creighton University School of Law and his B.A. from Luther College.

“After spending his entire distinguished career at one firm, we are very excited that Joe has decided to join Baker Sterchi.  For more than 30 years, he has enjoyed great success as a trial lawyer in and around St. Louis. He has a sterling reputation and impressive list of clients in the transportation, premises and product liability sectors,” said Mike Hunter, member-in-charge of the firm’s St. Louis office.

On joining Baker Sterchi, Swift commented: “I know and have high regard for many of the Baker Sterchi team, the addition of my group will be a “value add” for all clients.  We are eager to help expand the firm’s transportation and product liability practice in St. Louis and Southern Illinois.”

Swift brings with him an experienced team of attorneys practicing in the areas of insurance defense, premises and retail liability, product liability, and transportation.

The team includes Members John McLeod and Zachary Faires, both accomplished civil defense litigators.  In addition to his casework, McLeod regularly conducts presentations for the insurance, risk management, and transportation industries on Missouri and Illinois Law.  He earned his J.D. from Saint Louis University School of Law and his B.S. in computer engineering from the University of Missouri at Columbia.  Faires has prepared numerous cases for trial and written and argued a multitude of dispositive motions in Missouri state and federal courts.  He earned his J.D. from Saint Louis University School of Law and his B.B.A. in economics and finance from McKendree University.

Ashley Moya and Kenneth Wilks are associate attorneys working with the team.  Moya earned her J.D. from Southern Illinois University School of Law and her B.A. in international studies from Stetson University.  Wilks earned his J.D. from Washington University School of Law and his B.S. in economics from the University of Utah.

McLeod, Faires, Moya, and Wilks expressed enthusiasm at joining Baker Sterchi’s St. Louis office, citing the firm’s “reputable client centered approach to litigation, practical solutions, and collaborative culture.”

“We are thrilled to welcome Joe and his team to Baker Sterchi.  Joe is recognized for handling tough cases and his success in the courtroom.  He and his team are the perfect fit for us and our goal to be recognized as the top trial law firm in the Midwest,” said Scott Kreamer, managing member.

The arrival of Swift, Faires, McLeod, Moya, and Wilks brings Baker Sterchi’s St. Louis office attorney headcount to 34, and the firm’s overall attorney headcount in Missouri, Illinois, and Kansas to 64.  The firm expects to add between four and six additional attorneys across its office locations before the end of the year.

About Baker Sterchi Cowden & Rice, LLC

For nearly 40 years, Baker Sterchi Cowden & Rice LLC has provided services in the areas of appellate, commercial, complex (class action and multi-district), cyber liability/privacy and data breach, employment and labor, financial services, insurance defense and coverage, medical malpractice, personal injury, premises liability, products liability, professional and management liability, and toxic and mass tort litigation defense.

With over 60 attorneys in offices in Missouri, Illinois, and Kansas, Baker Sterchi attorneys practice throughout the United States serving national, regional and local companies and professionals in a variety of industries including the art, banking, construction, consumer products and services, entertainment, food and beverage, healthcare, hospitality, insurance, leisure, medical device, pharmaceutical, propane, retail, and transportation (aviation, automotive, railroad, recreational, and trucking) industries.

For more information, visit https://www.bscr-law.com/.

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