BSCR Firm News/Blogs Feed

David Vaughn Authors DRI Article on Capturing a Jury's Attention

05 Oct 2026

Baker Sterchi associate David Vaughn authored “Get to the Point: Why Lawyers Need to Capture a Jury’s Attention,” published in the October 2026 edition of DRI’s The Brief Case.

The article examines how changing audience expectations should influence courtroom storytelling. Drawing parallels between modern television and trial presentations, Vaughn explains that jurors, like other audiences, expect to understand quickly what a story is about and why it matters.

Based in Baker Sterchi’s St. Louis office, Vaughn focuses his practice on medical malpractice, professional liability, personal injury, and premises liability. He serves as first vice chair of DRI’s Young Lawyers Committee and is a member of the Membership Committee. Vaughn is licensed to practice in Missouri and Illinois.

The Brief Case features news and substantive content from DRI’s committees for civil defense attorneys and in-house counsel.

Baker Sterchi Welcomes Cristo Rey High School Student Worker Dayani

02 Oct 2026

Baker Sterchi welcomes Dayani as a student worker in the firm’s Kansas City office. Dayani is a junior at Cristo Rey High School and joins the firm through the school’s Corporate Work Study Program. She will assist with various office projects each Wednesday throughout the 2026-2027 school year.

Cristo Rey High School is dedicated to preparing culturally diverse, ambitious students with financial need for college and careers. Their work study program connects high school students with companies in the Kansas City area, helping to defray the cost of their education and providing invaluable real-world work experience.

Megan Sterchi Lammert and Greg Odom Appointed Baker Sterchi Blog Editors

01 Oct 2026

Baker Sterchi Members Megan Sterchi Lammert and Greg Odom have been appointed to editorial roles for two of the firm’s law blogs. Sterchi Lammert serves as co-editor of the Drug & Device Law Blog, helping oversee coverage of legal decisions, legislative developments and emerging issues affecting the pharmaceutical and medical device industries. Odom serves as editor of the Product Liability Law Blog, overseeing coverage of developments in product liability law.

Based in the firm’s Kansas City office, Sterchi Lammert defends personal injury, premises liability, and product liability matters, with experience representing clients in the pharmaceutical and medical device industries. She is an active member of the firm’s Drug and Medical Device Practice Group and serves as regional chair of ALFA International’s Product Liability & Complex Torts Practice Group. She also writes and speaks on pharmaceutical, medical device, and product liability issues.

Odom, based in Baker Sterchi’s Belleville office, defends clients in product liability, toxic tort, commercial litigation, and data privacy matters in state and federal courts in Illinois and Missouri. He has been recognized by The Best Lawyers in America for Product Liability Litigation – Defendants and regularly writes and speaks on litigation developments affecting businesses and product manufacturers. He co-chairs the firm’s Toxic Tort Practice Group and serves as second vice president of Illinois Defense Counsel and a member of its Executive Committee.

Summary Judgment Secured for Hospital Corporate Officer in Wisconsin Case Raising Issues of First Impression

01 Oct 2026

In August 2026, Baker Sterchi secured dismissal on summary judgment for a hospital corporate officer in a negligence case filed in Langlade County Circuit Court, Wisconsin.

The plaintiff, a hospital patient, alleged she developed a hospital-acquired infection and sued the defendant for common law negligence, claiming the defendant failed to enact and enforce adequate pathogen-control policies.

The defense argued that the defendant was immune from suit under a Wisconsin statute granting immunity to officers of nonstock, nonprofit corporations for claims arising from the performance of their duties. Although the hospital was not itself a registered nonstock, nonprofit corporation, it operated under a “doing business as” (d/b/a) name of an entity that was.

The plaintiff raised two issues of first impression under Wisconsin law: whether the statutory immunity extends to claims brought by injured third parties and whether it applies to officers of an entity operating as a d/b/a of a registered nonprofit corporation.

The trial court agreed with the defense on both issues, ruling that the statutory immunity extends to claims brought by third parties and to officers of an entity operating as a d/b/a of a registered nonprofit corporation. The court granted summary judgment in favor of the defendant.

Greg Odom to Moderate Ethics Panel at IDC Artificial Intelligence Symposium

30 Sep 2026

On Oct. 9, Baker Sterchi Member Greg Odom will moderate an ethics session during the Illinois Defense Counsel (IDC) Artificial Intelligence Symposium. Odom also served on the planning committee for the program, which will be held at The Outlet at Edison’s and offered via live webinar.

Odom will moderate “Avoiding Ethical Pitfalls of AI,” a session addressing ethical risks associated with artificial intelligence, professional conduct rules implicated by its use and best practices for avoiding potential issues. The session will also cover emerging trends and common AI-related ethics scenarios observed by the Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission.

The symposium will provide defense attorneys with practical guidance for incorporating AI into their practices while addressing client expectations and professional responsibilities. Additional sessions will examine AI from the perspectives of corporate claims professionals, expert witnesses, trial attorneys and the judiciary.

Based in Baker Sterchi’s Belleville office, Odom co-chairs the firm’s Toxic Tort Practice Group and serves as editor of the firm’s Product Liability Law Blog. He defends clients in toxic tort and commercial litigation in Illinois and Missouri state and federal courts. Odom serves as IDC’s second vice president and is a member of its Executive Committee.

For more information or to register for the program, click here.

Legal Administrative Assistant, Seattle

25 Sep 2026

Our Seattle office is looking for an experienced Legal Administrative Assistant to become an integral part of our litigation team. The ideal candidate is organized, detail-oriented, and proactive, with the ability to manage competing priorities and provide support to attorneys and other legal professionals. View the job description here.

Laura Beasley Appointed Membership Co-Chair of DRI Drug and Medical Device Committee

24 Sep 2026

Baker Sterchi Member Laura Beasley has been appointed membership co-chair of DRI’s Drug and Medical Device Committee.

In this role, Beasley will support membership engagement and participation in the committee, which serves attorneys who represent manufacturers of pharmaceuticals, medical devices, biologics and other healthcare-related products. The committee offers educational and professional development programming and opportunities for collaboration.

Beasley has represented clients in nearly 50 jury trials in state and federal courts. Her practice includes pharmaceutical and medical device, product liability, medical malpractice, personal injury, employment and environmental matters. Beasley serves as DRI’s Illinois state representative and is a member of the Medical Liability and Health Care Law Committee and Women in the Law Committee. She is licensed to practice in Illinois and Missouri.

Using AI in your hiring decisions? Are you doing it right?

21 Sep 2026

ABSTRACT: Illinois enacts another statute regulating the use of Artificial Intelligence, which impacts employers’ hiring, promotion, and discharge decisions.

Illinois legislators strike again, this time limiting how employers may utilize AI in their employment decisions. An amendment to the Illinois Human Rights Act, which took effect January 1, 2026: (1) specifically prohibits employers from using zip codes as a proxy for protected classes when screening job candidates, and (2) requires that the use of AI in employment decisions be disclosed to employees, where the use could have the effect of subjecting employees to discrimination on the basis of protected classes, as determined by the Illinois Department of Human Rights (“IDHR”). The Amendment identifies “recruitment, hiring, promotion, renewal of employment, selection for training or apprenticeship, discharge, discipline, tenure, or the terms, privileges, or conditions of employment” as specific employer decisions where the use of AI must be disclosed.

This Amendment also further supports Illinois’ trend towards laws that regulate workplace technology. Illinois also has established the Biometric Information Privacy Act (“BIPA”), which places very strict regulations on how entities collect, use and store personal biometric data, including fingerprints, iris and face scans. In 2019, Illinois enacted the Artificial Intelligence Video Interview Act (“AIVIA”) which required employers to provide advance notice to applicants of its use of AI-enabled video interviewing technology, including notice of how the AI works, what characteristics are evaluated and required consent to be obtained before its use during interviews.

Through the Amendment’s definitions of both AI and Generative AI, the law’s reach may be broader than it appears at first blush. AI is defined as a “machine-based system” that infers from the input how to generate outputs “such as predictions, content, recommendations, or decisions that can influence physical or virtual environments.” Generative AI is defined by the Amendment as an “automated computing system that when prompted with human prompts, descriptions, or queries, can produce outputs that simulate human-produced content.” The Generative AI definition then provides examples of outputs, which are wholly unrelated to employer decisions:

(1) textual outputs, such as short answers, essays, poetry, or longer compositions or answers;

(2) image outputs, such as fine art, photographs, conceptual art, diagrams, and other images;

(3) multimedia outputs, such as audio or video in the form of compositions, songs, or short-form or long-form audio or video; and

(4) other content that would be otherwise produced by human means.

What does this mean for employers? Employers should review hiring, promotion, discipline and training decision processes to identify any use of AI in those decisions. If AI is being utilized at any point, a disclosure must be made to every employee impacted by those decisions. Since the Amendment came into effect on January 1, 2026, employers may already be behind and need to quickly assess which decision processes may implicate the Amendment to ensure compliance. If an employee believes that the use of AI has subjected her to discrimination under the Amendment, she has the same right to pursue remedies as with any other claim of employment discrimination.

Although IDHR published proposed rules to implement the amendments on May 15, 2026, several weeks later, without explanation, it announced that the proposed rules had been temporarily postponed. The proposed rules were focused on clarifying the required notice and record keeping requirements under the Amendment. Employers should also continue to monitor the Amendment on the IDHR website for updates because as IDHR develops rules, employers may be required to take certain additional steps to satisfy the requirements of the Amendment. In the meantime, employers must comply with the statute, as amended, even without additional clarification.

Heather Shore to Present at KCMBA Construction Law Program

17 Sep 2026

On Oct. 15, Baker Sterchi Member Heather Shore will serve as a panelist for “Annual Review of Missouri and Kansas Construction Law: Cases and Legislation,” a CLE program presented by the Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association’s (KCMBA) Construction Law Committee. The program will be held at the KCMBA Event Center and via live webinar.

Panelists will review recent Missouri and Kansas legislation and appellate decisions affecting construction law. Topics will include changes involving civil procedure, damages, insurance and building issues, along with practical guidance for communicating legal developments to owners, public entities, contractors, subcontractors and suppliers.

Based in Baker Sterchi’s Kansas City office, Shore co-chairs the firm’s Construction Practice Group. She represents clients in complex construction, surety and commercial disputes and serves on the American Arbitration Association’s panels of construction, consumer and commercial arbitrators. Shore frequently speaks at local and national programs on issues affecting the construction industry.

For more information or to register for the program, click here.

Jackie Longfellow Named to MLM 2026 Employment Law POWER List

16 Sep 2026

Baker Sterchi Member Jackie Longfellow has been named to Missouri Lawyers Media’s 2026 Employment Law POWER List. This marks her second consecutive year receiving the recognition.

The list recognizes attorneys whose work has shaped employment law throughout Missouri. Honorees are selected by the publication’s editorial team following research into practitioners and their careers.

Based in Baker Sterchi’s Kansas City office, Longfellow is a trial lawyer with more than 20 years of experience handling civil and employment litigation. She defends employers facing discrimination charges before local, state and federal agencies and counsels businesses on workplace policies, employment agreements and compliance with employment laws.

Longfellow chairs Baker Sterchi’s Employment & Labor Practice Group and serves as vice chair of the Federation of Defense & Corporate Counsel’s Employment Practices and Workplace Liability Section. She frequently speaks on employment-related topics regionally and nationally and is licensed to practice in Missouri and Kansas.