Attorney Profile

I have been a practicing lawyer since 1974 when I first became associated with a small St. Louis law firm for six years followed by serving as corporate counsel with Monsanto and ITT handling litigation matters. My current civil litigation practice opened in 1989.

Practice Areas:

Family law - divorces; motions to modify; prenuptial agreements; paternity suits; child support; child custody; step parent adoptions

Estate planning, trust and probate matters;

Personal injury and wrongful death cases - automobile accidents; trucking accidents; slip and fall cases; medical malpractice; product liability; nursing home negligence.

Education:

A. B. , History/Government, Illinois College, with Final Honors (magna cum laude), Phi Beta Kappa, 1971

J. D. Washington University Law School, 1974

Admissions:

Licensed to practice in the States of Missouri (1974) and Illinois (1975) and before the U. S. District Court, Eastern District of Missouri and U. S. Court of Appeals, Eighth Circuit

Publications:

15 WEST'S MISSOURI PRACTICE, CIVIL RULES PRACTICE, 78-118 (M. Coffey 2d ed. 1997)

Damages under the Wrongful Death Act: An Update, 49 J. of Mo. Bar 33 (1993)

Recovery for Gradual Stress Under Workers' Compensation Law, 46 J. of Mo. Bar 293 (1990)

Damages Under The Missouri Wrongful Death Act, 37 J. of Mo. Bar 92 (1981)

Recent Cases on Student Transcript Rights After Bankruptcy, 6 Journal of College and University Law 231 (1980)

Public Office:

State Lottery Commission - appointed by Governor Jay Nixon in July 2009 to this five member commission which supervises the state lottery.

St. Louis County Board of Election Commissioners - appointed as Board member and Secretary on June 1, 2001 for a 4 year term by Governor Bob Holden to this four member commission which has responsibility for conducting public elections in St. Louis County.

State Board of Mediation - appointed by Governor John Ashcroft in April, 1990 to this five member commission which has responsibility for mediating and arbitrating labor disputes occurring in the public sector. My term expired in 1994.

Professional Affiliations:

Missouri Bar - active membership on Fee Dispute Committee;

Supreme Court Civil Rules Study Committee - appointed by Chief Justice Charles B. Blackmar to serve on this Committee of twenty-one lawyers and judges who completed a comprehensive (2 ½ years) review of the Missouri Rules of Civil Procedure.

Women Lawyers' Association, 1980 to present, past Board Member and Secretary

Community Organizations:

Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital, volunteer, volunteer for more than 20 years

Health Protection Education Services-Board member and volunteer

Historical Society of University City, former President and past member of Board of Directors

Support Dogs for the Handicapped, past member of Board of Directors

Toastmasters International Club #1229, achieved ATM recognition
(Vice-President 1990-1992)

University City Rotary Club, Past President

University City Residential Service, past member of Board of Directors

University United Methodist Church, University City, (current member of Board of Trustees)

Personal:

Born September 20, 1949; grew up on a farm in Wrights, Illinois; married to Greg DiBlasi, retired teacher who taught at DeSmet Jesuit High School in St. Louis, MO

Missouri Supreme Court Rules do not permit attorneys to advertise that we specialize in any particular field or area of law. By describing the areas of law in which I practice is not intended to suggest specialization in those areas.

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