Brian M. Wacker

Brian believes that the best results come when he becomes part of his client’s team. He partners with clients ranging from employers and manufacturers to trustees and fiduciaries. Throughout the entire litigation process, Brian never loses sight of his client’s goals. His objectives are the client’s objectives.

As a member of the firm’s Labor & Employment and Commercial Litigation practice groups, Brian represents clients in a variety of litigation, including commercial, employer-employee, fiduciary and trustee disputes. He works with clients at all stages of litigation through trial and appeal, including where appropriate, pre-litigation risk management to avoid costly litigation where it is in the client’s best interest.

Brian’s undergraduate degrees in journalism and strategic communication equip him with the skills to effectively advocate for his clients. His clients can always count on the effective communication and comprehensive preparation he brings to their cases.

Outside of the office, Brian currently serves on the Board of Directors for Cornerstone Center for Early Learning, an early childhood center in South St. Louis. He and his wife are proud residents of the St. Louis Hills neighborhood where they enjoy raising their two-year old twins.

• Recognized as a "Rising Star" by Missouri Lawyers Weekly: 2017

• Selected to The Best Lawyers in America^© in Commercial Litigation: 2021

• Board of Directors: Cornerstone Center for Early Learning
• Member: American Bar Association; Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis; Missouri Bar Association; Illinois State Bar Association
• Volunteer: Boys Hope Girls Hope 

• Obtained a complete victory after client was sued by partnership on various theories, including breach of fiduciary duty and breach of partnership agreement. The partnership initially sought damages in excess of $500,000, plus punitive damages and attorneys’ fees. Not only did the jury return a full defense verdict on the partnership’s claims, but it also returned a verdict for the client on his counterclaim for attorneys’ fees and costs in defending the action for more than three years.
• Obtained dismissal with prejudice of multi-court petition against engineering client sued on a variety of negligent and fraudulent theories for its work on residential development, in which class of clients sought millions of dollars in damages.
• Obtained dismissal with prejudice of claims brought by injured employee against co-employee and employer where plaintiff attempted to allege negligent and intentional conduct outside of the non-delegable duties imposed by Missouri law.
• Resolved multiple age, sex and disability discrimination cases brought against corporate clients under the MHRA, ADEA and other statutes.
• Successfully defended and resolved case brought against a trustee in St. Clair County, Illinois seeking several millions of dollars in damages and removal from trustee position. After years of contentious litigation, Brian successfully negotiated a complex settlement agreement and resolution where his client paid $0 in damages sought.
• Following a multi-day bench trial in Central Illinois, obtained a complete judgment in favor of his client in a case brought against majority shareholders of a closely-held corporation who had shut out its minority shareholders and devalued their shares over the course of many years.
• Successfully defended multiple appeals, including an appeal by a land title company seeking to overturn a judgment in favor of Brian’s client on several commercial and real estate guarantees with millions of dollars in exposure. The client prevailed on appeal in a published opinion completely affirming the lower court’s rulings on the claims against Brian’s client.

• Obtained complete dismissal for industrial manufacturing client and key employee in Federal Court lawsuit for fraud and negligent misrepresentation claims by successfully arguing that Missouri's economic loss doctrine barred the plaintiff's claims. Plaintiff had sought more than $2,000,000 in damages and recovered nothing.

• Obtained summary judgment on behalf of St. Louis employer in a discrimination case in the Eastern District of Missouri where a former employee claimed she was terminated on account of her pregnancy and election to return to work following maternity leave.

• Negotiated and resolved multiple Department of Labor wage and hour investigations without adverse findings or penalties assessed against a contractor and restaurant clients in St. Louis.

• Obtained dismissal with prejudice of breach of fiduciary duty claims on behalf of the trustee of a family trust brought by disgruntled sibling beneficiaries where the trustee's accounting and statutory obligations over the course of several years came into question.

Contributing Author, SmithAmundsen's Labor & Employment Law Update, a labor and employment advisory blog.

Contributing Author, Illinois Chamber of Commerce's Chamber Dispatch, an HR advisory blog.