The American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA) has selected Langdon & Emison Partner Brett Emison to join its ranks as a member of the 2019 class of inductees. Brett was nominated by a group of his peers and his selection was based on his litigation skills in leading trial teams across the country and obtaining several outstanding results in his young career.
ABOTA is one of the preeminent legal organizations dedicated to preserving the civil justice system. Its selection process limits membership to the top litigators in both the plaintiff and defense trial bars. Brett joins firm colleagues Bob Langdon, Kent Emison and Mike Manners as members in this prestigious group.
ABOTA has created opportunities for educators nationwide to grow their knowledge of the Constitution and has organized a public education campaign aimed at informing citizens about citizens’ right to a trial by jury. Since its foundation in 1957, ABOTA has admitted membership to skilled practicing trial attorneys who care passionately about the American trial system. The organization is composed of 97 chapters in all 50 states, and has played an important role in legal and political affairs for nearly six decades. Political leaders have asked ABOTA members for advice about pending legislation regarding the legal system, and many members have served as judges pro-tem to help ease courtroom backlog during the vacation season.
In addition to his recognition by ABOTA, Brett has been honored by Best Lawyers in America and Super Lawyers – Missouri and Kansas. In 2019 he was named “Lawyer of the Year” by Best Lawyers for the state of Illinois in the category of railroad law for plaintiffs, based in part on the $5.3 million verdict he earned as lead counsel in Cravatta v. Metra. Cravatta was a 5-week jury trial in Cook County, representing a Metra engineer who had sustained injuries on the job.
Brett’s practice focuses on victims of catastrophic injuries, and has tried a number of jury trials to verdict in complex litigation in courtrooms across the country. Brett is a member of the American Association for Justice Board of Governors and also serves on several AAJ committees, including its National Finance Council and its PAC Board of Trustees. A graduate of the University of Missouri School of Law, he is the chair of the firm’s mass torts division and serves on the Executive Committee for the Missouri Association of Trial Attorneys (MATA) and will serve at its president in 2019-2020.
