About Thomas Neill
Tom practices primarily in areas of personal injury, medical malpractice, products liability and consumer class actions. In 2019, Tom was a member of the trial team in a consolidated lawsuit that obtained settlements of more than $47 million for families who lost loved ones or were injured in a boiler explosion. He represented the family of one of the individuals who died in that accident, recognized as the second highest plaintiff’s settlement that year by Missouri Lawyers Weekly. In 2018, Tom was a member of the trial team securing a $4.69 billion victory for 22 plaintiffs against Johnson & Johnson, the largest verdict in Missouri history.
Tom has received numerous awards, including being named St. Louis Mass Tort Litigation/Class Action Plaintiffs’ Lawyer of the Year. He has been cited as one of the Top 50 St. Louis attorneys by Super Lawyers magazine. Tom is the recipient of the St. Louis County Bar Association’s Roy F. Essen Outstanding Young Lawyer Award for excellence as a lawyer, distinguished service to the Bar, and outstanding service to the community. He was also a member of the National Trial Lawyer’s Association’s Top 40 Under 40.
Tom has served on the Appellate Judicial Commission for the Eastern District of Missouri since 2018 and before that on the 22nd Circuit Judicial Commission. He also has served as President of the Lawyers Association of St. Louis Executive Committee. Since 2013, Tom has served as a member on the Missouri Bar’s Joint Commission on Women in the Profession.
Tom is licensed in Missouri, Arkansas, Illinois, and various U.S. District Courts.
Notable Results
Representative Matters
Kivland v. Columbia Orthopedic Group, 331 S.W.3d 299 (Mo. banc 2011)
• Reversing summary judgment; rejecting “irresistible impulse test” and holding that where death is by suicide, causation standard is the same as in any wrongful death case, i.e., whether death was “a direct result” of defendant’s negligence.
$3.15 million – Multiple vehicle, tractor-trailer collision; wrongful death
$1.5 million – Commercial truck collision; wrongful death
Professional Accolades
Missouri & Kansas Super Lawyers-Personal Injury (2013-present)
Missouri & Kansas Super Lawyers Top 50 St. Louis Attorneys
Missouri & Kansas Super Lawyers Rising Star (2009-2012)
National Trial Lawyers Association Top 40 Under 40
St. Louis County Bar Association Roy F. Essen Outstanding Young Lawyer Award (2013)
Best Lawyers in America:
St. Louis Mass Tort / Class Action, Plaintiffs’ Lawyer of the Year (2020)
Recognized in area of Mass Torts / Class Action-Plaintiffs (2015-present)
Missouri Lawyers Weekly:
“2018 Top Plaintiff’s Verdict” Award (2019)
Largest Reported Settlement Award (2013)
Appellate Advocacy Award (2012)
Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory AV Peer Rating (highest)
University of Missouri School of Law:
Order of Barristers
National Finalist, Board of Advocates Client Counseling Competition
William H. Howard Award in Conflicts of Law
Professional Associations
Professional
Appellate Judicial Commission, Eastern District Missouri (2018-2023)
Twenty-second Circuit Judicial Commission (2015-2017)
Joint Commission on Women in the Profession (2013-present)
Lawyers Association of St. Louis, Executive Committee:
President (2014-2015)
President-Elect (2013-2014)
Vice-President (2012-2013)
Treasurer (2011-2012)
Member (2009-present)
Women Lawyers’ Association of Greater St. Louis
St. Louis County Bar Association
Missouri Bar Association
Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis
Mound City Bar Association
American Board of Trial Advocates
Fellow, American Bar Foundation
Fellow, St. Louis Bar Foundation
American Association of Justice
Missouri Association of Trial Lawyers
Illinois Bar Association
Arkansas Bar Association
Academy of Rail Labor Attorneys
Bar Admissions & Education
Education
University of Missouri Columbia School of Law, Columbia, Missouri, J.D., 2002
Honors: National Member, Order of Barristers
Honors: National Finalist, Board of Advocates Client Counseling Competition
Honors: William H. Howard Award in Conflicts of Law
University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, B.A., 1999, Major: Political Science
Admissions
- Missouri, 2002
- Arkansas, 2003
- Illinois, 2003
- U.S. District Court Eastern District of Missouri, 2002
- U.S. District Court Western District of Missouri, 2002
- U.S. District Court Southern District of Illinois, 2005
- U.S. District Court Eastern District of Arkansas, 2003
- U.S. District Court Western District of Arkansas, 2003