Fleeson Gooing is a full-service law firm in Wichita, the largest city in Kansas. Our firm has received the Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory’s “AV” rating, and is listed in Tier 1 in fifteen different practice areas in the U.S. News and World Report rankings of the best law firms in America. Sixteen of the firm’s members are listed in Best Lawyers® and many are also listed in Super Lawyers and the Chambers & Partners list of the world’s leading lawyers.
The strength of the firm lies in the skill and expertise of its members, which have achieved a reputation for excellence in virtually every area of the law, including commercial and personal injury litigation, complex class action litigation, white collar civil and criminal defense, commercial and real estate transactions, corporate law and litigation, and estate and tax planning and administration.
The firm has survived and prospered for more than a century because its members share a common vision of what true professionalism requires – commitment to a cause that transcends self-interest. We are proud of the long-term relationships we have established with many of our clients, and look forward to maintaining and strengthening them by always placing our client’s interests first.
When Iowa lawyer C.H. Brooks visited Wichita in the midst of a real estate boom, he recognized an opportunity when he saw one and purchased several town lots. In 1886, he moved his practice to Wichita and founded our firm.
For more than 130 years, our firm has grown and evolved with the community and region it serves. C.H. Brooks’ legacy and the firm’s longevity represent stability, security and loyalty to our clients. Our firm has played an integral role in Wichita and Kansas history through its legal accomplishments, past and present.
Our practice in adoptions includes both domestic and foreign-born adoptions.
In the traditional domestic setting, our firm provides counsel to birth mothers and prospective adoptive parents in a variety of domestic adoption settings including private, infant, sibling group, step-parent, grandparent, and relative adoptions. We also have experience with adoptions involving adult children.
In addition, we have extensive experience in the specialized subset of adoptions involving children born in foreign counties. Formalizing these adoptions in the state of the parents’ residence is necessary in order for the child to receive a domestic birth certificate showing the legal status of the adoptive parents and different formalization procedures are required depending upon the country involved. We have unique experience with these procedures and have worked with a number of national adoption agencies including Dillon International, Holt International, Nightlight Christian Services and Faith International, in assisting parents with formalization.
In both areas, we provide legal representation and support by guiding individuals and families at any stage of the adoption process. Every adoption is unique and our firm has the expertise and resources necessary to assist our clients during this particularly joyous but overwhelming time. Having a dependable and thoughtful attorney throughout your adoption journey, especially one who takes that journey as seriously as you do, can make all the difference.
We pride ourselves on our pragmatic, cost-effective approach to solving bankruptcy issues because we recognize that legal solutions are not always the most practical. We have been involved in many of the most significant bankruptcy cases in Kansas, representing debtors, individual creditors and Official Unsecured Creditor Committees.
In addition to our bankruptcy practice, we also offer other legal services designed to protect and enforce creditor’s rights, including:
Our lawyers are frequent speakers at seminars on various topics, including bankruptcy, collections, environmental law, real estate transactions and creditor’s rights. Articles on timely issues authored by our lawyers have been regularly featured in The Kansas Banker and the Wichita Business Journal.
Our real estate attorneys in Wichita provide legal counsel and representation in all aspects of residential, commercial and industrial real estate development and transactions.
Real estate law is complex and constantly changing. Real estate transactions and development are governed by local, state and federal regulations, which are continually in flux. In addition, real estate involves many other areas of the law, including construction, taxation, banking and financing, business law, environmental law, and often estate planning and succession law.
This complexity requires a deep bench of experience, which Fleeson Gooing law firm provides. As one of the largest law firms in the region, our real estate law practice calls on the skills and knowledge of attorneys with experience in all these areas.
ENVIRONMENTAL LAW
Assessing and allocating environmental liability are crucial in a wide range of business transactions, including corporate acquisitions, mergers and the purchase and sale of commercial real estate. The potentially staggering costs of compliance with governmental regulation and mandatory cleanup efforts have caused many transactions to be completely re-evaluated. Litigation arising from environmental concerns continues to increase.
HEALTHCARE LAW
Our attorneys regularly counsel and represent individuals and business entities engaged in the healthcare industry. We enjoy a broad range of experience in connection with issues that regularly arise for those clients.
Our work includes matters such as:
NATURAL RESOURCES LAW (OIL AND GAS)
Our firm’s natural resources and energy law practice encompasses the entire range of activities related to mineral exploration and development. This includes:
TAXATION
Fleeson Gooing has an extensive and sophisticated practice in the areas of federal, state and local taxation, including income, estate and gift, sales, property and unemployment taxation. Our Wichita tax lawyers advise individuals, partnerships, corporations, LLCs, trusts and other entities on planning strategies that suit their goals and minimize their ultimate tax burden.
Taxation is complex and evolves constantly as laws and policies change. It also requires deep knowledge of related practice areas, including business law and estate planning. As one of the largest law firms in the region, we can create a team of lawyers with the skills necessary to meet any tax planning or litigation matter.
FRANCHISING LAW
Fleeson Gooing’s attorneys bring their practical and insightful approach to providing experienced representation to franchisors, franchisees, and franchise associations. We help franchise clients identify and mitigate risks and maximize their opportunities by providing guidance on a broad array of franchise and distribution law issues, including:
ELDER LAW
Elder Law is a practice area devoted to the needs of a particular type of client as opposed to a particular area of law.
Our Elder Law attorneys assist clients with estate planning, probate and trust administration, special needs trusts and planning, guardianships and conservatorships, powers of attorney, advance health care directives, and asset protection planning. Our Elder Law attorneys work with clients to develop appropriate legal strategies and prepare documents to implement those strategies.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
Our firm’s intellectual property litigation practice includes representing clients in a broad spectrum of intellectual property matters, including disputes regarding names and logos, confidentiality agreements, licensing agreements, intellectual property transfer agreements, unfair competition and enforcement of trademark, copyright and trade secret rights.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY & TRADEMARK LAW ARTICLES:
MEDIATION / DISPUTE RESOLUTION
Ron Campbell, Chuck Millsap and Bill Townsley are frequently engaged to serve as a mediator (and occasionally as an arbitrator) in alternative dispute resolution proceedings.
Each of these members pride themselves in their ability to analyze pending litigation and disputes of all sorts, identify unresolved and uncertain legal and factual issues concerning liability and damages, and work with attorneys and their clients to fashion an out-of-court resolution that is cost-effective and final.
PERSONAL INJURY AND PRODUCT LIABILITY LITIGATION
Fleeson Gooing has developed an active and sophisticated practice in tort litigation on behalf of both plaintiffs and defendants. From routine automobile accident claims to complex product liability cases, we are committed to the representation of our clients’ interests and the successful resolution of disputes.
Fleeson Gooing’s experience representing well-known, national and regional insurance companies has provided our attorneys with a breadth of knowledge and skill litigating personal injury and product liability cases. That experience is passed on to private individuals and businesses seeking our assistance resolving disputes in this area of law.
Historically, Fleeson Gooing has been involved in not only successfully resolving personal injury and products liability cases for our clients, but has also played a key role in the creation of many legal doctrines now a part of established Kansas law. Our firm successfully defended America’s last polio vaccine manufacturer in a landmark suit challenging the adequacy of the warning given in connection with its distribution for use. And earlier Fleeson Gooing cases led to the adoption of the doctrine of informed consent in medical malpractice lawsuits and the rule establishing strict liability for unreasonably dangerous products. The firm has played an active role in the subsequent refinements of these doctrines, as well.
WORKER’S COMPENSATION
Our litigation team prevails by focusing on legal analysis to reveal legal issues in worker’s compensation cases. Our lawyers have earned a reputation for legal analysis and are often consulted by other Kansas counsel about the possibility of overlooked defenses. We accept no cases at face value. We pursue extensive investigation into statements that include the location of the accident, the circumstances of an alleged job-related injury, and that proper and timely notice was given and all deadlines were met.
We keep our clients informed of statutory changes in a timely manner. We provide proactive counsel to clients by explaining in detail their rights and duties to ensure compliance with statutory law. We recommend preventative measures to help clients avoid future claims.
Our lawyers frequently speak at seminars for the Wichita and Kansas Bar Associations. We also organize presentations to employers, business owners and insurance companies. We personally visit our clients in their offices.
Members of our firm have dedicated their practice to insurance defense, and workers’ compensation is not delegated downward as in other firms. Our clients receive personal attention and contact from our lawyers.
INSURANCE COVERAGE LAW
The analysis and application of insurance policies presents unique and complex challenges. Many times insurance companies look to outside counsel for an in-depth review of coverage issues.
Our attorneys have assisted many insurers in navigating the sometimes confusing provisions found in policies and determining whether an indemnity or defense obligations exists. We have also had occasion to represent insureds in coverage disputes with their insurers. We have experience with many different types of policies including homeowners, auto, CGL, linebacker and umbrella policies.
