As a product liability defense attorney, Kevin Reynolds has tried dozens of cases to jury verdict in state and federal courts for over 30 years. He is sensitive to the needs of self-insured manufacturers and insurers who underwrite these unique risks, and has represented wholesalers, distributors, and retailers in products cases as well. He is intimately familiar with such issues as: product recalls; conducting evidentiary Daubert hearings in federal court; spoliation of evidence; defenses based on federal preemption; protective orders against the dissemination of internal, confidential, and proprietary trade-secret type design information; and keeping proof of other accidents, claims or lawsuits out of evidence. Kevin is also an experienced instrument-rated private pilot, with over 1,700 flight hours since 1989. His flying experience gives him a distinct advantage when he works on aviation-related matters. Finally, his extensive jury trial, litigation and appellate-court experience provides him with a solid background when litigating commercial cases.
Of Particular Note:
· AV rated by Martindale-Hubbell
· Selected for inclusion in the 2011 Iowa Super Lawyers in the areas of Personal Injury Defense: Products, General Litigation, Aviation
· Selected for inclusion in Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business, 2011 Edition, as a Leading Individual Lawyer Litigation
· Selected for inclusion in 2011 Great Plains Super Lawyers
Work Experience:
· Chair: Whitfield & Eddy, P.L.C. Executive Committee, 2009-
· Member: Whitfield & Eddy, P.L.C. Executive Committee, 2007-
· Member: Whitfield & Eddy, P.L.C. Management Committee, 2006-2007
· Chair: Whitfield & Eddy, P.L.C. Product Liability Practice Group
· Chair: Whitfield & Eddy, P.L.C. Aviation Law Practice Group
· Member with Whitfield & Eddy, P.L.C. since 1987
· Associate with Whitfield & Eddy, P.L.C., 1981-1987
· Holds private pilot's license with instrument rating 1989-over 1,700 hours
Professional Activities and Affiliations:
· National Business Aviation Association (NBAA), Associate Member
· Product Liability Advisory Council (Sustaining Member, 2010-)
· DRI, Voice of the Defense Bar (Co-Chair: Manufacturers' Risk Prevention Specialized Litigation Group of the Product Liability Committee, 2007-; Chair: Product Liability Committee, 1999-2001; Co-Chair: Agricultural, Construction, Mining & Industrial Equipment Subcommittee of the Product Liability Committee, 1991-1998)
· Iowa Defense Counsel Association (Editorial Board Member: Defense Update, The Iowa Defense Counsel Association's Newsletter, 2005-; Past Chair: Product Liability Committee)
· ALFA International (Product Liability Practice Group)
· International Association of Defense Counsel
· Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (Legal Panel Counsel, 1999-)
· Iowa State Bar Association (Sections: Litigation)
· Phi Delta Phi International Legal Fraternity
· Polk County Bar Association
Seminars Recently Attended:
· PLAC (Product Liability Advisory Council) Spring meeting, Coral Gables, Florida, April 2011
· DRI ProductLiability Seminar, New Orleans, Louisiana, April 2011
· PLAC Fall Meeting, Williamsburg, Virginia, October 2010
· DRI Product Liability Seminar, Las Vegas, Nevada, April 2010
· Federal Practice Seminar, Des Moines, Iowa, December 2009
· DRI Law Office Management Seminar, New York, New York, December 2009
· PLAC Spring Meeting, Boston, Massachusetts, April 2009
· DRI Product Liability Seminar, San Diego, California, April 2009
· SMU Air - Law Symposium, Dallas, Texas, January 2009
· DRI Law Office Management Seminar, Charlotte, N. Carolina, November 2008
· DRI Product Liability Seminar, Phoenix, Arizona, 2008
· Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) Seminar, September 2007
· International Client Seminar, American Law Firm Association (ALFA), March 2007
· Product Liability Seminar, Defense Research Institute (DRI), February 2007
· Product Liability Seminar, Defense Research Institute (DRI), February 2006
· Iowa Defense Counsel Association Annual Meeting, September 2005
Published Cases:
· Katzenmeier v. Blackpowder Products, Inc., 628 F.3d 948 (8th Cir. 2010)
· Zeigler v. Fisher-Price, Inc., 302 F. Supp.2d 999 (N.D. Iowa 2004)
· Zeigler v. Fisher-Price, Inc., 261 F. Supp.2d 1047 (N.D. Iowa 2003)
· Lowers v. United States, 663 N.W.2d 408 (Iowa 2003)
· Wright v. Brooke Group, 652 N.W.2d 159 (Iowa 2002)
· McClure v. Walgreen Co., 613 N.W.2d 225 (Iowa 2000)
· Lovick v. Wil-Rich Mfg. Co., 478 N.W.2d 70 (Iowa 1991), appeal after remand, 588 N.W.2d 688 (Iowa 1999)
· Patton v. TIC United Corp., 77 F.3d 1235 (10th Cir. 1996)
· Federal Land Bank v. Tiffany, 529 N.W.2d 294 (Iowa 1995)
· Bressler v. Graco Children's Products, Inc., 43 F.3d 379 (8th Cir. 1994)
· Hillrichs v. Avco Corp., 478 N.W.2d 70 (Iowa 1991), appeal after remand, 514 N.W.2d 94 (Iowa 1994)
· Patton v. Hutchinson Wil-Rich Mfg. Co., 861 P.2d 1299 (Kan. 1993)
· Johnston Equipment Corp. v. Industrial Indemnity, 489 N.W.2d 13 (Iowa 1992)
· Fell v. Kewanee Farm Equip. Co., 457 N.W.2d 911 (Iowa 1990)
· Berg v. Des Moines General Hospital Co., 456 N.W.2d 173 (Iowa 1990)
· Jones v. Palmer Communications, 440 N.W.2d 884 (Iowa 1989)
· United States Jaycees v. Iowa Civil Rights Commission, 427 N.W.2d 450 (Iowa 1988)
· C. Mac Chambers Co. v. Iowa Tae Kwon Do Academy, Inc., 412 N.W.2d 593 (Iowa 1987)
· Automobile Underwriters Corp. v. Harrelson, 409 N.W.2d 688 (Iowa 1987)
Selected Publications, Presentations and Teaching Appointments:
· Author (with William C. Scales), The Restatement (Third) of Torts, Liability for Physical and Emotional Harm: The "New" Duty and Causation Analysis, For the Defense, The Defense Research Institute, November 2010.
· Author (with Robert L. Fanter and John H. Moorlach), "Witness Statements in Investigation, Deposition and Trial." For the Defense, The Defense Research Institute, September 2008.
· Presenter, "Federal Aviation Regulations," Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) Seminar, September 2007.
· Author, "Case Note: Recent Eighth Circuit Case Helpful to Defendants on Discovery, Evidentiary and Daubert Issues," Defense Update: The Iowa Defense Counsel Association Newsletter, Summer/Fall 2007.
· Author (with Nicholas O. Cooper), "Some 'Unique' Defenses Applicable to Punitive Damage Claims in Iowa," Defense Update: The Iowa Defense Counsel Association Newsletter, Summer 2006.
· Author, "The 'Reverse Crashworthiness' Defense," Defense Update: The Iowa Defense Counsel Association Newsletter, Spring 2006.
· Author, "The 'Duty' to Teach Younger Trial Lawyers," Defense Update: The Iowa Defense Counsel Association Newsletter, Winter 2006.
· Author (with Robert L. Fanter), "The 'State' of the State-of-the-Art Defense in Iowa,'" Defense Update: The Iowa Defense Counsel Association Newsletter, Winter 2006.
· Author (with R. William Hancock), "Res Ipsa Loquitur in Iowa: How to Keep the Latin from Becoming 'All Greek,'" Iowa Defense Counsel Association Newsletter, Fall 2005.
· Presenter, "Deposition Techniques," Iowa State Bar Association Young Lawyers Division-Professional Development Committee, Nuts & Bolts Seminar, October 5, 2005.
· Presenter, "Iowa Products Liability: Some Questions Answered and Some Answers Questioned," Iowa Defense Counsel Association Annual Meeting and Seminar, September 22, 2005.
· Author, "Failure to Warn: Statutory Changes in Iowa Law," Iowa Defense Counsel Association Newsletter, Winter/Spring 2005.
· Author, "Iowa 'Tort Reform:' The Breadth of the Iowa Statute of Repose," Defense Update, Iowa Defense Counsel Association Newsletter, Winter 2004.
· Author, "Some Suggested Changes in Iowa Law That Could Benefit Defendants in Product Cases," Iowa Defense Counsel Association Newsletter, Summer 2004.
· Presenter, "The Restatement (Third) of Torts, Product Liability: Evolutionary or Revolutionary?" Iowa Defense Counsel Association Annual Meeting and Seminar, September 26, 2003.
· Author (with Richard J. Kirschman and Jonathan E. Kramer), "The New Restatement: Is the Third Time Truly a Charm?," For the Defense, The Defense Research Institute, April 2003.
· Presenter, "Practical Issues in Working With Experts in Product Liability Cases," Iowa Defense Counsel Association Annual Meeting and Seminar, September 26, 2002.
· Presenter and Program Chair, "Product Liability," The Defense Research Institute, Las Vegas, Nevada, February 21-23, 2001.
· Presenter and Program Chair, "Product Liability," The Defense Research Institute, Las Vegas, Nevada, January 19-21, 2000.
· Co-author, "The 'Ten Myths' of Products Liability," 27 Wm. Mitchell L. Rev. 551, 2000.
· Presenter, "Product Liability and Safety Seminar," Construction Industry Manufacturer's Association Annual Meeting, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, August 9-10, 1999.
· Author (with Lori E. Iwan), "Amended Rule 407: the Good, the Bad and the Ugly," For the Defense, The Defense Research Institute, October 1998.
· Author (with Richard J. Kirschman), "The Top Ten Misconceptions in Product Liability Law," For the Defense, The Defense Research Institute, October 1997.
· Author (with Richard J. Kirschman), "Damned If You Do, Damned If You Don't: The Standards Dilemma in Products Litigation," For the Defense, The Defense Research Institute, October 1996.
· Presenter, "Defending Against Post-Sale Failure to Warn Claims," Product Liability Institute for Corporate Counsel, New York, New York, February 1996.
· Author (with Jason M. Casini), "Confronting the 'Heeding Presumption' in Failure to Warn Cases," For the Defense, The Defense Research Institute, October 1995.
· Presenter, "Debunking Failure to Warn Claims," Product Liability Institute for Corporate Counsel, Washington, D.C., March 1995.
· Author (with Richard J. Kirschman), "Preventing a 'Second Bite at the Apple:' Defending Against Enhanced Injury Claims," For the Defense, The Defense Research Institute, October 1994.
· Author, "Defending Against An 'Interlock' Claim," For the Defense, The Defense Research Institute, October 1993.
· Author, "The 'Duty' to Recall or Retrofit a Product," For the Defense, The Defense Research Institute, October 1992.
· Author (with Lou Quinn), "A Post-Mortem Examination of the Jury," For the Defense, The Defense Research Institute, October 1990.
· Author (with Robert L. Fanter), "Ingenuous Ingenuity in Defense of a Product," For the Defense, The Defense Research Institute, October 1989.
· Author (with Robert L. Fanter), "The 'Offensive Defense' of a Product Liability Action," For the Defense, The Defense Research Institute, October 1988.
Civic and Volunteer Activities:
· Municipal Airport Advisory Committee, Newton, Iowa (Secretary, 2002-2004)
· Iowa State Bar Association Public Service Project (formerly known as the Volunteer Lawyers Project)
· Board of Examiners of Short-Hand Reporters in Iowa (Member, 1990-95)