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Making The Law
Tom Riley and Todd Becker pioneered
nationwide litigation against tampon manufacturers whose products caused injury
or death by toxic shock syndrome in women. Their landmark case, Kehm v.
Proctor & Gamble, 724 F.2d 630 (8th Cir. 1983), became the subject of Tom
Riley’s book, The Price of a Life: One Woman’s Death From Toxic Shock
(Adler & Adler 1986), and a chapter in the book, Soap Opera: The Inside Story
of Procter & Gamble (Random House 1993), by Wall Street Journal reporter
Alecia Swasy (Random House 1993).
In the area of medical
malpractice, Tom Riley and Todd Becker persuaded the Iowa Supreme Court to adopt
the doctrine of lost chance of survival in DeBurkart v. Louvar, 393
N.W.2d 131 (Iowa 1986). Prior to the DeBurkart case, a patient could not
recover any damages in Iowa for a physician’s negligent diagnosis or treatment
of the patient’s potentially fatal condition, unless the patient could prove he
or she had better than a 50/50 chance of survival before the physician’s
mistake. The DeBurkart case relieved victims of medical negligence of
having to meet this frequently unrealistic and unfair burden.
Also in the area of medical
malpractice, Mark Liabo established the liability of hospitals for the
negligence of their attending emergency room physicians in Wolbers v. The
Finley Hospital, 673 N.W.2d 728 (Iowa 2003). Additionally, the more liberal
view on the admissibility of expert witnesses was affirmed in another of Mark
Liabo’s cases, Williams v. Hedican, 561 N.W.2d 871 (Iowa 1997).
During the farm crisis of
the 1980s, the Tom Riley Law Firm played a leading role in fighting predatory or
unfair lending practices and standing up for farmers. In Peterson v. First
National Bank of Iowa, 392 N.W.2d 158 (Iowa App. 1986), the court upheld a
verdict of $400,000.00 actual and $150,000.00 punitive damages obtained by Peter
Riley on behalf of a farmer against a bank. In 1985, Peter Riley obtained one
of the first million dollar verdicts against various Production Credit
Associations on behalf of a farmer. That case, Graber v. Iowa District Court,
410 N.W.2d 224 (Iowa 1987), resulted in a jury verdict barring collection of a
$645,000.00 debt and also awarded damages of $1,515,436.00. In 1986, Tom and
Peter Riley obtained a verdict of $3,600,000.00 in Knickerbocker v. First
National Bank of Oelwein, 827 F.2d 281 (8th Cir. 1987). Also in 1986, Tom
and Peter Riley obtained a verdict of $335,000.00 on behalf of a farmer who sold
land at the top of the market before farmland values collapsed but could not
enforce the contract because of his attorney’s negligence. Burke v. Roberson,
417 N.W.2d 209 (Iowa 1987) was the largest legal malpractice verdict in Iowa at
the time. In 1990, Peter Riley obtained a verdict of $536,150.00 against a
realtor for negligence in connection with selling farmland. See Crutchley v.
First Trust and Savings Bank, 450 N.W.2d 877 (Iowa 1990).
Mark
Liabo established the rights of dissenting minority shareholders in Ely, Inc.
v. Wiley, 587 N.W.2d 465 (Iowa 1998).
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