BRADSHAW, STEELE - Key Persons
Brad LaBruyere was born in St. Louis, Missouri in 1989, but has spent the majority of his life in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. He graduated from Cape Central High School in Cape Girardeau in 2007 and attained his undergraduate degree from Southeast Missouri State University in 2011. Mr. LaBruyere received his law degree from the University of Missouri-Kansas City in 2015 where he was on the Dean's List.
Mr. LaBruyere joined the firm as an associate in 2017 and became a member of the firm in 2021. Prior to joining the firm, Mr. LaBruyere served as associate corporate counsel at a national engineering firm headquartered in Kansas City. There, Mr. LaBruyere worked closely with executives and senior management to negotiate agreements for engineering services with public and private clients, while also advising on risk management issues.
Mr. LaBruyere concentrates his law practice primarily in estate planning, probate, business law, real estate and litigation. Mr. LaBruyere is a member of the Cape Girardeau Country Club, Cape Girardeau Noon Lions Club, Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce and the Missouri Bar. He serves as a board member on the Cape Girardeau Parks and Recreation Advisory Board. He is married to Kristen Ford LaBruyere and they have two sons.
Cody Samples was born in Blytheville, Arkansas in 1992, but spent his entire childhood in Portageville, Missouri. He graduated from Portageville High School in 2010 and received a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice from the University of Mississippi in 2013, where he graduated cum laude. Mr. Samples received his Juris Doctor from the University of Mississippi School of Law in 2017, where he graduated cum laude and served as a member and associate editor of the Mississippi Law Journal.
Mr. Samples currently resides in Cape Girardeau and is the acting Vice President for the Cape Girardeau Jaycees. He is licensed to practice in the State of Missouri and the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri. Mr. Samples maintains a general practice with an emphasis on criminal defense, domestic relations, and litigation.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Missouri Bar
Grace Davis was born in St. Louis, Missouri and raised in Clinton, Iowa. She attended Valparaiso University in Indiana where she double majored in English and Philosophy to obtain her Bachelor of Arts. She received her law degree from the University of Missouri School of Law in 2017, where she was a member of the Phi Delta Phi legal honors society. She started off doing civil litigation in Columbia, Missouri. She moved to St. Louis, where she practiced for several years before joining the firm as an associate in 2021.
Her practice is civil litigation, focusing on insurance defense, medical malpractice defense, professional malpractice defense, business litigation, workers' compensation, creditors' rights, and other civil suits.
Ms. Davis is a member of The Missouri Bar, the Cape Girardeau County Bar Association, the Missouri Organization of Defense Lawyers, and is a past participant of the American Inns of Courts. She is active with the Alzheimer's Association and the Alzheimer's' Impact Movement, lobbying the United States Congress for bills and appropriations that affect research and policies regarding dementia. Ms. Davis is married to Matt Davis, and they have a dog named Charlie.
James Laramore was born in Ironton, Missouri in 1968 and attained a Bachelor of Science degree from Southwest Missouri State University in 1990 where he graduated with honors. He received his law degree from Memphis State University in 1993.
Mr. Laramore joined the firm as an associate in 1998 and became a member in January 2002. He maintains a general civil practice with emphasis in the area of insurance defense law, workers' compensation law, medical malpractice defense, and banking/foreclosure.
He is a member of The Missouri Bar Association and the Cape Girardeau County Bar Association. He also previously served on The Missouri Bar Fee Dispute Resolution Committee and as a regional representative to the Young Lawyer's Section of the Missouri Bar.
He is actively involved with Cape Central High School as a board member of the All-School Booster Club, including past service as Club President. He is a member of Lynwood Baptist Church, where he has served as a Church Trustee and on numerous committees. He has served as a coach in various sports within the Cape Girardeau Recreational Program. Mr. Laramore member of the Missouri Organization of Defense Lawyers and a 2019 winner of the Missouri Lawyers Media Top Defense Verdict Award
Mr. Laramore is married to Lori Stonecipher Laramore and they have two daughters and a son.
Job Titles:
- Associate
- Member of the Missouri Bar
Kristi Hoff was born in Cape Girardeau, Missouri in 1976. She graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from St. Louis University in 1998; and thereafter received her law degree from St. Louis University School of Law in 2001.
Ms. Hoff joined the firm as an associate in 2001 and became a member in 2011. She maintains a general civil practice with emphasis in the areas of family law, juvenile law, adoptions, business law, guardianships, probate and estate planning.
Ms. Hoff is a member of The Missouri Bar and the Cape Girardeau County Bar Association. She is also a member of the Perryville Chamber of Commerce, the Perryville FFA Alumni and a committee member for the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life of Perry County, Missouri.
Ms. Hoff is married to Michael Hoff and they have two daughters.
Job Titles:
- Member of the National Association of Bankruptcy Trustees
Paul Berens was born in Evanston, Illinois in 1949. He graduated magna cum laude from St. Louis University in 1971 and received his law degree from St. Louis University College of Law in 1974. From 1974 through 1978 he served as a Captain in the United States Air Force in the Department of the Judge AdvocateGeneral.
He concentrates his practice in creditors' rights in both commercial and bankruptcy matters, representing numerous lending institutions and credit corporations throughout the State of Missouri and the Southern District of Illinois. He has published various articles in his practice and has lectured for the Missouri Bar Association, the American Bankruptcy Institute, the University of Missouri School of Law and the Missouri Bankers Association. Together with former bankruptcy Judge Joel Pelofsky, he co-authored Chapter 12 procedures and substance for the Missouri Bar Bankruptcy Deskbook and updates the same.
Mr. Berens is a member of the National Association of Bankruptcy Trustees, the American Bankruptcy Institute, the Missouri Bar Association and Cape Girardeau County Bar Association. In 1993 Mr. Berens was inducted as a Fellow in the American College of Bankruptcy. He was the 1999 recipient of the Excellence in Bankruptcy Award presented by The Missouri Bar, and has been a yearly recipient of designations as Super Lawyer, Best Lawyers in America, and Corporate Counsel's Top Lawyers. He is the past Co-Chair of the Commercial Law Committee of The Missouri Bar and currently serves on that Committee. He is also an active member of the Noon Optimist service club.
Mr. Berens is married to Carol Wheeler Berens and they have three sons.
Job Titles:
- Officer
- Member of the Missouri Bar
Richard Steele was born in St. Louis, Missouri in 1943. He attained his undergraduate degree in 1965 from Washington University in St. Louis and his law degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 1968.
In 1968, Mr. Steele became a commissioned officer in the United States Army and served a tour of duty as a First Lieutenant in the Republic of Viet Nam as a platoon leader where he was awarded the Bronze Star.
Following his return from military service, Mr. Steele commenced private practice in Cape Girardeau, where he has concentrated in litigation, business and corporate law and family law. He was the 1977 recipient of the Lon O. Hocker Trial Lawyer Award and the 2021 recipient of the Missouri Bar Foundation Spurgeon Smithson Award for his dedication to the legal profession.
Mr. Steele is a member of The Missouri Bar, the Cape Girardeau County Bar Association, the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis, the Missouri Association of Trial Attorneys, the Missouri Organization of Defense Lawyers and the Association of Trial Lawyers of America.
Mr. Steele is a former member of the Board of Governors of the Missouri Bar, as well as a former member of the Board of Directors of The Bar Plan Mutual Insurance Company. Mr. Steele is married to Gayle Speiser Steele and they have two sons.