WEINHARDT LAW FIRM - Key Persons
Danielle Shelton is Of Counsel to The Weinhardt Law Firm, practicing primarily in the areas of business litigation and appeals. In her more than twenty-five years of practice, she has handled a wide variety of high-stakes cases. When you hire Danielle, you can expect that she will work tirelessly and use her talents and experience to represent your interests.
Elisabeth Tursi's practice focuses on complex civil disputes, white collar criminal defense, and internal investigations. She represents individual and corporate clients in all stages of state and federal litigation, including discovery, motion practice, oral argument, trial, and appeal. She combines her trial experience as a former Assistant Polk County Attorney with her understanding of large and intricate legal matters from her clerkship with a federal judge to provide effective and insightful representation to the Firm's clients.
Recent Successes
Winning unanimous reversals of a murder conviction in both the Iowa Court of Appeals and the Iowa Supreme Court.
Serving on a trial team that obtained the 37th largest jury verdict in the United States for that year. After a three-week trial, the jury returned a $62.4 million jury verdict in favor of a subcontractor against a general contractor arising from a $3 billion construction project-the largest construction project in Iowa's history.
Obtaining the dismissal of a felony operating while intoxicated charge against a successful western Iowa business owner after extensive discovery and a contested evidentiary hearing.
Obtaining the dismissal of a felony fraudulent practices charge against the Firm's client after presenting the prosecutor with evidence that was not considered prior to criminal charges being filed.
Jason Smith's practice centers on complex business disputes, white collar criminal defense, and appeals. He relies on insights gained while clerking for federal judges to advocate for the firm's clients.
Todd Lantz's practice focuses on complex commercial litigation, white collar criminal defense, trial practice and appeals. He has successfully argued motions and tried cases in state and federal court on behalf of plaintiffs and defendants. Todd is described as a five-tool player, which is a baseball term for a player who excels at every facet of the game.
Todd has been on the winning side of two eight-figure jury verdicts arising from Iowa construction projects. The first arose from a 300-unit apartment complex that suffered from widespread construction defects and severe water intrusion problems. Todd first helped the owners fight a complicated lawsuit against the builder/developer and over a dozen subcontractors. After most of the parties settled, Todd pursued claims against a masonry subcontractor, obtaining a significant judgment following a bench trial, and then Todd served as lead trial counsel for the owner's claim against the builder's excess insurer. In 2014, after a three-week trial, a jury returned a verdict awarding over $12.4 million to Todd's client, which was the full amount that Todd requested in his closing argument. Todd then successfully defended the judgment in the Iowa Court of Appeals and the Iowa Supreme Court.