HOLLAND LAW FIRM - Key Persons
Carl Kessinger was raised in Guthrie, a small town located in central Oklahoma. He attended the University of Oklahoma, earning his Bachelor of Science degree in Medical Technology in 1985 after undergoing a yearlong internship at Baptist Medical Center in Oklahoma City. Carl continued his education at OU, where he received his law degree in 1988.
Upon graduating from law school, Carl moved to St. Louis, Missouri. He is licensed by examination to practice law in the state courts of Missouri, Illinois, Oklahoma, and Florida. Carl is also licensed in the United States District Courts of the Southern and Northern Districts of Illinois, the Eastern and Western Districts of Missouri, and the Eastern District of Michigan. He is a member of the Missouri Bar Association, Oklahoma Bar Association, Florida Bar Association, Illinois State Bar Association, Missouri Association of Trial Attorneys, American Association for Justice and Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis.
Carl has spoken at seminars sponsored by the Missouri Bar Association. His peers have awarded him the Martindale-Hubbell AV Preeminent, 5.0/5.0, peer review rating. This is the highest rating, and represents the top level of professional excellence for ethical standards, legal knowledge, and communication skills. Additionally, the National Trial Lawyers has recognized Carl as a Top 100 Trial Lawyer. The National Trial Lawyers is an invitation-only organization, and is composed of premier trial attorneys across the country that meet stringent qualifications as trial lawyers.
He has 25+ years of litigation experience, including the drafting of pleadings and motions, taking and defending depositions, and jury trials. During the course of his practice, Carl has handled a wide variety of matters, such as workers' compensation, personal injury, and property damage cases. The personal injury cases in which he has been involved include motor vehicle accidents, wrongful death trucking accidents, injuries resulting from defective products, and toxic tort (asbestos) claims.
The majority of Carl's civil litigation experience has been devoted to representing injured railroad workers in FELA cases throughout the country. He has handled cases in more than 15 states, ranging from southern Florida to Washington State. He has successfully mediated FELA cases, and participated in trials resulting in favorable jury verdicts.
Carl has been married to his wife for over 30 years and has three children.
Eric Holland and the Holland Law Firm are all about trials. Eric and his team have consistently handled and tried the largest and most important civil cases in the country, achieving record setting verdicts and settlements in courtrooms in St. Louis and across the country. Taking on American and international corporate giants, Eric's litigation results are not only measured in the billions of dollars recovered for clients but also in measurable societal good like getting unsafe firearms off the streets, triggering governmental investigations, and fighting against court secrecy. His work has been featured in Reuters, Bloomberg, the New York Times, NPR, CBS, the L.A. Times, and CNBC to name just a few, and he has been described to the media as a "legal mastermind" by his corporate opponents.
Eric now tries railroad and transportation accidents, mass torts, class actions and other complex cases with outstanding results. He has handled cases across the United States and obtained a host of record-setting jury verdicts and settlements. In single injury cases, he obtained over 25 multi-million-dollar results in the first 20 years of his law practice involving railroad, product liability, and trucking matters. Over the last fifteen years, Eric has developed his firm's complex litigation practice, which has followed the path of his early career and resulted in several eight-, nine-, and ten-figure verdicts and settlements. Eric and his team have obtained verdicts and settlements of over $6 billion dollars.
Eric continues to regularly be hired by the country's most seriously injured railroad workers, cancer victims, catastrophic injury victims and their families, as well as a wide variety of other clients including publicly-traded companies, CEOs, water districts, hospitals, villages, international companies, judges and consumers. He is also approved counsel for a national labor union.
Eric is also a leader in the national complex litigation bar. He has been appointed to leadership positions in mass tort and class action litigations including lead counsel, steering committee and executive committee posts in a variety of state and federal courts across the country involving pharmaceuticals, banking, financial services, product liability, and consumer cases. He is also routinely called upon to speak about complex litigation and the law, having lectured and chaired conferences across the country on current issues and developments.
Erika Stassi was born and raised in Madison County and grew up in Granite City, Illinois. Erika attended Eastern Illinois University where she received her Bachelor of Arts in 2012. Erika was also the captain of EIU's Division 1 Women's Soccer Team. Erika received her Juris Doctorate in 2015 from St. Louis University School of Law. During her third year at SLU, Erika was the President of the Criminal Law Society. While earning her law degree, Erika worked at the Madison County State's Attorney's Office.
Prior to joining the Holland Law Firm, Erika worked at a large St. Louis-based firm representing victims of asbestos exposure. Erika has dedicated her work to fighting for the rights and safety of victims in both criminal and civil court.
Erika joined Holland Law Firm in 2021 and works throughout all the firm's practice areas, including mass tort, class action, personal injury, toxic exposure, FELA, and products liability.
Outside of the office, Erika still enjoys playing soccer and other sports. She is an active member of the Illinois State Bar Association and the Missouri Bar Association. Erika lives in Bethalto, Illinois with her husband and their two children.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Illinois State Bar Association
Greg Jones is a native of the Greater St. Louis area and grew up in Belleville, Illinois. Greg attended Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis, where he received his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration degree in 2012. Greg received his Juris doctorate in 2016 from Washington University School of Law. He worked as a research assistant for Associate Dean for Clinical Education and Professor of Law Robert R. Kuehn. While earning his law degree, Greg contributed extensive hours of pro bono work to the St. Louis County Counselor's Office and the St. Clair County Public Defender's Office. At Commencement from law school, Greg was recognized for his outstanding commitment to public service.
Greg joined Holland Law Firm in 2021 and works throughout all the firm's practice areas, including mass tort, class action, personal injury, toxic exposure, FELA, and products liability.
In addition to participating in all phases of litigation throughout his legal career, Greg was awarded first place in the Illinois State Bar Association's 2019 Lincoln Award Legal Writing Contest for his article "General and Boilerplate Objections: Curbing Routine Abuse of the Discovery Process." Greg has also presented at a continuing legal education event organized through the Illinois State Bar Association.
Prior to joining Holland Law Firm, Greg worked at a well-known firm in Madison County, Illinois, where he practiced general personal injury, workers' compensation, and mass torts.
Outside of the office, Greg enjoys playing golf and competing in trivia competitions. Greg is also an active member of the Illinois State Bar Association and the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis.
Jim Holloran is an icon in the St. Louis legal community. Over his 50-plus years practicing law, he tried over 200 cases to verdict and has been recognized as one of the best of the best. He is a member of the Inner Circle of Advocates, received the Lon Hocker Memorial Trial Lawyer Award, and served as the president of the Missouri Association of Trial Attorneys, to name just a few of his many accolades and awards.
His work in the St. Louis community is also part of Jim's legacy, serving a wide range of organizations like St. Louis University, Loyola Jesuit Middle School, Vianney High School, St. Louis Society for Children and Adults with Physical Disability, Habitat for Humanity, Guardian Angel Settlement, Head Injury Foundation, and the Dan Devereaux Memorial Foundation.
Jim is of counsel to the firm, providing guidance to the firm and its members regarding trials, strategy and community issues as well as working on the firm's biggest litigation.
Judge Ann Callis (retired)
Judge Ann Callis (retired) is a partner at Holland Law Firm and heads up the firm's Madison County, Illinois office. She serves as local counsel and leads major civil litigations in state and federal courts in Illinois and Missouri.
Ann Callis was the first woman Circuit Judge in Madison County, Illinois and was the first woman Chief Judge in Madison County, where she served for 18 years. She served in every division in the 3rd Circuit Court where she presided over hundreds of jury and non-jury trials including complex litigation, environmental, personal injury, and professional negligence (legal and medical). She spent 8 years on the circuit bench on the Felony docket.
In addition to handling a full civil docket, Chief Judge Callis was instrumental in creating the nationally recognized Veterans Treatment Court, the first of its kind in Illinois, where Veterans involved with the justice system are given necessary assistance and counseling to become once again productive members of society. She also established the Mandatory Foreclosure Mediation Program that saved hundreds of families their homes.
As an attorney, Judge Callis concentrates her practice on mass torts, products liability, environmental disasters and commercial practice. She is currently handling many aspects of the opioid litigation, where she represents more than thirty Governmental Entities in Illinois and Missouri and has also been appointed to the Plaintiffs 'Executive Committee for the Statewide Opioid MDL in Illinois. Judge Callis also represents women in the Illinois Essure Litigation.
She has received many awards and recognition for her judicial service including an Achievement Award from the Alton Branch of the NAACP, the Coalition of Concerned Citizens of Alton Chairman Award (for promoting Justice for All), the Community Counseling Center Mental Health Hero and an award from the St. Clair/ Monroe Counties Salute for Protecting the Children from the Storms of Life.
Judge Callis obtained her B.A. Magna Cum Laude from St. Louis University in 1987 and went on to earn her law degree from S.LU. in 1990. She also completed a public managers program at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard College.
She is married to attorney, Jim Holloran, and the proud mother of Caroline, a public school ESL teacher, and Elliot, an Airborne Ranger and Captain with the 82nd Airborne.
Michael was admitted to practice law in the Missouri and Federal Courts in 1997. His primary duties at the Holland Law Firm are research and analysis of complex litigation and class action matters. This includes representing plaintiffs in cases against manufacturers of defective and unsafe products, financial institutions violating fair lending laws and toxic exposures created by industrial plants.
Committed to the cause of justice, Michael served in the Missouri House of Representatives from 2003 through 2011 as a member of the judiciary committee. His fundamental focus as a legislator was working to ensure the rights of plaintiffs in the civil litigation process.
He has conducted numerous jury and bench trials on behalf of plaintiffs and has appeared before the Missouri Court of Appeals, the Missouri Division of Workers' Compensation and numerous other agencies.
Currently, Michael is the firm's primary liaison with clients participating in the 3M Combat Arms Earplugs Liability Litigation.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Missouri Bar
Patrick Dowd is a skilled attorney who possesses extensive courtroom experience and practices primarily in the areas of personal injury, toxic tort, mass tort, pharmaceutical and medical device litigation, lead paint exposure, FELA, complex commercial litigation and appellate practice. He is experienced in all phases of litigation including bench and jury trials.
Patrick was born and raised in the City of St. Louis. As the son, grandson, and nephew of judges, Patrick's interest in and respect for the law and the legal profession was instilled early in life and his choice of profession is no surprise. His grandfather, Judge Robert G. Dowd Sr., served on every level of the Missouri judiciary including over 20 years on the Missouri Court of Appeals. His father, Judge Robert G. Dowd Jr., was a judge for 40 years, the last 20 of which he served on the Missouri Court of Appeals until his retirement in 2020. Judge David L. Dowd, Patrick's uncle, has been a judge in the Circuit Court of the City of St. Louis since 2000, and Judge James M. Dowd, another uncle and prior employer, was appointed in 2015 to serve on the Missouri Court of Appeals.
Before joining the Holland Law Firm, Patrick worked at The James M. Dowd Law Firm, P.C., where he participated significantly in several prominent lawsuits including a 2011 trial which resulted in a $48,400,000 jury verdict, the largest reported verdict in the history of St. Louis County at the time, and in 2013, a products liability trial involving claims of "popcorn lung" disease from artificial butter flavoring. In addition to jury trials, Patrick also has experience in arbitration, including a $6,800,000 award he obtained for the family of victims who were killed and injured due to an unsafe and dangerously designed highway.
Patrick graduated from the University of Missouri in 2009 and obtained his law degree from St. Louis University Law School in 2012. He and his wife Stacey, who is also an attorney, have two children.
Patrick is currently a member of the Missouri Bar, The Missouri Association of Trial Attorneys, The Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis, and The Lawyers Association of St. Louis.
R. Seth Crompton grew up in a working class, union family in Herrin, Illinois. His family has worked and continues to work in many of the country's most difficult and dangerous industries, including railroad, construction, mining, trucking, and manufacturing. Seth attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where he achieved a dual major bachelor's degree in Economics and Political Science. He then received his juris doctorate from St. Louis University School of Law, which included a Health Law Certificate from the #1 rated program in the United States. While in law school, he interned in the white-collar fraud divisions at the United States Attorneys' Office for the Southern District of Illinois and the St. Louis City Prosecuting Attorneys' Office.
He works throughout all the firm's practice areas and specialties including class action, mass tort, pharmaceutical drug and medical device, FELA, Jones Act, personal injury, product liability, trucking accidents, toxic exposure, environmental disasters, and complex commercial litigation. He is experienced at all phases of litigation including bench and jury trials. His experience translates into the Seth's ability to handle a variety of litigation matters from start to finish for firm clients. He has obtained or his work has been integral in obtaining a variety of highly successful litigations including multi-million dollar jury verdicts, judgments, and settlements, as well as resolution of large, national complex litigations.
Seth has obtained a host of awards and recognition, including:
Martindale-Hubbell preeminent AV rating (5.0/5.0) - given to a select group of attorneys that have been designated by their colleagues and the judiciary as demonstrating excellence and preeminence in the practice of law.
National Trial Lawyers Top 100 Trial Lawyer - an invitation-only organization wherein members are evaluated based on stringent qualifications, and is composed of the most premier trial attorneys across the United States.
Global Directory of Who's Who (Top Lawyers) - honors attorneys who have demonstrated achievement and leadership in the legal field based on an attorneys' position and professional accomplishments.
Super Lawyers Top-Rated Class Action and Mass Tort attorney - uses an independent selection process to rate outstanding lawyers who have attained a high-degree of peer recognition and professional achievement.
Best Lawyers in America Top 5% of private practice attorneys nationwide - inclusion in Best Lawyers is based on a rigorous peer-review survey comprising more than 7.4 million confidential evaluations by top attorneys.
Prior to joining the firm, Seth gained extensive litigation and trial experience more recently at a national law firm with offices throughout the country, and previously for one of the region's most respected litigation firms, representing multinational corporations, Fortune 500 companies, and other large business entities. His practice included catastrophic personal injury, wrongful death, product liability, and trucking accidents, as well as complex commercial matters involving finance, real estate and property development, insurance coverage, construction, and contractual disputes.
Outside of practicing law, Seth serves on various boards in the community and enjoys mixed martial arts, boxing, and traveling.
Rob Evola grew up in the small farm town of Marshall, Illinois as the son of two teachers. He graduated from Marshall High School in 1990, and then attended Butler University in Indianapolis, Indiana. There, he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature and a minor in Business Administration. He studied law at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale where he served as a Casenote and Comment Editor for the Southern Illinois Law Journal. He graduated with honors in 1997.
Mr. Evola has practiced civil litigation exclusively since 1997. He has represented plaintiffs and defendants in a wide variety of complex litigation including personal injury, products liability, insurance coverage, trucking, construction industry and commercial disputes throughout Illinoi s, Missouri and around the country. Furthermore, Mr. Evola has extensive experience litigating toxic tort and environmental matters on behalf of plaintiffs. His practice has included primary responsibility for preparing and arguing complex motions and appeals before federal and state courts. Mr. Evola has practiced in the Illinois Supreme Court, including extensive interlocutory and motion practice, and he has argued multiple appeals before the Appellate Court for the Fifth District of Illinois and the Appellate Court for the Eastern District of Missouri. In addition, Mr. Evola has practiced before the United States Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (MDL Panel).
He lives in Godfrey, Illinois with his wife, a daughter, and the family dog.
Job Titles:
- Member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority
Shamon Moss was born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri. She graduated magna cum laude from Lincoln University of Missouri with a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice and a minor in Legal Studies. She earned her Juris Doctor from St. Louis University School of Law. While attending SLU, she worked as an intern at the Legal Services of Eastern Missouri, advocating for low-income families to receive government benefits. Additionally, she interned at the St. Charles Prosecuting Attorney's Office, where she advocated for sex crime victims by assisting prosecutors in building their cases.
Prior to her time at the Holland Law Firm, she opened the first office in Missouri for Morgan & Morgan. She focused on personal injury cases, including motor vehicle crashes, premise liability, wrongful death cases, animal bites, and claims against the government. Prior to her work with Morgan & Morgan, she practiced complex asbestos litigation cases for three years at Rasmussen, Dickey & Moore.
Shamon is a proud member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. Most notably, she was recently extended an invitation to become a member of The National Black Lawyers Top 40 Under 40 for her outstanding work in the legal community. She is also a member of the Mound City Bar Association.
Shamon joined the Holland Law Firm in 2021 and works throughout all the firm's practice areas, including mass torts and asbestos. Additionally, she will assist in the firm's new partnership with the Tabernacle Community Development Corporation to provide the people of North St. Louis with answers to an array of legal issues through a new community development known as The Holland Law Firm at The Hub.
Outside of the office, Shamon enjoys traveling and shopping for just about anything.
STEVEN J. STOLZE is one of the most accomplished and well-regarded trial attorneys in the country, honing his skills over the last two decades in courtrooms around the United States. Following his undergraduate degree from the University of Missouri with honors, Steve excelled at the University of Florida College of Law, where he also graduated with honors. Steve has obtained a large number of record-setting jury verdicts and settlements in individual cases ranging from traumatic brain injury to malicious prosecution and patent infringement. He is of counsel to the firm.
Steve is an accomplished professional musician as well, regularly performing throughout the year in a variety of venues.