S. Lucky DeFries

About S.

Mr. DeFries joined Morris Laing’s Topeka office in 2021 to lead the firm’s state and local tax practice. Before joining Morris Laing, Lucky was a shareholder with Coffman, DeFries and Northern P.A. where he had practiced since 1985. Following law school, Lucky joined the Kansas Department of Revenue where he was the attorney in charge of sales and use tax litigation. In 1983, Mr. DeFries joined Ralston and Frieden where he practiced until 1985. Lucky has been recognized in the publication “Best Lawyers in America” in the areas of Tax and Tax Controversies since 1995 and was listed in the Missouri and Kansas Super Lawyers publication from 2005 to 2020 in the Tax category. He has represented small to medium size companies as well as many Fortune 500 and some Fortune 10 companies. Mr. DeFries has also represented several of the country’s largest privately held companies. His practice is focused in the area of state and local tax matters as well as incentives available at both the state and local level. Mr. DeFries has been active at both the state and national level with organizations that deal with state and local tax matters. During his career, he has been involved with many of the most significant state and local tax cases in Kansas. When not practicing law, Lucky enjoys reading, swimming, horseback riding, travel and good music. Additionally, he has always placed a high priority on civic involvement and pro bono service (something he inherited from his family). Since the mid-1980s, Lucky has spoken on a regular basis in connection with sales and use tax, property tax, and corporate income tax matters. He has spoken on state and local tax matters in connection with conferences presented by the Kansas CPA Society, the Wichita State University Audit and Accounting Conference, the Kansas Public Accountants Association, the Kansas Livestock Association, the Kansas Association of Tax Representatives (made up of industry representatives from state-assessed companies), Kansas Association of Tax Representatives (KATR), the National Association of State Bar Tax Sections (NASBTS), the Kansas Chamber of Commerce, seminars offered by Lorman, NBI and PESI, conferences co-sponsored by the Institute for Professionals in Taxation and the American Bar Association (IPT/ABA), conferences sponsored by IPT, the Council on State Taxation (COST), the National Association of Property Tax Representatives Transportation Energy and Communications (NAPTR-TEC), the Greater Topeka Chamber of Commerce, the Topeka Bar Association, and the Kansas Bar Association. Given the interest of his clients, Mr. DeFries has been involved in most legislation arising in the tax arena on a yearly basis. He has worked closely with the Kansas Chamber of Commerce and other organizations which have historically helped to shape tax policy in the State of Kansas. In 1995 he helped establish the Secretary of Revenue’s Advisory Council, which served as a resource for the Secretary of Revenue, and served continuously on that council until it became inactive. He also helped establish the Kansas Board of Tax Appeals Bench-Bar Committee and has chaired that committee since its inception.

Licensed States

Education

Colleagues at Morris Laing

Robert I. Guenthner

Retired

John W. Johnson

John J. Ambrosio

Michael Lennen

Of Counsel

H. Hurst Coffman

Roger N. Walter