Independence, MO

James Thompson

James Thompson, a founding partner, has secured multiple multi-million-dollar verdicts and settlements, focusing on personal injury, serious truck and auto accidents, and product liability. He is a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum and Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum.

Gene Graham

Gene Graham has a commanding presence in the courtroom with an ability to connect with a jury that is seen by others as coming natural to him. I chose to become a lawyer because of my father, Gene P. Graham Sr., who was the finest man and trial lawyer I have ever known. He was also the most influential person in my career and life. I think about him and miss him every day. While his decision to be a lawyer was motivated by growing up watching his father practice law, Gene has also dedicated his career to developing an ability to present a case effectively at trial. He focuses his practice in a number of areas, including employment discrimination and sexual harassment, personal injury, consumer fraud and class actions. Gene started his practice in 1985. In addition, Gene is committed to continuing legal education and frequently gives his time as a guest lecturer to the local bar association and The Missouri Bar. He’s also been repeatedly recognized as one of the most accomplished attorneys in the community with honors that include Kansas City Best of the Bar recognition and inclusion in the Top 50 Attorneys in Kansas City by Missouri & Kansas Super Lawyers. A native of Raytown, MO and a graduate of Raytown South High School, Gene now lives in Lee’s Summit. He and his wife Lori have three children - Patrick, Lindsey and Jack.

Steven White

One of founding members of the firm, Steven “Steve” White has been trying cases for 40 years and represents individuals and families who have suffered significant injury and loss due to personal injuries or death of a loved one. Whether he is presenting a case before a state or federal court, Steve has a track record of successfully representing clients that has earned distinctions ranging from the Kansas City Business Journal to Missouri & Kansas Super Lawyers. That said, he is not motivated by awards but rather driven by a desire to help his clients while constantly learning and improving upon his approach to the practice of law. As a life-long learner, I believe there is opportunity to learn something new from every client and case that I represent. I am passionate about my practice and my work, because of the people I get to help every day. Steve represents a wide variety of injury and death cases, including common law tort claims, medical negligence, products liability, and truck and transportation accidents. He has experience handling cases involving insurance bad faith, common law fraud, commercial litigation, and claims under the Missouri Merchandizing Practices Act. Insurance companies also retain Steve to represent their customers who have been sued for personal injury and wrongful death. Steve also represent individuals and businesses who have coverage disputes with their insurance companies. He successfully helps businesses that have been sued in connection with commercial transactions, employee discrimination, and faulty construction and excavation damage claims. Highly regarded by his peers, Steve has been listed as a Best of the Bar by the Kansas City Business Journal and a Best Lawyer by Best Lawyers in America. He is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and he has frequently spoken at educational programs for lawyers sponsored by the Missouri Bar, the Missouri Association of Trial Attorneys, the University of Missouri School of Law and local bar associations. He is a Board Certified Civil Trial Advocacy Specialist by the National Board of Trial Advocates. Steve is always looking for ways to improve his practice and serve his clients. He received his certification in Mediation for Civil Cases by the University of Missouri-School of Law: Center for the Study of Dispute Resolution in 2014. He frequently serves as the mediator for many types of civil claims and disputes including personal injury, wrongful death, product liability, medical malpractice, employment discrimination, insurance bad faith and coverage issues.

Robert Buckley

Robert “Bob” Buckley is a devoted medical malpractice and catastrophic injury attorney. For more than 40 years, he has practiced law in the Independence area. Bob strongly believes medical negligence litigation has a positive impact on improving health care in America and spends an extensive amount of time educating himself on medical issues to better serve his clients. The practice of law is about helping people. We are driven each day to represent our clients in the best manner possible which means combining the experience we’ve gained in the courtroom with our knowledge of emerging issues in the health care industry. With each successful case, our team works with clients to shine a light on an area in which improvements can be made to our health care system. Bob was the lead attorney in the landmark case of Roth v. Turbomeca, where he successfully argued that a flight nurse severely injured in a helicopter crash could sue for damages for being wrongfully induced to settle her lawsuit by lies about insurance coverage, yet still enforce the underlying settlement. As a skilled personal injury attorney, Bob’s greatest strength is his ability to develop strong relationships with his clients who regularly refer his work. He has settled numerous personal injury and wrongful death cases that occurred as a result of catastrophic accidents, medication errors, surgical errors, birth injuries, misdiagnosis, emergency room negligence, nursing negligence, and nursing home negligence resulting in pressure ulcers and falls. Prior to becoming a partner with the firm, Bob spent more than 20 years practicing law in Independence, MO. His wife Kim has been his paralegal for almost 30 years and serves as White, Graham, Buckley & Carr, LLC’s office manager.

William Carr

William “Bill” Carr is an experienced trial attorney who represents individuals in personal injury, medical malpractice and commercial litigation. He has dedicated his career to helping individuals navigate some of the toughest challenges they face in life whether those obstacles emerge from an injury, illness or incident that occurs in their business or professional life. One of the things I love about practicing law is that people’s stories become a part of the fabric of your life. I like helping people navigate through really tough times. I also like being part of getting policies changed that can actually change people’s lives. Recognized by the Kansas City Business Journal as among the “Best of the Bar,” Bill has successfully tried personal injury cases in state and federal courts in Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska and New York. He is regularly recognized by his peers for demonstrating superior skill in the courtroom while still maintaining respectful relationships with opposing counsel. Most notably, he was the recipient of the 2022 Thomas G. Strong Trial Attorney Award by the Missouri Association of Trial Attorneys and the 2005 Thomas J. Conway Award by the Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association. The Thomas G. Strong Trial Attorney Award recognizes the qualities of professionalism, ethics, character and courtroom success. Other considerations include: achieving quality results in the courtroom; the number, length and complexity of cases tried; a willingness to share information with fellow trial lawyers and promote the Missouri Association of Trial Attorneys’ goals. Meanwhile, the Thomas J. Conway Award recognizes a young trial lawyer with courage and zeal for their clients, a collegial attitude toward fellow lawyers, professional decorum in dealing with opposing counsel and respect for the courts and the rule of law. Bill’s experience ranges from representing employees who have lost their life savings due to employer negligence to individuals who have suffered personal injuries due to tragedies involving trucking and auto accidents, as well as medical malpractice. In addition, Bill continues to expand his work into serving as a mediator. He has achieved Rule 17 certification from the Missouri Bar - a distinction requiring appropriate training or equivalent experience in conducting the dispute resolution procedure or procedures offered in mediation. This allows him to be included on a statewide list of neutrals, and he has mediated dozens of cases in personal injury, medical malpractice and commercial litigation over the past decade. Bill has a wide-range of legal experience and understands that each case that comes across his desk is unique. He enjoys the complexity and challenge of litigation as much as he enjoys the reward of helping clients through a dispute or claim. This combination has resulted in Bill being repeatedly recognized by Super Lawyers and Best Lawyers, as well as attaining the highest peer review rating by Martindale-Hubbell. Bill is one of the firm’s lead trial lawyers.

Bryan White

Bryan White has recovered over $85 million for clients throughout the country in the past 5 years. He secured two of the top five settlements in Missouri in both 2020 and 2021, both related to his 303 Tractor Hydraulic Fluid litigation work. Bryan is driven by his deep desire to serve as an advocate for his clients. His passion and commitment to aggressively representing the interests of others stems from his experience working closely with individuals who have been harmed - physically, financially or emotionally - in circumstances that were avoidable. As a result, Bryan is often relied upon to represent individuals in medical malpractice, personal injury, employment discrimination, commercial litigation, class action litigation and whistleblower matters, among others. Our clients have many faces - they are teachers, patients, employees and business owners, even children - and they are looking for an attorney who can give them a voice and represent them zealously. Our firm has committed itself to being that advocate, our clients appreciate the help and counsel we give them, and we’re privileged to be trusted in that way. Known for his experience, practical and effective approach to problems, and ability to connect and persuade, Bryan handles all phases of litigation. He manages cases from pre-suit negotiations all the way through trial. Bryan and his partners have obtained numerous verdicts before juries and arbitrators. Regardless of venue, Bryan has a track record of achieving favorable results for clients. Some of Bryan’s recent work includes: Class action settlements of $32 million, $19 million, $10.8 million, $8.5 million and $7.2 million, $8.3 million injury settlement, $2.5 million injury settlement, $2 million motor vehicle accident settlement, $1.3 million wrongful death settlement, A successful appeal in the Supreme Court of Missouri affirming a judgment of $900,000. Bryan has argued before the Supreme Court of Missouri and Missouri Court of Appeals, and has authored briefing in the Supreme Court of the United States. His appellate achievements include his successful appeal in Templemire v. W&M Welding, Inc., which resulted in an opinion by the Supreme Court of Missouri overturning 30 years of precedent that had restricted employees’ rights to bring workers’ compensation retaliation claims. The opinion was named the biggest appellate decision of the first half of 2014 by Missouri Lawyers Weekly. Prior to joining the firm in 2010, Bryan practiced with a commercial litigation firm, Rouse Hendricks German May PC, where he gained experience handling complex commercial litigation matters, including securities litigation, trade secrets litigation, and internal and government regulatory investigations. Bryan is also a 2009 graduate of the Kansas City Missouri Bar Association Bar Leadership Academy. Following graduation from law school, Bryan worked as a judicial law clerk for the Honorable William Ray Price, Jr. of the Supreme Court of Missouri.

John Parisi

John M. Parisi specializes in medical malpractice cases and has dedicated his career to representing significantly injured individuals. He has obtained substantial recoveries in complex cases, including personal injury, defective drugs, and environmental contamination, and has been recognized by Super Lawyers and Best Lawyers in America for many years.