Meet Kirk
Kirk Presley’s litigation practice seeks to help his clients while applying pressure on industries that have a history of wrongful and negligent actions to take corrective action. Kirk has significant expertise in the complex insurance issues that are often a part of these significant injury and wrongful death cases. This includes obtaining the two largest insurance bad faith verdicts in the State of Missouri, one against Allstate for $16.5 million and one against American Family for $11 million. While volunteering with Trial Lawyers Care, Kirk represented five clients with claims before the Victim’s Compensation Fund following the 9/11 attacks, including one recovery in excess of $4,000,000. A longtime supporter of the LEAP Foundation (Lawyers Encouraging Academic Performance), Kirk was elected King of that group's annual Mardi Gras luncheon for his work with the designated beneficiary, Operation Breakthrough. A previous participant in the mentor program, Kirk has continued to support Operation Breakthrough’s mission of providing daycare and after-school programs for at-risk children.
Admissions
- Missouri, 1983
- California, 1990
- U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri, 1983
Education
- University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law, Juris Doctorate, 1983
- Drury College, Bachelor of Arts, 1980
Published Works
- Closing Argument (Chapter 11), Missouri Trial Tactics Handbook, 1986
- Carbon Monoxide: Stalking the Silent Killer, Trial Magazine
- Trial Magazine, The ATLA Aviation Section Newsletter, as well as MATA and KCMBA publications
Awards
- Recognized by Best Lawyers, 2023
- Best Lawyers, Lawyer of the Year, Litigation – Insurance, 2021
- AV Rating, Martindale Hubble
- Influential Lawyer Award, Missouri Lawyers Weekly, 2020
- Super Lawyers, 2005 - Present
- The National Trial Lawyers, Top 100
- Drury University’s Distinguished Alumni Award for Community Service in 2009
- UMKC Law Foundation’s President’s Award in 2007
- Pat Kelly Service Award, UMKC Law Foundation in 2012
- Named as one of The Best Lawyers in America© in the specialty of personal injury litigation since 2009
- Selected to Missouri & Kansas Super Lawyers, 2005 – 2013
- Chosen Best of the Bar, Kansas City Business Journal, 2002 to Present
Representative Cases
- Lowery v. Horvath, 689 S.W. 2d 625 (Supreme Ct. of Mo. 1985)
- Augspurger v. MFA Oil Company, 940 S.W. 2d 934 (Mo. Ct. of Appeals 1997)
- Purtell v. Cunningham, 1396 CC 068083
- Johnson v. Allstate, 262 S.W. 3d 655 (Mo. W.D. 2008)
- Estes as Next Friend for Doe v. MOPERM, 623 S.W. 3d 678 (Mo. W.D. 2021)
- Masters v. City of Independence, 998 F.3d 827 (8th Cir. 2021)