Paul J. Passanante
Paul Passanante, a life-long resident of St. Louis, is a 1976 graduate of the Saint Louis University School of Law. In 1980, Paul received the Outstanding Young Lawyer Award from the St. Louis County Bar Association. The next year, he received the Lon O. Hocker Memorial Trial Lawyer Award from the Missouri Bar Foundation.
Since 1980, Paul has specialized in civil litigation and has tried many civil cases to verdict including medical malpractice, products liability, FELA, auto and general negligence cases. In 1998, he represented the plaintiff in a medical malpractice case in Greene County (Springfield), Missouri which resulted in that county’s largest medical malpractice verdict.
Paul has been certified as a civil trial specialist by the National Board of Trial Advocacy and is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates. He is often called upon by the Missouri Bar to write or lecture on various aspects of civil trial practice, including ethics, presenting evidence at trial, argument strategies and settlement tactics. For a few years, he also taught trial practice at St. Louis University School of Law.
Paul Passanante is licensed to practice law in Missouri, Arkansas, Florida, and the District of Columbia. He also is admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, the U.S. Claims Court, the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Eighth and Fourth Circuits and numerous federal district courts, including the U.S. District Court for the Eastern and Western Districts of Missouri, the District of Maryland, the Eastern and Western Districts of Arkansas, the District of Nebraska, and the Southern District of Illinois.
Paul is a member of the Missouri, Arkansas, Florida and District of Columbia Bars, the American Board of Trial Advocates, the American Association for Justice, the American Bar Association, the Lawyers Association of St. Louis, and the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis.
Honors and Awards:
Outstanding Young Lawyer, St. Louis County Bar Association, 1980
Lon O. Hocker Memorial Trial Lawyer Award, Missouri Bar Foundation, 1981
Certification/Specialties:
Civil Trial Advocate, National Board of Trial Advocacy
Bar Admissions:
Missouri, 1976
District of Columbia, 1992
Florida, 1993
Arkansas, 1993
Education:
Saint Louis University School of Law, Saint Louis, Missouri, 1976
Doctor of Jurisprudence
Saint Louis University, Saint Louis, Missouri, 1972
Bachelor of Arts, Political Science
Continuing Legal Education – Lecturer:
Civil Trial Practice, Practical Skills Course, 1985-1992
Missouri Bar Association:
Presenting The Evidence, Civil Trial Practice, May, 1988
“Structured Settlements: Plaintiff’s Perspective v. Defendant’s Perspective”, 1991
A Special Course for New Lawyers, November, 1991
Litigation Settlements Seminar, January, 1992
Ethics in Litigation - The Ethics of Zealous Advocacy, 2002, 2003
Hot Topics in Medical Malpractice Litigation - Calculating the Caps on Damages, 2003
Medical Malpractice: The Plaintiff’s Case - Depositions and Other Discovery, 2004
Medical Malpractice Litigation After Tort Reform, 2005, 2006
Annual Update of the Law, Torts and Civil Actions, “Recent Statutory
Changes to Tort Law and Civil Actions,” 2005, 2006
Successful Trial Lawyers Tips: What They Learned, “Closing
Argument,” 2005
Successful Trial Lawyers Tips: What They Learned, “Cross-
Examination,” 2005
Missouri Association of Trial Attorneys:
Effective Discovery: Deposition Techniques; Framing the Questions, May, 1990
Soft Tissue Diagnostics and Evaluation, Moderator, February, 1990
Discovery: Use of Discovery Tactics to Help Prove Your Case; May, 1992
Differentiated Case Management (DCM) Conference, Moderator, January, 1995
Missouri Organization of Defense Lawyers:
“Direct and Cross-Examination of Plaintiff’s Expert Economist”, December, 1991
University of Missouri - Columbia:
MAI Seminar, October, 1991
Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis:
Premises Liability: Slip and Fall, June 27, 1990
Closing Argument; Trial Practice Seminar, September 25, 1992
St. Louis County Bar Association:
Trial Practice Seminar, Closing Argument, 1990, 1991, 2006
University of Missouri - Kansas City:
“Big Damages/Little Liability,” November, 1990
Published Works:
“Habeas Corpus,” St. Louis Bar Journal, Winter, 1978
Chapter 10, “Presenting the Evidence,” Civil Trial Practice, 2nd Ed., 1988
“Permanency In Personal Injury Cases,” St. Louis Lawyer, 1988
“Closing Argument” St. Louis Bar Journal, Fall, 1991
“Recent Developments in Trial Techniques,” American Bar Association Tort & Insurance Law Journal, Winter, 2001
“Help! We’re Lost! Co-Employee Immunity in Missouri,” Journal of the Missouri Bar, March-April, 2001
“Presenting the Evidence,” Chapter 10, Missouri Bar CLE, Civil Trial Practice, 3rd Ed., 2001
“Business Records,” Chapter 6, Missouri Bar CLE, Sources of Proof, 4th Ed., 2001.
“The Effect of Tort Reform on Medical Malpractice,” Journal of the Missouri Bar, September/October, 2005.
“Objections and Rulings on Evidence,” Chapter 6, Missouri Bar Evidence Deskbook, 5th Ed., 2006.
“Cross-Examination,” Journal of the Missouri Bar, January/February, 2006.
“Anticipated Constitutional Challenges to Tort Reform,” Journal of the Missouri Bar, July/August, 2006.
Classes/Seminars Taught:
Lecturer, Civil Trial Practice, Missouri Bar Practical Skills Course
Adjunct Associate Professor, St. Louis University School of Law, 1983 - 1985
