Thomas M. Locher

Mr. Locher is a native of Monticello, Iowa and is one of the founding members of the firm of Locher Pavelka Dostal Braddy & Hammes, LLC, the first law firm allowed to be organized as a Limited Liability Company by the Nebraska Supreme Court. He has practiced law in State and Federal Courts in Iowa and Nebraska since 1978.  He is widely recognized as a skilled and experienced trial attorney who has represented clients in numerous jury trials to verdict, bench trials and arbitrations before tribunals in Iowa and Nebraska. He was an early participant in alternative dispute resolution (ADR) and has participated in multiple mediations and other forms of ADR over the past thirty years.

He has served as an arbitrator in complex disputes and has been called upon as an expert witness in professional liability, insurance coverage and attorney fee disputes. He has tried cases involving trucking accidents, products liability, professional negligence, fraudulent transfers, common law indemnity, recreational liability, fire losses, admiralty and maritime, Jones Act and complex contractual claims.  He has argued nearly sixty appeals in the Nebraska Court of Appeals, the Nebraska Supreme Court, the Iowa Court of Appeals, the Supreme Court of Iowa and the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals. His appellate work has included insurance coverage disputes, banking law, subrogation, admiralty and maritime, products liability, negligence, professional liability, political subdivision tort claims, recreational liability, and other contract disputes. He has been called upon innumerable times to issue insurance coverage opinions and to provide training for insurance company claims handlers. Mr. Locher has participated in authoring proprietary compendia of insurance law in Iowa and Nebraska and has conducted presentations and seminars in a variety of insurance, litigation and banking topics. Mr. Locher has conducted multiple examinations under oath and participated numerous times in fraud and arson investigations. He has testified before committee in the Nebraska Legislature on proposed bills of interest to the insurance industry and business community.

PRACTICE AREAS

• General practice including but not limited to:
• Civil Litigation, Plaintiff and Defense
• Insurance Coverage & Litigation

• Nebraska Bar, 1978
• Iowa Bar, 1978
• U.S. District Court for the District of Nebraska, 1978
• United States District Court for the Northern and Southern Districts of Iowa, 1978
• Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, 2000

• Creighton University (B.A., 1974)
• Creighton University School of Law (J.D., 1978)

• Nebraska Defense Counsel Association Defense Lawyer of the Year, 2014
• American College of Trial Lawyers, Fellow*
• American Board of Trial Advocates, Associate **
• Great Plains Super Lawyers
  • Insurance Coverage, Civil Litigation Defense, and Personal Injury Plaintiff
• Martindale-Hubbell AV® Preeminent™ Peer Review Rated ***
• Board of Directors and Lifetime Fellow, Nebraska Bar Foundation
• Million Dollar Advocates Forum****
• Multimillion Dollar Advocates Forum****

* Fellowship in The American College of Trial Lawyers is by invitation only after careful investigation to those experienced trial lawyers who have mastered the art of advocacy and whose professional careers have been marked by the highest standards of ethical conduct, professionalism, civility and collegiality. Membership cannot exceed one percent of the total lawyer population of any state or province.

** The American Board of Trial Advocates is an invitation only organization for lawyers with significant trial experience and who exhibit virtues of civility, integrity and professionalism.

*** Martindale-Hubbell is the facilitator of a peer review rating process. Ratings reflect the anonymous opinions of members of the Bar and the Judiciary. Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Ratings fall into two categories-legal ability and general ethical standards.

**** Membership in the Million Dollar Advocates Forum and Multimillion Dollar Advocates Forum is limited to trial lawyers who have demonstrated exceptional skill, experience and excellence in advocacy by achieving a trial verdict, judgment or settlement in excess of two million dollars or more.

• Nebraska Defense Counsel Association
• Nebraska Association of Trial Attorneys
• Iowa Defense Counsel Association
• Iowa State Bar Association
• Nebraska State Bar Association
• Defense Research Institute
• Claims & Litigation Management Alliance
• Past Member, Judicial Nominating Commission – Supreme Court, Third District
• Omaha Bar Association
• Pottawattamie County Bar Association

• Appointed by Nebraska Supreme Court to the Nebraska Client Assistance Fund Board
• Performance Judge, Presiding Judge, and team coach, Nebraska State and Regional Collegiate Mock Trial competitions