MoveMakers and NewsMakers for Nov. 25, 2025

St. Louis | Other States

St. Louis

Norton Rose Fulbright has moved into Commerce Bank Tower in downtown Clayton, Missouri following the global law firm’s rapid growth in the St. Louis area. In the last two years, a string of high-profile additions has more than tripled the firm’s St. Louis lawyer headcount from 13 to 40.

Commerce Bank Tower at 8001 Forsyth Blvd is part of Forsyth Pointe, a premier one million-square-foot office and retail development situated in the heart of Clayton’s bustling business district. Norton Rose Fulbright’s office sits on the eighth floor of the tower.

Jeff Cody, Norton Rose Fulbright’s US Managing Partner, said:

“Norton Rose Fulbright’s strategic growth in St. Louis has enhanced our client offering in key practice areas and emphasized our commitment to the city’s thriving sectors. As an important Midwest business hub, St. Louis offers exceptional opportunities for our clients and our firm. We are pleased to expand into a modern and efficient workspace, deepening our investment in this dynamic region.”

The firm’s new home in the St. Louis area enjoys access to a one-acre garden terrace with designated working and meeting areas, convenient retail and restaurant options and an event venue with entertainment space. Sweeping views of Shaw Park promote a strong connection to the outdoors, with 30 acres of gardens, pavilions and recreation facilities steps away from the office.

Thoughtfully designed by architects at Christner and Associates, Commerce Bank Tower meets LEED Silver standards with MERV 13 air filtration, touchless technology, electric vehicle charging stations, a green roof and LED lighting. It also features world-class art installations aimed at promoting innovation and creativity in line with the arts-focused culture of the city.

Stacey Murphy, Norton Rose Fulbright’s St. Louis Partner-in-Charge, commented:

“Our new office sets a standard for businesses in the St. Louis metropolitan area, offering a premier working space and a desirable location. The building’s amenities demonstrate our dedication to health and wellness, with tenant access to a state-of-the-art fitness facility and an open-air garden terrace where our people and clients can eat lunch, have a meeting and enjoy the outdoors.”

Norton Rose Fulbright’s St. Louis office routinely handles mergers and acquisitions, affiliations and joint ventures for clients in many sectors, including healthcare, life sciences and insurance. The lawyers in this office also work on real estate and corporate financings as well as mediations, arbitrations and litigation for clients in the financial services, construction and commercial industries. Other major areas of focus include insurance regulatory, artificial intelligence, executive compensation arrangements and public and private construction projects.

In addition to meaningful growth in St. Louis, Norton Rose Fulbright has enhanced its Midwest presence in recent years, including opening a Chicago office in 2022. In total, the firm has more than 100 Midwest-based lawyers focused on serving the region’s specialized industries.

Baker Sterchi Cowden & Rice LLC is pleased to announce that Natalie Frank has joined the firm’s St. Louis office as an associate. Frank focuses her practice on defending healthcare providers in medical malpractice litigation, and has experience representing physicians, hospitals and other healthcare professionals in state and federal courts.

Her practice spans all phases of litigation, and she has contributed to successful outcomes through motion practice and participation on trial teams. She also represents clients in state licensing board investigations in Missouri and Kansas.

She is a member of the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis, the Federal Bar Association, the Kansas Bar Association, The Missouri Bar and the Missouri Organization of Defense Lawyers. Her community involvement includes service as a chapter advisor for the UMKC chapter of Chi Omega Fraternity and as a member of the UMKC School of Humanities and Social Sciences Alumni Board.

Frank earned her law degree from the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law and her bachelor’s degree from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. She is licensed to practice in Missouri and Kansas.

Other states

The Richard S. Arnold Award for Distinguished Service was recently awarded by the Eighth Circuit Bar Association to Jerry M. Hunter.

Hunter is Senior Counsel at Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP with special expertise in labor and employment law. Hunter graduated from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluffs with a bachelor’s degree in history and government and graduated from Washington University Law School in 1977. Ten years later, Hunter completed the Senior Executive program at the John F. Kennedy School of Government.

From 1989 to 1993, Hunter served as General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board, having been nominated to that position by President George H. W. Bush and confirmed by the United States Senate in November 1989. As General Counsel, Hunter oversaw the agency’s operations across thirty-three regional offices, supervised the agency’s 1,800 employees, prosecuted unfair labor practice cases before the Board, and represented the agency in federal courts.

In 1995, Hunter was appointed by the bipartisan leadership of Congress to serve a four-year term as a member of the Board of Directors of the Office of Compliance, which had been established by the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 to administer civil rights and labor laws made applicable to the legislative branch by the Act.

Hunter previously served as Director of the Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, from 1986 to 1988, under Governor John D. Ashcroft. Earlier in his career, he was employed as labor counsel by the Kellwood Company, a St. Louis, Missouri-based

Fortune 500 corporation, as a field attorney for the NLRB and as a senior trial attorney for the EEOC.

This year’s Richard S. Arnold Award for Distinguished Service was presented during the Eighth Circuit Judicial Conference held in Kansas City, Missouri, on August 1, 2025. The award is named in honor of former Chief Judge Richard S. Arnold, who led a distinguished career that included graduating first in his class at Yale University and Harvard Law School. Judge Arnold clerked for Justice William Brennan on the Supreme Court of the United States before entering private practice and serving on the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals. Judge Arnold’s biographer said that he was “perhaps the best judge never to serve on the Supreme Court.” The award is certainly fitting for Mr. Hunter, who likewise has achieved a career of distinguished service.

Rhiana Luaders has moved from EquipmentShare, Inc. to Milestone Equipment Holdings as its new vice president and general counsel.