Richard D. Rhyne

Mr. Rhyne has more than 30 years of experience in successfully representing construction contractors, insurance and surety bond companies, and other corporate clients in multi-million dollar construction cases as well as in general litigation and commercial law matters. Mr. Rhyne has also participated in hundreds of arbitrations and mediations of construction disputes in a wide range of cases including several international disputes.  Recent career highlights include:

• Achieved 90% recoupment of remediations costs for defective construction and design defects against general contractor, architect and window manufacturer
• Achieved 100% recoupment of costs related to mold remediation due to defective windows for national hotel chain from general contractor and subcontractors
• Obtained a $1.5 million settlement following a two-day mediation on behalf of Jackson County, Missouri, with several companies involved in complaints over the design and construction defects at the Fort Osage Education Center.
• Obtained a $4.2 million verdict for clients who were victims in a landmark cattle fraud case.  The Kansas City Star: Millions Awarded in Cattle Fraud
• In his second major cattle fraud case, obtained a total award of more than $1 million for a client in a jury trial. Smoke, Mirrors and Holstein Heifers
• Successfully represented defendants in a 27 count indictment on a bid rigging & Hobbs Act case involving the waste hauling industry
• Was successful in having a $2.2 million nuisance award overturned against a landfill operation
• Successfully represented insured in obtaining cost of the defense from four carriers in environmental claim
• Obtained a multimillion-dollar settlement for owner in a multi-party delay claim arising out of a fast-track project for construction
• Successfully represented insured in obtaining defense costs in several cases involving the pollution exclusion

Court Memberships

• Missouri
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
• U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas
• U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri

Honors

• Selected among The Best Lawyers in America®, 2011-2012
• Elected President of Committee of County Progress, 2010
• Selected for Missouri/Kansas Super Lawyers, 2006-2007, 2010 and 2011 
• Kansas City Bar Association Professional Responsibility Award, 1974
• Managing Editor, UMKC Law Review, 1973-1974
• Thomas Deacy Memorial Trial Practice Award, 1974
• Martindale-Hubbell® “AV” Rating
• U.S. Army: 1st Lt., 1969-1971, Honorable discharge; Combat Infantry's Badge; Bronze Star with Oak Leaf Cluster

Professional Affiliations

• Certified Arbitrator, American Arbitration Association
• Certified Mediator, American Arbitration Association
• Certified Neutral with the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri
• The Missouri Bar
• The Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association (KCMBA), Chair of KCMBA Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee, 2003; KCMBA Committee Leadership Council, 2003; Chair of KCMBA Construction Law Committee, 2001
• Lawyers Association of Kansas City
• ABA Dispute Resolution Section Member
• ABA Environment, Energy and Resources Section Member
• ABA Litigation Section Member
• ABA Tort and Insurance Practice Section (TIPS) Member
• ABA Forum Committee on the Construction Industry
• List of Dispute Resolution Neutrals, Missouri Supreme Court Rule 17
• AMM - Association of Missouri Mediators
• ACR - Association of Conflict Resolution
• Kansas City, Missouri Environmental Management and Waste Minimization Commission
• Missouri Environmental Transition Advisory Group
• Kansas City, Missouri Environment and Energy Commission
• President of Downtown II
• MS Society Board of Directors, 1997-2003
• MS Society Executive Committee, 1999-2003
• MS Society Executive Committee Vice-Chair, 2002-2003
• MS Society Governmental Relations Committee Co-Chair, 2002-2003

Publications

• Understanding ADR, chapter in Preparing for Alternative Dispute Resolution Cases, December 2007
• Resolving Public Sector Disputes: A Road of Politics and Potholes, Dispute Resolution Journal, Feb.-April, 2003
• Construction Law Arbitration, The Missouri Bar ADR Committee Newsletter - Fall 2001
• Construction Law Mediation, The Missouri Bar ADR Committee Newsletter - Fall 2001
• Construction Law: From Getting the Contract to Chain of Liability, 1999. Chapter 2 -- Scope of Typical Clauses, Construction Change Order Claims, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1994
• For the Defense: Tactics, Strategies and Considerations in Defense of Civil Litigation, 1994
• Missouri Environmental Law, Federal Publications, Inc., 1993
• Missouri Construction Law, Federal Publications, Inc., 1992 and 1993
• Co-author, The New Used Oil Regulations and Their Future Impacts, Petro-Safe ’93 Seminar, 1993

Presentations

• Alternate Dispute Resolution, Legal Symposium for the Construction Industry, September 2007
• Change Orders in Kansas, Lorman Education Services, September 27, 2005
• Home Construction Disputes, Association of MO Mediators, August 13, 2005
• What's Hot in Construction Law, Lathrop & Gage L.C., July 14, 2005
• Change Orders, Lorman Education Services, May 3, 2005
• Construction Law: Can This Job Be Saved?  Creative Strategies For Project Completion &   Litigation Avoidance in Missouri, Lorman Education Services, 2002
• Hot Topics in Construction Law for Real Estate Professionals, The Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association, 2002
• Recent ADR Developments, The Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association, 2002
• Design-Build In Missouri and Kansas: Public Sector Issues/Competitive Bidding, Lorman Education Services, 2001
• Panelist, Attorney’s ADR Toolbox, Missouri Bar Annual Meeting, 2001
• Major Land Use Laws in Missouri: Environmental Issues in Property Development, The National Business Institute, 2001
• Major Land Use Laws in Missouri: Ethical Considerations, The National Business Institute, 2001
• The Big Debate, Joint Sessions and Private Caucuses - Association of Missouri Mediators, 2000
• Dispute Resolution: Practical Solutions, The Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association, 2000
• Environmental Considerations-Compliance Issues; Hazardous Materials/Solid Waste; Demolition/Surface Contamination; Stormwater, Law Seminars International: Construction Law, 1999 and 2000
• Construction Law: From Getting the Contract to Chain of Liability, 1999.·Chapter 2 -- Scope of Typical Clauses, Construction Change Order Claims, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1994
• For the Defense: Tactics, Strategies and Considerations in Defense of Civil Litigation, 1994
• Construction Claims and Job Profitability, 1988
• What Do You Do When the Contract is Changed?, Chap. 4, What Do You Do When Conditions on the Job Change? Chap. 5, Construction Law: What Do You Do When?, National Business Institute, Inc., Seminar, 1986
• Construction Delay Claims Seminar, 1985
• CPM Construction Scheduling Using Micro-Computers, and Construction Delay Claims Seminar, 1985