Kristen Sanocki, co-chair of Thompson Coburn’s Complex and Class Actions practice group, defends companies in class actions, multidistrict litigation, and complex commercial disputes in jurisdictions nationwide.
Kristen’s class action work frequently involves consumer-protection claims and disputes concerning a company’s products or business practices. She also handles contract and business-tort disputes arising from commercial relationships. She has represented companies and institutions in the telecommunications, manufacturing, agribusiness, food and consumer products, financial services, higher education, and transportation sectors.
Kristen also brings state and local tax (SALT) experience to her complex litigation practice, including class actions and parallel proceedings involving tax claims asserted by state and local governments.
Kristen develops overall case strategy, directs large-scale fact and expert discovery, takes and defends key depositions, and leads class-certification, dispositive-motion, and appellate briefing. She approaches each matter with rigorous preparation, a close command of the evidence, and a focus on turning complicated facts into clear, persuasive arguments.
Earlier in her career, Kristen served as deputy counsel to the governor of Missouri, overseeing legal departments for state agencies and managing the governor’s judicial-selection process.
experience
- Defended clients in multidistrict litigation concerning 303 tractor hydraulic fluid.
- Obtained dismissal of a putative class action alleging consumer-protection and related tort claims against a food-industry client.
- Won a jury verdict for a transportation client in a complex breach of contract dispute.
- Represented a telecommunications provider in parallel class and individual proceedings brought by municipalities, securing summary judgment on key claims and a favorable result following trial.
- Secured summary judgment from an arbitrator on behalf of a financial institution.
- Obtained summary judgment for an agribusiness client on tort claims and successfully defended the judgment on appeal.
Professional
- American Bar Association
- Missouri Bar Association
- Illinois State Bar Association
Community
- Commission on Racial and Ethnic Fairness, Supreme Court of Missouri, Member, Data Subcommittee
- St. Louis Business Journal 40 Under 40, 2024
- Missouri Lawyers Media Up & Coming Attorneys, 2024
- Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch for Commercial Litigation in St. Louis, Missouri (by BL Rankings), 2021-2024
- Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch for Litigation and Controversy – Tax in St. Louis, Missouri (by BL Rankings), 2022-2024
- “Ethical and Professional Challenges Facing State Tax Professionals”
Council On State Taxation (COST) Spring Meeting, May 2024 - “Missouri State Tax Update”
Tax Executives Institute, Inc., Presenter, March 2024 - “State Income Tax for Sales Tax Professionals”
Institute for Professionals in Taxation (IPT), 2023 Sales Tax Symposium, Presenter, October 2023 - “Top Ten Income Tax Cases That Will Have You Yee-Hawing”
Institute for Professionals in Taxation (IPT), 2023 Annual Conference, Moderator, June 2023 - “West Coast State Income Tax Updates”
Institute for Professionals in Taxation (IPT), 2022 Annual Conference, Moderator, June 2022 - “National Judicial Update & Discussion of Selected State Tax Issues, Cases, and Policy Trends”
” Council On State Taxation (COST), Midwest Regional State Tax Seminar, August 2019
I am a wine enthusiast with an interest in exploring different regions and producers. Outside of work, I prioritize travel, regular exercise, and reading.