Christine A. Vaporean Principal

800 Market Street
Suite 1100
St. Louis, MO 63101
T: (314) 242-5337
F: (314) 242-5537
Email

Ms. Vaporean is a principal in the firm’s St. Louis office, practicing in the areas of health care provider liability defense and employment practices defense. Her experience in the defense of health care providers ranges from obstetrics malpractice cases to nursing home care. Ms. Vaporean also represents employers at all stages of employment matters, from pre-incident policy preparation to the investigation and defense of charges filed with administrative agencies to the litigation phase, including trial if necessary. She has been a speaker at several professional seminars on medical and nursing liability matters and has authored many publications on issues affecting both health care providers and employers.

Ms. Vaporean serves as chair of the firm's hiring committee, and also serves on the diversity and personnel committees. She is one of the founders of the Brown & James’ Fifth Friday Women’s Initiative to increase retention and promotion of women in the firm.

Recent Achievements:
Rising Stars - Personal Injury Defense: Medical Malpractice, Missouri & Kansas Super Lawyers (2008, 2010-12)

Professional Affiliations:
Illinois State Bar Association
Missouri Organization of Defense Lawyers
Women Lawyers' of Greater St. Louis 

Bar Admissions:
Missouri
Illinois
United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri
United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri

Favorable Jury Verdicts:
Mitchell v. Kardesch (February, 2008)
Ni v. Washington University and Garcia (October/November, 2007)
Klos v. Koenig (August, 2006)
Blank v. PRORehab (April, 2006)
Leslie v. Chehval (retrial, February, 2006)
Buscher v. Mattaline (May, 2005)
Leslie v. Chehval (March/April, 2004)

Publications:
Medical Malpractice From A-Z: “Ethical Traps to Avoid” and “Dealing with Medical Liens with Settlement - Medicare, Medicaid and ERISA”  (2011)

"Missouri Supreme Court Issues Opinion on Constitutionality of MedMal Caps," The Firm Inquiry, (Spring 2010)

"Medicare and Medicaid Liens - An Overview and Update for Defense Counsel, Missouri Organization of Defense Lawyers Newsletter," (Spring 2009)

"Medicare Liens - An Overview and Update for Defense Counsel, Current Issues in Medical Liability and Health Care Law," Defense Research Institute (Fall 2009)

"Theories of Hospital Liability After Tort Reform: Negligent Credentialing," The Firm Inquiry (Summer 2008)

Speaking Engagements:
"Medicare Reporting - Are you complying?" Brown & James Law Symposium (January 2013)

Medical Malpractice From A-Z: “Ethical Traps to Avoid” and “Dealing with Medical Liens with Settlement - Medicare, Medicaid and ERISA”  (2011)

St. Louis Association of Healthcare Risk Managers - Legal Bases for the Use and Arrangement of Set Aside Trusts in Resolving Claims Involving Medicare Beneficiaries. The presentation covered both the application of and legal bases for the use of Set Aside Trusts in non-work comp liability cases involving Medicare claimants as well as an update to Section 111 reporting requirements (2010).

The Simon Law Firm Seminar to Benefit Legal Services of Eastern Missouri, Inc. - Current Issues in Medicare and Medicaid (2009).

The Missouri Bar, Hospital Liability, Thinking Outside the Box (2008).

National Business Institutes, Avoiding Medical Malpractice: Preventing and Defending Accusations, Section Author for Documentation and Communication Among Members of the Care Team and the Process of Informed Consent (2008).

National Business Institutes, Getting the Results You Want: Successful Missouri Medical Malpractice, Section Author for Trial Tips and Techniques for Trying the Medical Malpractice Case (Prosecution and Defense Perspectives) (2005).

St. Louis Chapter of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Nurses, Nursing Malpractice Law (2003).

Community Activities:
BWORKS, Board of Directors