Significant Judgments, Settlements And Appellate Victories
Last updated on May 5, 2026
At Sease & Wadding, our track record proves that we possess the intellectual depth and trial readiness to handle high-stakes litigation. We do not shy away from challenging massive corporations or powerful government entities. Our attorneys provide sophisticated advocacy for complex civil disputes, ensuring that your interests remain protected throughout the legal process. Our Des Moines-based team acts as a strategic partner, delivering the heavy-hitting results of a large firm with the dedicated attention of a boutique practice.
Significant Judgments And Settlements
We focus on risk mitigation and ROI for our clients in every contest. Our history includes a landmark victory against the State of Iowa regarding the Juvenile Home. This case centered on substantive due process and constitutional rights, proving we can win against the most resource-rich opponents. We also handle complex business litigation and fiduciary disputes where the future of a company is on the line. With the experience of Scott Long and his nearly 40 years of commercial litigation experience, we offer seasoned guidance for “bet-the-company” scenarios.
Significant Appellate Victories
We have carved out a distinct niche by handling complex appeals cases, including complicated civil appeals and family law appeals cases. We serve as the “fixers” when lower courts make critical legal errors. Our attorneys have over 70 years of combined experience navigating the nuances of appellate briefs and oral arguments. By handling novel legal arguments, we have secured victories that protect our clients’ long-term interests. An appeal is a rigorous intellectual battle that requires deep knowledge of the law and our appellate lawyers have proven that they thrive in this environment.
The Boutique Advantage
Unlike massive firms where junior associates handle your file, you will work directly with our partners. We offer a big law firm experience with a boutique focus. You will receive decisive, prudent counsel from attorneys who are personally invested in your success.
Case Results
Business Litigation – Breach of Contract – $1,000,000 Jury Verdict for Manufacturer
Scott Long obtained a $1,000,000+ jury verdict in favor of a Des Moines-based manufacturer against a national retailer for breach of two supply agreements. On appeal, the jury’s liability finding was upheld, along with over 85% of the damage award, including over $600,000 in lost profits damages.
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act Litigation – Successful Chemical Manufacturer Defense
Scott Long successfully defended an Iowa-based chemical manufacturer in a federal court lawsuit for data compensation amounts allegedly owed from a supplemental distributorship agreement under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). Following two trials and two appeals, the damages awarded were a fraction of the amount requested.
Complex Commercial Construction Litigation – $1,750,000 Verdict
Matt Sease obtained a verdict of over $1,750,000 following a bench trial in a complex commercial construction litigation involving the construction of the Ankeny Middle School and Ankeny High School. On appeal, nearly all of the damages were affirmed by the Iowa Court of Appeals.
Consumer Protection – Iowa Supreme Court Reversal in First-Impression Case
Matt Sease obtained a significant reversal on an issue of first impression involving the restoration of a classic car before the Iowa Supreme Court. The Dickinson County district court had originally found in favor of the restoration company and ordered Matt’s clients to pay nearly $70,000 above the parties’ agreed-upon price. On appeal, Matt successfully argued that Iowa’s Consumer Protection laws prohibit the restoration shop from charging any more than what was originally agreed upon, reversing the district court and ordering the return of the vehicle to Matt’s clients.
Federal Jury Verdict Reduced by $10,000,000
Matt Sease successfully argued in post-trial motions, following an adverse Federal Court jury verdict, that the damages sought by the Plaintiff were not recoverable and were additionally excessive. Through these motions, the verdict was reduced by over $10 million and reduced the verdict to well below $1 million.
Breach of Contract – $1,300,000 Jury Verdict
Matt Sease obtained a jury verdict of over $1.3 million in a complex breach of contract claim involving the demolition work on the former Younker’s Building in Des Moines. All of the Polk County jury’s compensatory damages of over $1.3 million were later affirmed on appeal.
Construction Litigation – Complete Defense Verdict + Successful Counterclaim Award
Matt Sease and Scott Wadding obtained a complete defense verdict on behalf of a local home builder regarding claims of defective workmanship, breach of contract, and violations of Iowa Consumer Protection law. The plaintiff was seeking over $500,000 in damages. After 9 days of trial, the Polk County jury returned a complete defense verdict on behalf of their client, and the jury also awarded all of the requested counterclaim damages.
Personal Injury – Car Accident – $1,000,000 Jury Verdict
Matt Sease obtained a verdict of over $1 million in an underinsured motorist claim against the client’s insurance carrier. After obtaining all of the insurance money available for Matt’s client against the driver who caused the accident, Matt pursued a claim against the client’s $1 million underinsured motorist policy. The client’s injuries included a torn rotator cuff that ultimately resulted in a total shoulder replacement. Following just 2 days of trial, the Mahaska County jury returned the verdict of over $1 million and provided full compensation for the client’s injuries.
Defamation Defense – Retrial – Jury Verdict Reduced by Millions
Matt Sease and Delaney Kozlowski obtained a significant defense verdict based upon claims of defamation. The client had previously had a jury award of $8 million entered against him which was reversed on appeal. Following the reversal, Matt and Delaney were retained to represent the individual during the retrial. Following the retrial, the Polk County jury returned a verdict of approximately, $600,000 which was further reduced to just over $100,000 by the district court in post-trial motions filed by Matt and Delaney.
Fraudulent Misrepresentation – Complete Defense Verdict
Matt Sease and Delaney Kozlowski obtained a complete defense jury verdict on behalf of their client involving claims of fraudulent misrepresentation in the formation of a commercial lease agreement. The Cass County jury returned a complete defense verdict and rejected all claims against their client.
Will Contest – Jury Invalidated Will Involving 500 Acres of Farmland
Matt Sease and Delaney Kozlowski successfully set aside a will on behalf of their client. Following a contested jury trial involving extensive medical history, the Floyd County jury determined that the client’s mother lacked mental capacity in creating the will that totally disinherited her daughter. The result of invalidating the will allowed Matt and Delaney’s client to receive her rightful 1/3 inheritance of over 500 acres of farmland in northern Iowa.
Complete Defense Verdict Defeats $900,000 Claim for Services
Matt Sease obtained a complete defense verdict regarding claims seeking over $900,000. Matt represented a trust that was being sued by the now deceased settlor of the trust’s significant other who was seeking damages for the services she provided prior to his death. After considering all of the evidence, the Dubuque County jury returned a complete defense verdict on behalf of Matt’s client.
Attorney Disciplinary Board – 60-Day Suspension Reduced to Public Reprimand
Matt Sease obtained a significant appellate victory at the Iowa Supreme Court on behalf of his client in an attorney disciplinary proceeding. Following a recommendation by the Iowa Grievance Commission that the attorney’s license be suspended for 60 days, the Iowa Supreme Court entirely removed the suspension and instead ordered a public reprimand.
Appeal at Iowa Supreme Court Reduced Damages by Over $7,000,000
Matt Sease obtained a significant appellate victory at the Iowa Supreme Court on behalf of his client reducing a verdict by over $7 million. Following an adverse jury verdict in which the client was assessed $11 million in damages, Matt was retained to represent the client on appeal. After briefing and argument before the Iowa Court of Appeals and the Iowa Supreme Court, the Iowa Supreme Court eventually reduced the damages by over $7 million.
Siblings of Sabrina Ray and Related Claimants v. State of Iowa – $14,675,000
In May 2017, sixteen-year-old Sabrina Ray was found dead in her adoptive home in Perry, Iowa. She weighed 56 pounds. Authorities discovered that her adoptive parents, Marc Ray and Misty Jo Bousman-Ray, had subjected children in their home to severe physical abuse, torture, and neglect — despite the state having received eleven child abuse reports against the couple between 2010 and 2015. Both were convicted and sentenced to decades in prison.
Scott Wadding represented Sabrina’s siblings – fellow adopted children who had endured the same home – as well as a child harmed through the Rays’ in-home daycare operation, alleging the Iowa Department of Health and Human Resources repeatedly failed to protect the children in the Ray home. The Iowa State Appeal Board approved a $10 million settlement on behalf of two siblings in 2023. In May 2025, the state agreed to pay a third sibling $4.175 million after that child was found to have been severely physically abused, neglected, and tortured. The state also paid $500,000 in 2022 to a child who had been enrolled in the daycare the Rays operated out of their home. The combined recovery for Scott’s clients totaled $14,675,000.
In addition to the financial recovery, the settlements required Iowa’s Department of Health and Human Services to form a task force to improve the foster care system in Iowa, implement malnutrition training for staff and contractors, and reinforce standards requiring investigators to consult qualified medical professionals before closing abuse determinations.
Sease & Wadding committed $300,000 from the settlement to establish the Sabrina Ray Endowed Fund for the Children’s Rights Clinic at Drake Law School, supporting legal advocacy for vulnerable youth in Iowa’s juvenile court system.
Medical Malpractice – Pediatric Cardiac Surgery – $2,225,000
Scott Wadding represented a premature infant who suffered a serious injury during heart surgery. During the procedure, the child’s pulmonary artery was clipped and her vagus nerve was cut — injuries that should not occur in the course of competent cardiac surgical care. Scott brought a medical malpractice claim against the cardiothoracic surgeon responsible for the procedure and recovered $2,225,000 for the child.
Patent Litigation: Sprint v. Time Warner Cable, Comcast, Cox & Cable One – Voice over IP
Before coming home to Iowa in 2017, Scott Wadding served as a member of the litigation team at Shook, Hardy & Bacon representing Sprint in a series of high-stakes patent infringement cases against the nation’s largest cable telecommunications providers — Time Warner Cable, Comcast, Cox Communications, and Cable One. At issue was Sprint’s portfolio of patents covering Voice over IP technology, which the defendants had deployed at massive commercial scale across their subscriber networks.
The cases presented complex technical and economic questions, requiring the integration of sophisticated patent damages analysis with the realities of a rapidly evolving telecommunications marketplace. Scott’s work focused on the development of the damages case across all four matters — contributing to the analytical and evidentiary framework used to quantify the value of Sprint’s intellectual property and the extent of each defendant’s infringement.
The case was tried in federal court in the District of Kansas. The jury found that Time Warner Cable had willfully infringed Sprint’s VoIP patents and awarded $139.8 million in damages, the amount requested by Sprint. The Federal Circuit affirmed the verdict on appeal, upholding the damages award as a reasonable royalty. Comcast separately agreed to pay Sprint $250 million to settle its case.
Shareholder Derivative Litigation – Multi-Entity Restaurant Group
Scott Wadding represented the Fong’s Pizza entities and their individual shareholder-operators in a complex, multi-front shareholder derivative dispute arising from the dissolution of a business partnership in one of Des Moines’s most recognized restaurant brands. The litigation involved three separate derivative actions filed across Iowa courts, targeting four distinct legal entities operating Fong’s Pizza locations in downtown Des Moines, the Drake neighborhood, Cedar Rapids, and Ankeny. Each entity presented its own ownership structure, financial history, and legal exposure, requiring Scott to simultaneously manage parallel proceedings while maintaining a coherent, unified defense strategy across all fronts.
The case demanded expertise across multiple disciplines simultaneously. On the corporate governance side, Scott successfully argued that Fong’s had the right to make an irrevocable statutory election to purchase Page’s shares at fair value under Iowa Code § 490.1434 — converting the dissolution proceeding into a fair value hearing and positioning the client to control the endgame of the litigation. On the valuation side, Scott retained and worked extensively with a leading valuation expert with dedicated restaurant industry appraisal experience, to rebut plaintiff’s expert’s valuation. The case also required Scott to defeat Page’s renewed attempts to prematurely dissolve the closed Drake and Cedar Rapids entities before the claims could be litigated – successfully defending against dissolution motions.
The matter proceeded through extensive fact and expert discovery and parallel fair value and trial tracks involving four legal entities, reflecting the full range of demands in high-stakes, multi-party business litigation.
Estate of Bisignano v. Exile Brewing Company, LLC
Ceva Ruth-Lucille Bisignano – known professionally as “Ruthie” – was one of Des Moines’s most colorful figures. From 1950 to 1971, she owned and operated Ruthie’s Lounge, where she became locally, nationally, and internationally famous for her signature bar trick of balancing two pint glasses on her breasts and serving them without using her hands. The stunt attracted patrons from across the country, earned her coverage in dozens of newspapers and magazines, and allowed her to charge nearly three times what other bars charged for drinks. After selling the Lounge in 1971, Ruthie lived quietly until her death in 1993.
In 2012, Exile Brewing Company launched a flagship gold lager called “Ruthie,” allegedly modeling the beer’s branding, logo, and marketing on Ruthie’s identity and persona. The beer became the best-selling Iowa-made beer in the state.
Scott Wadding represented the reopened Estates of Ruth and Frank Bisignano in claims for common law appropriation of name and likeness and right of publicity. The litigation was exceptionally complex, presenting multiple unsettled questions of first impression under Iowa law — including whether Iowa recognizes a common law right of publicity; whether such rights constitute inheritable property that descends through intestate succession; whether publicity rights can survive postmortem without active exploitation by the decedent or her heirs; what statute of limitations governs such claims; and whether the continuing wrong doctrine applies to ongoing commercial misappropriation of name and likeness. No Iowa appellate court had ever decided any of these questions.
When Exile moved to vacate the probate court’s reopening of the Estates – challenging the court’s jurisdiction and Huntsman’s standing – Scott argued the matter to the Iowa Supreme Court, which unanimously affirmed the probate court’s ruling in May 2023. The Court held that Exile, as a potential debtor to the Estates, had no right to intervene in the probate proceedings and was, in the probate court’s words, a mere interloper. The Supreme Court left the merits of the intellectual property claims — including the existence and inheritability of Ruthie’s rights – for the civil proceedings.
In federal district court, Exile mounted an aggressive defense, filing five motions for summary judgment and judgment on the pleadings targeting every aspect of the Estates’ claims: the viability of Iowa’s common law causes of action, preemption, standing, abandonment, acquiescence, statute of limitations, and laches. Scott defeated all but one. The court – in a 49-page opinion – ruled that the Iowa Supreme Court would recognize causes of action for appropriation of name and likeness, right of publicity, misappropriation of trade values, and deceptive marketing; that Ruthie’s publicity rights constituted inheritable property under Iowa law; that the Estates were entitled to a five-year statute of limitations as a property-based claim; and that genuine issues of material fact on abandonment and acquiescence required a jury to decide. The court also rejected Exile’s attempt to raise federal preemption, finding that defense was waived. Only the Lanham Act false association claim was resolved against the Estates, on the ground that thirty years of non-use constituted abandonment as a matter of federal trademark law — a standard distinct from, and more demanding than, the common law abandonment analysis that left the Iowa claims intact.
The case remains a significant development in Iowa intellectual property law, presenting the most thorough judicial analysis to date of the postmortem right of publicity under Iowa common law.
Consult An Experienced Des Moines Litigator And Appellate Lawyer
We are not afraid of aggressive opponents. Whether you are a business owner or an individual seeking justice, we represent clients all over Iowa. Our attorneys provide the stone and the sling to help you overcome your legal giants. Call us at 515-883-2222 or send a message through our website to schedule your appointment.