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david l . brown
Partner
contact
Tel: 515-244-2141, Ext. 1002
Facsimile: 515.244-2931
Mobile: 515-240-9963
Legal assistant
Lori Seley
bar admissions
- Iowa, 1976
- United States Supreme Court
- United States Court of Appeals,
Eighth Circuit - United States District Court,
Northern and Southern Districts of Iowa
education
- Drake University Law School, Des Moines, Iowa (J.D., 1975), Order of the Coif (Hon.)
- Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan (M.A., 1972)
- Lawrence University, Appleton, Wisconsin (B.A., 1969)
media
- Iowa State Bar Association, The Iowa Laywer - "OUR SACRED PROFESSION" A Guest Letter From David L. Brown
- WHO Channel 13, Des Moines, IA - "Remembering an Icon, Those Who Knew Willie Stevenson Glanton Speak Out"
Recognitions
DAVID L. BROWN joined the firm in 1978. Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Brown worked as an Assistant Attorney General and a Law Clerk for then Iowa Supreme Court Chief Justice, C. Edwin Moore. He practices primarily in the areas of professional negligence, commercial tort and general liability. He also has a state wide reputation in administrative practice and appellate law. He has been elected to fellowship in the American College of Trial Lawyer, the International Academy of Trial Lawyers, the International Society of Barristers, the American Board of Trial Advocates and the Iowa Academy of Trial Lawyers. He is the past president and current secretary-treasurer of the Iowa Academy of Trial Lawyers. Mr. Brown received the Award of Merit from the Iowa Bar Association in 1999 and recognized as the “Dean” of that organization in 2007. He received the Alumni of the Year award from Drake University Law School in 2004, the “Keeper of the Flame” Award from the Iowa State Bar Association in 2014; and the “Outstanding Advocate” Award from the American Board of Trial Advocates – Iowa Chapter in 2015. He has been a member of the C. Edwin Moore American Inn of Court since its creation in 1990.
read more
Mr. Brown held a three year appointment (2010-2013) as the Eighth Circuit Representative to the ABA Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary. The 15-member Committee evaluates all nominations of Article III judges to the federal district courts, circuit courts of appeals and the United States Supreme Court, as well as various territorial district courts. He continues to do evaluations of individuals considered for judicial vacancies in federal circuits throughout the United States.
professional associations and memberships
Polk County Bar Association
- PCB Junior Bar, 1984-1985 President
- Lawyers Grievance Committee, 1984-1985
- Lawyers Grievance Committee, 1988-1990
- Judicial Nomination Commission, 1992-1998
Iowa State Bar Association
- ISB Uniform Court Instructions Committee, 1988-2000
- ISB Litigation Section, 1993-1996 Chair
- ISB Task Force on Administrative Law, 1994-1998 Co-Chair
- ISB Task Force on Courthouse Security; 2005; Co-Chair
- ISB Blue Ribbon Committee on Legal Education and Bar Admission; 2014, Chair
American Bar Association
- ABA House of Delegates, 1997-Present
- ABA Standing Committee on Federal Judiciary, 2010-2013, 2020 Vice-Chair
- ABA Standing Committee on the American Judicial System, 2016
- ABA Board of Governors, 2017-2020
Other Professional Organizations
- National Board of Trial Advocacy (Diplomate)
- American Board of Professional Liability Attorneys (Medical/Legal Board Certified)
- Litigation Counsel of America
- Iowa Defense Counsel Association, 1993-1998 Board of Directors
- International Association of Defense Counsel
- Federation of Insurance and Corporate Counsel
- DRI
- Professional Liability Defense Federation
- Iowa State Bar Foundation
- American Bar Foundation
- American Inns of Court (Master, C. Edwin Moore Inn of Court)
- Lincoln Inne
- Iowa Academy of Trial Lawyers, 1993-1998 Board of Governors
- Iowa Academy of Trial Lawyers, 1999-2000 Vice President
- Iowa Academy of Trial Lawyers, 2000-2001 President
- Iowa Academy of Trial Lawyers, 2009-present; Secretary-Treasurer
- American College of Trial Lawyers (Past State Chair)
- International Academy of Trial Lawyers (Current State Chair)
- American Academy of Appellate Lawyers
- American Board of Trial Advocates (President, Iowa Chapter, 1999-2000)
- International Society of Barristers (Current State Chair)
- Rules of Professional Conduct Commission, Supreme Court of Iowa, 2000-2002
- Board of Counselors Drake University, 1980-1990; 2008-2016, 2017-
- Iowa Board of Bar Examiners, 1995-2004 (Chair, 2002-2004)
- Iowa Association for Justice
- Iowa Legal Aid Foundation Board
- American Judicature Society (National Advisory Council, 2011-2012)
honors & awards
- Award of Merit, Iowa State Bar Association, 1999
- Alumni of the Year, Drake Law School, 2004
- President's Award, Iowa State Bar Association, 2005
- President's Honorary Recognition Award as Dean of the Iowa State Bar Association, 2007
- Illinois State University - Honorary Doctorate of Law Degree, 2014
- “Keeper of the Flame Award”, Iowa State Bar Association, 2014
- Outstanding Advocate Award, American Board of Trial Advocates, Iowa Chapter, 2015
- Named to Drake University College of Law “150 in 150” list of outstanding alumni in 2015
- "ABA Journal" - Candidate for president-elect, Board of Governors
- ABA Government Affairs Office, Advocate of the Month, October 2020
- The American Inns of Court Professionalism Award, Eighth Circuit, 2023
"Our current ABA team discusses the important issues going before the House of Delegates in order that we have a consensus when we vote on pending resolutions. Other delegations from other states that have many more delegates come to us for guidance and leadership. It truly is an honor to serve on the national legal stage representing Iowa."
David L. Brown,
Iowa ABA Delegate
"We are proud to honor David L. Brown as our Advocate of the Month for October 2020. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) publicly recognized David at a recent Judiciary Committee hearing as a hard working member of the legal profession for over 40 years. A long time ABA member, David serves as Vice Chair for the ABA Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary, as a delegate for the state of Iowa in the ABA House of Delegates, and as a former member of the ABA Board of Governors. Currently, David is a Partner at the law firm of Hansen, McClintock & Riley, where he has worked since 1978. He previously worked as an Assistant Attorney General and a Law Clerk for then Iowa Supreme Court Chief Justice, C. Edwin Moore. He has also been elected to fellowship in the American College of Trial Lawyers, the International Academy of Trial Lawyers, the International Society of Barristers, the American Board of Trial Advocates and the Iowa Academy of Trial Lawyers."
"I want to thank David Brown for his hard work as he's counseled these people today ... and welcome him."
Senator Chuck Grassley,
Committee on the Judiciary Member
"“It’s a small contribution I can make as
a private citizen to bettering the system.
It is easy to think it’s all politics. But this
committee never talks politics. Nobody votes
politically, ever. It’s purely competency and
temperament. It’s refreshing, and contrary
to what others might read or hear about."
David L. Brown,
Iowa ABA Delegate
Read the Full Article from "The Iowa Lawyer," Dec. 2020
"Mentoring and teaching young people how to be lawyers has been in my DNA since I was a child. My father, a college dean in Illinois, trained me. Every one of us must be an ambassador for our profession. Every one of us needs to mentor other people. We are together in this great mission to become better lawyers and have a more just world. Our country was founded by great men and women who faced terrific odds to make it a better world and one with high ideals."
David L. Brown,
Iowa ABA Delegate
Read the Full Article from "The Iowa Lawyer," May 2023
past employment positions
- Iowa Attorney General, Assistant Attorney General, 1976
- Chief Justice C. Edwin Moore, Iowa Supreme Court, Law Clerk, 1976-1978