• Nov 29, 2022

WICHITA – Monnat & Spurrier, Chartered, attorneys Sal Intagliata and Eli O’Brien have been named to the esteemed list of 2022 Missouri & Kansas Super Lawyers. Intagliata was honored by Super Lawyers for the ninth consecutive year, while O’Brien earned recognition as one of Super Lawyers’ “Rising Stars” for the second straight year.

Only 5 percent of eligible attorneys are selected for the exclusive Super Lawyers list. Super Lawyers Rising Stars include only 2.5 percent of eligible attorneys who are under 40.

Sal Intagliata is a shareholder in the firm and has practiced law for more than 27 years. His career includes 23 years as a distinguished criminal defense attorney in private practice and four years as a Sedgwick County Assistant District Attorney prosecuting cases in the Gangs/Violent Crimes Division.

Intagliata serves on the Kansas Judicial Council Criminal Law Advisory Committee and the Kansas Supreme Court Pretrial Justice Task Force. He is a past member of the Board of Governors of the Kansas Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. A past vice president of the Wichita Bar Association, he is also a past member of its Board of Governors and past chair of its Criminal Practice Division.

Intagliata earned his bachelor’s degree, with distinction, from the University of Kansas, graduating with dual majors in political science and Spanish. He earned his Juris Doctorate from the University of Kansas School of Law. He is also a graduate of the National Criminal Defense College.

Eli O’Brien has been an associate with the firm since 2017, defending serious felony accusations and DUI/DWI cases.

Prior to joining the firm, O’Brien was a trial attorney with the Sedgwick County Public Defender’s Office. Over the years as a public defender and private practice defense attorney, his jury trials have resulted in multiple acquittals.

A graduate of Washburn University School of Law and the National Criminal Defense College Trial Practice Institute, O’Brien also holds a bachelor’s degree in history from Emporia State University.

  • Nov 14, 2022

WICHITA – For the fifth consecutive year, distinguished criminal defense attorney Dan Monnat, of Monnat & Spurrier, Chartered, has been recognized on the Top 10 List of Missouri & Kansas Super Lawyers. He has been among the overall Top 100 of Missouri & Kansas Super Lawyers for 17 years.

Practicing in Kansas and Nebraska for more than 45 years, Monnat has focused on high-profile criminal defense, white-collar criminal defense, appellate defense and bet-the-company litigation. His cases have attracted international attention, including the defense and acquittal of late-term abortion provider Dr. George Tiller, the defense of an innocent man wrongly accused of being the notorious BTK, and acquittals and exonerations of his clients in shaken baby murder and other murder, sex and white-collar prosecutions.

“In today’s divisive and politically charged environment, defending the Constitutional rights of the accused is more critical than ever,” Monnat said. “Every year, the Super Lawyers Top 10 List includes tremendously accomplished attorneys and litigators. I’m honored to stand among them and privileged to count them as friends and peers.”

A graduate of California State University, Monnat earned a Juris Doctorate from Creighton University School of Law and is a graduate of Gerry Spence’s Trial Lawyer’s College.

Monnat is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, the international Academy of Trial Lawyers, the American Board of Criminal Lawyers, the American Bar Foundation, and the Kansas Bar Foundation. He is a Life Member and past Board Member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, as well as a two-term past president of the Kansas Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. Monnat also currently sits on the Kansas Trial Lawyers Association’s Board of Editors and is the Criminal Law Chair.

A frequent national lecturer and editorial contributor on criminal defense topics, Monnat is the co-author of “Sentencing, Probation, and Collateral Consequences,” a chapter of the Kansas Bar Association’s Kansas Criminal Law Handbook, 5th edition.

Monnat & Spurrier was founded in 1985 by Monnat and legal scholar Stan Spurrier. Today the firm has six lawyers and has earned a reputation for its work in all sectors of criminal defense, white collar criminal defense, and criminal appeals.

  • Nov 10, 2022

WICHITA  – Tristan Johnson has joined Monnat & Spurrier, Chartered as an associate attorney. His primary practice will focus on the defense of criminal cases including DUIs and drug offenses.

A graduate of Washburn University and Washburn University School of Law, Tristan began working at the Shawnee County District Attorney’s Office as an undergraduate student majoring in legal studies. By the time of his law school graduation earlier this year, he had received four years of prosecution experience, transitioning from Law Clerk to Licensed Prosecuting Intern, and handling multiple traffic and misdemeanor trials.

“Every great defense lawyer is quick on his feet and fiercely competitive in his field of practice, and Tristan Johnson is no exception,” said firm president Dan Monnat. “He played baseball at Allen County Community College on athletic and academic scholarships, where he was a Baseball Academic All-American and developed a keen desire to study law and join a team of lawyers like those at Monnat & Spurrier. We’re thrilled to have him in our firm’s line-up of criminal defense attorneys.”

While in law school, Johnson was a member of Washburn’s Litigation Law Clinic, helping make a difference in the community by providing representation in various matters to those who would have been otherwise unable to afford it.

With a keen talent for competition, coaching and mentorship, Johnson also operated his own youth baseball instruction business for four years, encouraging young players and building sportsmanship in his community.

Johnson is a member of the Kansas Bar Association, Wichita Bar Association, and Kansas Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.

Founded in 1985 by litigator Dan Monnat and legal scholar Stan Spurrier, the firm of Monnat & Spurrier has built a national reputation for criminal defense and appellate defense, computer crimes defense, and white-collar criminal defense. In addition to Monnat, Spurrier, and Johnson, the firm includes attorney and shareholder Sal Intagliata, and associate attorneys Eli O’Brien and Alex Sheppard.

  • Nov 04, 2022

(WICHITA, Kan.) – The annual joint survey by U.S. News & World Report and Best Lawyers has awarded Monnat & Spurrier, Chartered, with five “Best Law Firms 2023” metropolitan rankings in the sectors of:

  • General Practice Criminal Defense
  • White-Collar Criminal Defense
  • Appellate Practice
  • DUI/DWI Defense
  • Bet-the-Company Litigation

“This recognition becomes more important to us every year because it stems directly from surveys of our clients and peers,” said Dan Monnat. “We appreciate the high praise from clients, and the sincere respect from our fellow lawyers in the bar.”

“Best Law Firms” rankings are compiled using evaluations by clients who are asked if they would refer others to the firm. Firms are ranked for their responsiveness, cost-effectiveness, and civility. Attorneys in similar practice areas are also surveyed, and overall rankings reflect this peer input, as
well.

Celebrating its 37 th year, Monnat & Spurrier was founded by criminal defense attorney Dan Monnat and legal scholar Stan Spurrier. The firm has gained a reputation for its successful defense of such high-profile clients as late-term abortion provider Dr. George Tiller; the unfortunate innocent person whose home was mistakenly raided by police as being that of serial killer BTK; and most recently, the Western Kansas man wrongly accused of murdering a four-year-old child by cruelly beating or shaking her.

In addition to Monnat and Spurrier, the firm includes shareholder Sal Intagliata, and associates Eli O’Brien, Alex Sheppard and Tristan Johnson.