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Overview

Candice Kusmer focuses her litigation and appellate practice on product, premises and personal injury liability claims, exposure to toxic substances, education and maritime matters. She chairs MG+M's Midwest Marine Practice group. Candice currently serves as local, regional and national coordinating counsel for multiple corporations including several Fortune 500 companies, and particularly enjoys the challenges that come with the management of complex litigation.

Infusing collaboration and creativity to each case, Candice has an eye for innovative strategies and solutions designed to achieve cost-effective case resolution. Over the years, she has secured thousands of dismissals for her clients and utilizes careful case preparation as well as her professional relationships, built over time, to favorably resolve matters long before trial. Candice primarily practices in the state, federal and appellate courts of Illinois and Missouri while coordinating litigation nationwide in her role as national counsel.

Candice co-chairs the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion + Belonging Committee and participates in MG+M’s Women’s Forum in O’Fallon, fostering collegial relationships, business partnerships and community engagement. Beyond the firm, she is an active member of the National Association of Women Lawyers and a dedicated mentor in Washington University in St. Louis School of Law’s “Women Mentoring Women,” contributing to meaningful conversations about women in the legal field. Candice recognizes the importance of service and giving back to one's community, and she incorporates this responsibility both personally and professionally. She is a longtime member of the Junior Service Club of St. Clair County, a women's service organization that donates time and resources to local charities. She especially enjoys volunteering as a reader for Mind's Eye, a free service that broadcasts readings of newspapers, magazines, books and advertisements to the blind or print-impaired.

Originally from Oklahoma and a loyal Sooner fan, Candice now resides in O'Fallon, Illinois with her husband and daughters.

Experience

  • Successfully represented American Biltrite in a crucial legal victory in three New York appellate cases, obtaining summary judgment based on the lack of causation. Plaintiffs alleged lung cancer from Amtico vinyl asbestos floor tile exposure, but American Biltrite successfully argued the tile’s inability to contribute to the disease and challenged the lack of scientific foundation in plaintiffs’ claims. The appellate court reversed prior denials, stating that plaintiffs were not exposed to sufficient asbestos levels, and there was no demonstrated correlation between floor tile asbestos and lung cancer risk beyond the general environment.

Recognition

  • Best Lawyers in America, Mass Tort Litigation/Class Actions—Defendants, 2022–2023
  • Illinois Leading Lawyer, 2020-2021
  • Super Lawyers Rising Stars, 2009-2010, 2012-2016

Involvement

  • MG+M Diversity, Equity, Inclusion + Belonging Committee, Co-Chair
  • MG+M Women’s Forum, member
  • National Association of Women Lawyers, member
  • Illinois Appellate Lawyers Association
  • Illinois State Bar Association 
  • Missouri State Bar Association
  • St. Clair County Bar Association
  • Junior Service Club of St. Clair County, member
  • Women’s International Shipping & Trading Association, member

Education

  • Washington University, St. Louis School of Law, JD, 2002
  • The University of Oklahoma, BA, 1999

Bar Admissions

  • Illinois
  • Missouri