Overview

Charles Cooper is a Partner in Freeman Mathis & Gary, LLP's Kansas City office. He is a member of the Tort & Catastrophic Loss and Appellate Advocacy practice areas. He has litigated cases in more than 35 states and has served as national litigation counsel for Fortune 500 companies.

Mr. Cooper handles trucking and other transportation cases in addition to matters involving products liability, commercial disputes, dram shop, professional liability, construction defects, premises liability, civil rights, constitutional law, and other types of complex litigation.

In 2025, Mr. Cooper received the Top Defense Verdict award from Missouri Lawyers Media for his work in a wrongful death trucking case in Kansas City involving alleged eight-figure damages. He follows developments in artificial intelligence closely and has lectured on AI ethics in legal practice.

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Bar Admissions

Colorado

  • U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado

Illinois

  • U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois

Kansas

  • Kansas State Courts
  • U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas

Missouri

  • Missouri State Courts
  • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri
  • U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri

U.S. Courts of Appeals

  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit

Education

J.D. (with honors)

University of Tulsa

B.S.

University of Houston

Representative Cases & Clients

  • Served as National Counsel for Johnson Controls and Compass Group USA
  • Jury trial in Jackson County, Missouri (first chair) in wrongful death trucking accident case with alleged eight-figure damages (defense verdict) (2025) #1 TOP DEFENSE VERDICT IN 2025 – MISSOURI LAWYERS MEDIA
  • Jury trial in St. Charles County, Missouri (first chair) in car accident case (defense verdict) (2025)
  • Jury trial in Greene County, Missouri (first chair) (defense verdict) (2025)
  • Jury trial in Clay County, Missouri (first chair) in damages only case (damages amount victory) (2024)
  • Jury trial in Putnam County, New York (second chair) involving admitted-liability commercial vehicle accident and alleged catastrophic injuries with alleged eight-figure damages (defense verdict)
  • Jury trial in Seattle, Washington (first chair) in property damage case involving an alleged failure in a fire-protection system product – obtained defense verdict for manufacturer by establishing installer fault
  • Jury trial in civil rights lawsuit in the Western District of Missouri (racial discrimination)
  • Jury trial in civil rights lawsuit in the Western District of Missouri (prisoner abuse allegations)
  • Partial additional trials in Paola, Kansas; Livingston, Louisiana; and Tuskegee, Alabama (cases resolved after jury selection/trial began)
  • Summary judgement on all claims in the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas (First Amendment)
  • Motion to dismiss granted in U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas (TCPA class action)
  • Summary judgement on all claims in the U.S. Middle District of Florida (premises liability with alleged seven-figure damages)
  • Summary judgement on all claims in Los Angeles, Ca (premises liability)
  • Summary judgement on all claims in Indianapolis, Indiana, Marion County Superior Court, (lack of evidence)
  • Summary judgement on all claims in Lake County, Illinois (plant explosion causing severe personal injuries)
  • Summary judgement on all claims in Scott County, Minnesota (spoliation)
  • Summary judgment on all tort claims (on contract claims/economic loss doctrine) in Fairfax County, Virginia
  • Summary judgment in Harris County, Texas (on RICO claims)
  • Summary judgment in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (on premises liability/negligent hiring, training, and supervision claims)
  • Arbitrations for matters in Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina; Maricopa County, Arizona; Fulton County, Georgia; and Riverside County, California. (All awarded to the defendants)

Affiliations

  • American Bar Association
  • Kansas Bar Association
  • The Missouri Bar Association
  • Johnson County Bar Association

Awards & Recognition

  • # 1 Top Defense Verdict in 2025 – Missouri Lawyers Media

Classes/Seminars Taught

  • Press conference with Mayor Sly James, featured in Business Wire, Kansas City, Missouri (July 2014)
  • NHS Past, Present & Future, Kansas City, Missouri (June 2014)
  • Financial Leadership—Do You Have the Right Team?, NeighborWorks® Executive Director Symposium, Washington, D.C. (April 2014)
  • Experts in Litigation, Presentation in Kansas City, Missouri (Fall 2011)
  • The Ethical Use of AI in the Practice of Law, (Summer 2026)

Interdisciplinary Teams

Education

J.D. (with honors)

University of Tulsa

B.S.

University of Houston

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