WICHITA, Kan. – The National Trial Lawyers has named Monnat & Spurrier, Chartered attorney Jon McConnell to its Top 40 Under 40 list.  The National Trial Lawyers: Top 40 Under 40 is composed of the top trial lawyers from each state, or regions of certain highly populated states, who are younger than 40.  Membership into The National Trial Lawyers: Top 40 under 40 is by invitation only and is extended exclusively to those trial lawyers practicing civil plaintiff and/or criminal defense law.

This is McConnell’s second 40 Under 40 honor in the past year, following on the heels of his Wichita Business Journal 40 Under 40 designation last May.

“We are extremely proud of Jon for his natural talents and his successes as a trial attorney,” said Dan Monnat, President of Monnat & Spurrier, Chartered. “It is rare to find such a gifted attorney at such a young age. The National Trial Lawyers see in Jon what we and our clients see every day: Jon’s talented and aggressive defense of the rights of people accused.”

In addition to his criminal defense work, McConnell volunteers countless hours to community causes, including:

      • Temple Attorney for the Midian Shrine Temple, which helps raise money to support 22 Shriners Hospitals.
      • Board Member of American Collegiate Society for Adapted Athletics, an organization that furthers competitive athletic opportunities for disabled students at the college level through tournament competitions.
      • Campaign Manager for Austin Henry’s 2013 American Diabetes Association “Father of the Year Campaign”, which raised more than $20,000 for the local chapter of the American Diabetes Association.
      • First Runner-Up for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Man of the Year 2012, which raised more than $21,000 for the cause.  McConnell organized six large events and a benefit “Rock The Cure” concert to raise money for the organization.
      • Hillside Christian Church, working with the High School Youth and the Property Committee.

McConnell has both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in criminal justice from Wichita State University, where he took several opportunities to study abroad.  Through a cooperative program between WSU and the New Scotland Yard, he studied international law in the United Kingdom.  He also studied Spanish and Mexican culture through the WSU Summer Program in Puebla, Mexico.

A graduate of St. Thomas University School of Law in Miami, Fla., McConnell is a former law clerk for the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit Court of Florida in Fort Lauderdale.

McConnell is licensed to practice before the federal and state courts in Kansas. He is a member of the Wichita Bar Association, Kansas Bar Association and American Bar Association, as well as the Kansas Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys and the National Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys.

Monnat & Spurrier, Chartered, was founded 28 years ago by Monnat and legal scholar Stan Spurrier.  The firm has six attorneys and focuses on criminal defense, white-collar criminal defense, and appellate defense in municipal, state and federal courts.