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Mr. Hunter’s practice includes general and commercial litigation, alternative dispute resolution, agricultural law, products liability, and insurance defense (both personal injury and property damage). He has over 30 years of trial experience during which he has tried dozens of cases in state and federal courts and settled hundreds of others through traditional settlement negotiation and alternative dispute resolution. In addition, he has had banking experience that has enhanced his understanding of commercial problems. He has also represented government agencies such as the City of Boise and the State of Idaho in litigated matters and is counsel for the Idaho State Board of Accountancy. Mr. Hunter has been involved in a number of cases involving engineering questions as indicated below. Many of the civil damage cases he has handled have involved accounting analysis of damage claims. He has handled a number of cases involving securities, in a number of scenarios. He was a member of the Board of Commissioners of the Idaho State Bar, the governing body of the bar in Idaho and the President of the Idaho State Bar in 2004. He is currently the Idaho State Bar delegate to the ABA House of Delegates.Insurance Defense/Products Liability Defended automobile manufacturer in a personal injury case involving allegations of serious brain injury allegedly resulting from a defective seat belt and visor design as well as defending numerous vehicle manufacturers (including automobiles, trucks, and all-terrain vehicles) in cases involving other alleged defects including rear seat belts, transmissions, brakes, steering mechanisms, and defective overall design. Defended construction company in wrongful death action involving a claim that a trucking company failed to provide safe and lighted area for truck drivers. Mr. Hunter has also defended a number of other construction cases involving cranes, scaffolding, and exposure to electricity.Handled numerous claims against real estate agents and insurance agents through errors and omissions policies all of which culminated in defense verdicts, summary judgment, or nuisance value settlements.Represented insurance companies and agencies in contract matters including successfully representing an insurance company in claim for wrongful denial of coverage and failure to provide a defense.Obtained defense verdict for city airport in premise liability claims involving snow removal, luggage carousel, signing, etc.Represented manufacturers and distributors of such products as caulking, tools, galvanized chain, health care products, and industrial chemicals in products liability actions.Recovered large subrogated interests for product manufacturer and sales delivery organization against third-party tortfeasors.General and Commercial Litigation Defended a bank in potential class action case involving allegations of improperly collected closing fees and represented other financial institutions in contract matters. Represented large real estate management company in contract disputes and enforcement of lease terms.Represented parties in numerous contractual disputes involving purchases of real estate, businesses, and equipment some of which involved exposure totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars. Agricultural Law Defended a number of cases in which damage to beef and dairy cattle, their production, and offspring allegedly resulted from the consumption of feed tainted by silo system. Defended aerial and ground applicators in cases where applications of insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, fertilizers, nematicides, and other pesticides involved claims of drift, saturation, application to the wrong field, misapplication to the appropriate field and spray to homes, automobiles, water, and other non-field applications and alleged damages including personal injuries and damage to a wide variety of crops and animal life. Defended chemical companies against claims of mislabeling, failure to test, or defective product contributing to crop damage and residual damage to land resulting in yield reduction or destruction of crops.Represented irrigation districts, pivot manufacturers, and component manufacturers for pivots in a variety of water cases involving allegations of deprivation of, providing too much, or ineffective provision of water to crops.Served as Idaho counsel for a large feed storage manufacturer in complex litigation of national scope including eight Idaho cases involving alleged losses of over $4,000,000, which resulted in either defense verdicts or nuisance value settlements.Participated in the defense of various "agricultural engineering" cases involving allegations of improper erection or design of grain silos and other storage units, improper erection of center pivots or other irrigation systems, improper repair to farm machinery, installation of pumps, resulting in alleged damage to crops, animals, production, and humans.Defended seed providers against allegations that seed provided was not as represented and that seed certification was done inappropriately, resulting in crop loss or crop yield production.Mr. Hunter was a member of the Board of Commissioners of the Idaho State Bar from 2001-2004 and was President of the Idaho Bar beginning in 2004. Mr. Hunter is a member of the American Bar Association, Idaho Bar Association, and Fourth District Bar Association and has served on various professional committees. He is currently a member of the House of Delegates of the ABA. He is a member of specialty associations such as the Idaho Association of Defense Counsel, Boise Insurance Adjusters Association, Defense Research Institute, and the Idaho Trial Lawyers Association. He is involved in subcommittees in both the ABA and Idaho State Bar, including litigation, alternative dispute resolution, and business law. He is the current Chair of the Idaho State Bar Alternative Dispute Resolution Section.After growing up in Idaho, Mr. Hunter received his undergraduate degree from Harvard University, graduating cum laude, after which he did graduate work in Latin American Studies at Brigham Young University. Between college and law school, Mr. Hunter also worked in international banking with Bank of America and spent two years living in Chile. He is fluent in Spanish. He received his law degree from Northwestern University School of Law in 1976. |
