Lyle J. Fuller

Practice Areas: Business Litigation, Local Government Law, Personal Injury, Non-competition Agreement and Trade Secrets Matters.

Admitted: State and Federal Courts of Kansas (2001) (currently inactive), Missouri (2000) (currently inactive) and Utah (2006)
U.S. Court of Appeals, Eighth Circuit (2004)

Mr. Fuller, a partner at Smith Hartvigsen PLLC, practices primarily in the areas of business litigation, governmental law, personal injury, and non-compete agreements and trade secrets.  He also represents clients in matters involving water law, employment law, consumer protection, and land use.  He brings significant experience in all phases of litigation, including pre-litigation counseling and negotiation, aggressive “discovery” of the opponent’s case, successful motions for summary judgment, mediation and arbitration, bench and jury trials, and appeals.

Business Litigation: Mr. Fuller represents companies in an aggressive, yet cost-efficient manner in a wide variety of litigation matters.  He has successfully handled matters involving shareholder disputes, securities fraud, contract disputes, construction defects, non-compete agreements and trade secrets, collection on delinquent accounts, fraud, credit reporting, and other issues.  For a number of years he successfully functioned as lead counsel in Kansas and Missouri in numerous matters involving delinquent accounts and repossession for a nationwide supplier of heavy equipment and machinery.

Governmental Law: Mr. Fuller has successfully represented cities and towns in matters ranging from eminent domain, annexation, and disconnection to contract disputes, land use issues, prosecution of misdemeanors, alleged violations of civil rights, and police misconduct.  For example, Mr. Fuller was lead counsel for a city accused of violating civil rights by removing junked vehicles from private property without a warrant.  He obtained summary judgment for the city, which was challenged and upheld on appeal.  Benton v. City of Higginsville, 181 S.W.3d 190 (Mo. App. W.D. 2005).  He currently represents, along with other Smith Hartvigsen attorneys, a number of cities and towns in Utah.

Personal Injury: Mr. Fuller aggressively pursues vindication of the rights of those who have been seriously injured by another’s fault or negligence.  His experience includes injuries arising from automobile accidents, defective products, burns, slip and falls, and other circumstances.  He has helped clients obtain significant compensation for their injuries.

Non-Competition Agreements and Trade Secrets: Mr. Fuller is an experienced non-competition agreement and trade secrets attorney.  He has litigated more than a dozen such matters, including representing clients in numerous preliminary injunction hearings.  He has helped businesses obtain injunctions against departed employees who violate restrictive covenants, and he also has successfully rebuffed such efforts while representing individuals accused of breaching non-compete agreements and/or disclosing trade secrets.  He also provides valuable service by using his extensive non-compete litigation experience to help clients draft appropriate non-compete agreements.

Biography: Mr. Fuller graduated magna cum laude from Brigham Young University, where he studied history and sociology.  He received his law degree from Duke University in 2000, where he served as a research editor of the Duke Journal of Comparative and International Law, and as a research and writing assistant to Professor Steven Schwarcz.  Before joining Smith Hartvigsen in 2005, Mr. Fuller practiced in the litigation section of a large and well-respected firm in Kansas City, Missouri.