Areas of Expertise and Experience

Steve is an accomplished trial lawyer who focuses his law practice on representing victims who have suffered serious bodily injuries or death in accidents through no fault of their own.

He has successfully litigated client cases in the states of Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Michigan, Illinois, Florida, Kentucky, Maryland and Pennsylvania since 1978.

His listing of cases includes many who were referred to him by other attorneys.​

Biographical Information

Admitted to Practice Before the Following Courts:

• All Circuit and Appellate Courts of Wisconsin
• United States District Courts for the Eastern and Western Districts of Wisconsin
• United States Circuit Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit in Chicago, Illinois
• Admitted Specially before the Circuit Court for Cook County, Illinois and the Illinois Court of Appeal.

Professional Associations:

• American Association For Justice Trucking Litigation Group
• American Association For Justice Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group

Litigation Experience

Toney Law Offices has represented over 9,000 clients since its founding in 1989.  Our personal injury clients have had a wide range of serious bodily injuries, many of whom died as a result of them. The following is a small sampling of my litigation experience:
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Teenage Girl Killed By Trucker High On Drugs

​A 14 year old girl was seriously injured because a semi-truck driver struck the small pickup truck in which she was a passenger. She died 9 days later. Our investigation showed that the truck driver was high on marijuana at the time of the crash, and he had been in and out of prison over the previous 20 years due to his drug abuse. I sued his employer who had failed to investigate the driver's background even though it knew he was recently released from prison and was on parole when he applied for employment. We were able to recover a substantial award for the girl's parents.
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Who Caused This Deadly Crash?

​A young man suffered serious brain injuries as the result of a two-vehicle crash. The issue was whether he or his close friend was the driver of the pickup truck they were in, which caused the crash. His close friend had died and my clients’ son had no memory of the crash. The police initially concluded that my client’s son (the brain injured man) was the driver and the insurance company for the truck denied his claim. Through an accident reconstruction, which included the purchase of an identical pickup truck, I was able to prove that the injuries to my client didn’t match up with the physical components of the interior of the truck and that the injuries which caused the death of his friend must have resulted from him being the driver.
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An Incompetent Accident Reconstruction

A young man was involved in an automobile accident at an intersection while making a left turn. The crash claimed the life of his passenger, who was his best friend, and he was charged with two felonies for causing the death of his friend.  I had to convince the jury in the week-long trial that the accident reconstruction expert used by the Wisconsin State Patrol had performed an incompetent analysis. Through the use of our own accident reconstruction expert, I was able to prove that my client began his left turn while the oncoming driver of a large pickup truck, which was 320 feet away at the time, had caused the crash due to excessive speed because he was traveling at 74 mph in a 45 mph zone. As the result of the crash, the small Chevrolet Geo that my client was driving was pushed backward 115 feet, all while its engine and transmission were dragging on the ground because the front wheels were flattened and twisted outward. My client was acquitted of the felony charges and the State Patrol’s officer is no longer performing accident reconstructions.
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A Defective Conveyor Belt Controller Caused Serious Injury To A Farmhand

A farm hand was asked to make a repair to a motor that ran a conveyor belt in a barn. While making the repair, the machine spontaneously started causing the conveyor belt to start up and my client fell. As my client fell, his hand became caught in the side of the conveyor, causing serious tears to the tendons of his rotator cuff. I was able to prove that the owner of the farm was negligent in causing a defective and faulty motor for the conveyor to spontaneously start, due to a negligent electrical hookup. The injuries to my client were very serious, as one of his tendons was completely torn away from his shoulder bone (the humerus) and required a surgical repair which still left him quite permanently disabled for his left arm. I used a medical illustration to help a jury understand the magnitude of the injury and the surgical procedure, and I obtained a substantial verdict.
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Surgery Medical Illustrations Are Very Helpful

​I represented a man whose shoulder was so badly injured in a vehicle crash that he had to undergo a shoulder replacement surgery. I used a medical illustration to help a jury understand the injury and surgical procedure and obtained a substantial settlement.
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Drunk Driver Causes Man To Undergo Neck Surgery

​A drunk driver crossed two lanes of travel and struck this pickup truck head on. The pickup driver suffered serious neck injuries requiring surgery.

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Top Attorney Awards

​As a result of his accomplishments in representing victims of personal injury and truck accidents, Steve has been recognized by Superlawyer Magazine and Milwaukee Magazine as one of the Top Attorneys in Wisconsin, an honor earned by no more than 5% of attorneys in Wisconsin. Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory, a top legal publication rating lawyer’s abilities, has awarded Steve a "Distinguished Very High" rating in both legal ability and ethical standards (top 5% of Attorneys in Wisconsin).

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