The POWER List: Kenneth C. Brostron

Lashly & Baer, St. Louis

Among the highlights of Ken Brostron’s decades of practice is his role as lead counsel in the desegregation case for St. Louis public schools.

Brostron, who studied in college to be an elementary school teacher, was an attorney to the board of education for the City of St. Louis for more than 25 years. The desegregation litigation generated billions of dollars for services and educational opportunities for area children and generated court orders for millions of dollars for capital improvements for the city’s schools.

He also wrote the school system’s interdistrict-transfer plan, which transported students between neighborhoods to create more integrated school buildings. The case was not resolved until 1999 when a federal judge allowed reduced participation, and legal issues stemming from the case linger to this day.

Brostron has been with Lashly & Baer since 1974, shortly after earning his law degree from Saint Louis University. He served as the firm’s president from 1987 to 2017.

He is a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and also concentrates his practice on medical-malpractice defense.

Missouri Lawyers Media recognized Brostron as an ICON Award winner in 2018.