Neale & Newman acquires Branson practice

Springfield-based law firm Neale & Newman LLP has expanded its office presence into Taney County following a recent acquisition of a Branson practice.

Neale & Newman’s acquisition of Cantwell, Smith & Trokey LLC closed Oct. 1, according to a news release. As part of the deal, the five employees of Cantwell, Smith & Trokey joined Neale & Newman and Kate Trokey-Harris was named a partner.

“This is an eventful time for our firm,” Neale & Newman Managing Partner Daniel Wooten said in the release. “For the first time in our firm’s 120-year history, we have expanded our office presence beyond Greene County.”

Reached this morning via email, Wooten said his firm initiated a five-year strategic plan last year, which led to the acquisition.

“As a part of that plan, the firm made the decision to explore opportunities for expansion into other markets. As a full-service civil law firm, we believe that there is an opportunity for expansion in the Branson area,” he said, declining to disclose terms of the deal.

Wooten said the Branson office will remain at 115 W. Atlantic St., Ste. 102, in the Landmark Building for the rest of this year. Neale & Newman intends to move into a new unidentified space in Branson early next year, he said.

Trokey-Harris said in the release she’s excited to grow the range of legal services for Taney and Stone counties through Neale & Newman’s expansion.

“Working with David Smith and my father, Matt Trokey, was a wonderful experience,” she said of the Branson firm, which opened in 1954. “They, along with Clay Cantwell, provided wonderful legal services to Stone and Taney County for decades. With David Smith’s retirement and Matt Trokey’s passing, it was time for a transition. I am incredibly excited to be joining Neale and Newman LLP. My father worked there when he first graduated from law school, and I worked there as a runner while I was in college.”

Trokey-Harris has worked for Cantwell, Smith & Trokey since 2016, according to Springfield Business Journal archives. Her father died in March, according to his obituary posted to GreenlawnFuneralHome.com. Wooten said prior to the acquisition, Trokey-Harris was the last of the Cantwell, Smith & Trokey partners to still be working at the firm.

With the acquisition, Wooten said Neale & Newman’s total staff count is 44, including 18 attorneys. It ranked No. 2 on SBJ’s list of the area’s largest law firms, which published in May.