Brad J. Lee

Brad graduated from the University of South Dakota School of Law in 2003.  After graduation, Brad underwent a two-year clerkship with the Honorable Richard H. Battey, United States District Court Judge, in Rapid City.  After his clerkship, Brad joined the law firm of Beardsley, Jensen & Von Wald as an associate attorney.  In 2015, the firm changed its name to Beardsley, Jensen & Lee.

Over the years, Brad has served in various roles on multiple charities and organizations.  In 2008, Brad was asked to serve on the Board of Directors for the Seventh Circuit’s Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) Program. The CASA Program recruits, trains, and supervises volunteers to advocate in court for the best interest of abused and neglected children. The goal of the CASA Program is to have a “voice” in court for every child who needs one. Brad served as the Vice-Chairperson for the Board of Directors until 2014.

In 2009, Brad was nominated as the Secretary/Treasurer for the Pennington County Bar Association. In 2010, Brad served as the Vice-President before taking on the role of President in 2011.

In 2010, Brad was asked to serve on the South Dakota Trial Lawyers Association as the Chair for the Recruitment & Services Committee. The purpose of the South Dakota Trial Lawyers Association is to preserve the jury system, promote justice, and establish a high standard of ethics among trial lawyers. In 2011, Brad was appointed to serve as a member of the Board of Governors for the South Dakota Trial Lawyers Association.  In 2018, Brad was elected to serve as the South Dakota Trial Lawyers Association’s delegate to the American Association of Justice.

In 2014, Brad was elected to serve on the Board of Bar Commissioners for the State Bar of South Dakota. The Board of Bar Commissioners has many responsibilities which relate to promoting the interests of the legal profession and working to improve the relationships between the profession and the public.

In 2019, Brad was nominated to join the Board of Directors for the YMCA in Rapid City.

Brad is an avid golfer and enjoys organizing golf tournaments to raise money for charity. In law school, Brad organized the Delta Theta Phi charity golf tournament for the benefit of Habitat for Humanity. Brad continued that tradition in 2007 when he organized the Seventh Circuit Charity Golf Tournament, which involves a yearly golf tournament that raises money for charities and worthy causes in the Rapid City area. Each year Brad has continued to organize this charitable event and has helped raise over $60,000 for charity.

For the past several years Brad has served on the Worker’s Compensation Committee for the State Bar of South Dakota. As a member of this committee, Brad is able to monitor developments in South Dakota’s workers’ compensation system and monitor how the changes may affect South Dakota employees.

In 2011, the Young Lawyers Section of the State Bar of South Dakota presented Brad with the Young Lawyer of the Year Award for the State of South Dakota for outstanding service to the bar and the profession.  In 2016, the Pennington County Bar Association nominated Brad to receive the Exceptional Lawyer of the Year Award in recognition of integrity, leadership, and exemplary legal services to clients, the community, and the bar.   

Brad enjoys spending time with friends and family. He and his wife Ann have two children—Megan and Brody. Aside from work, Brad stays busy coaching and attending his children’s various sports and events, traveling, and golfing.

Schedule your consultation with Brad today at (605) 777-7466.

Jury Verdicts, Arbitration Awards, and Workers’ Compensation Decisions

• Co-counsel in a 1983 sexual assault civil rights jury trial in federal court representing a female pretrial detainee in the Pennington County Jail.  The plaintiff had no medical expenses and the defendants’ last settlement offer was $100,000.  The jury returned a verdict for our client in the amount of $600,000 in compensatory damages and $500,000 in punitive damages.  Kahle v. Leonard, Civ. 04-5024 (D.S.D. Feb. 23, 2008). 
• Counsel in a personal injury trial representing a man accused of negligently causing a motor vehicle collision and damages to the plaintiff.  The jury returned a verdict in our favor and awarded the plaintiff zero damages.  Guia v. Pelletier, Civ. No. 06-984 (2nd Jud. Cir. Ct., Mar. 2008). 
• Co-counsel in a personal injury jury trial representing a woman who suffered an injury when a dairy truck lost control on an icy road and rear-ended her.  The defendant’s last settlement offer was $100,000.  The jury returned a verdict for our client in the amount of $580,000. Corcoran v. McCarthy, Civ. No. 06-1263 (7th Jud. Cir. Ct., July 11, 2008).
• Counsel in a worker’s compensation case representing an employee who injured his back while on the job.  The Employer and Insurer denied that it was responsible for any payments or that Claimant’s injuries arose out of his employment.  After a hearing in front of the Department of Labor, we received a fully favorable decision. Mullen v. Lehman Trikes USA, Inc. and Acuity, HF No. 68, 2006/07 (S.D. DOL, Aug. 8, 2008).   
• Co-counsel in a personal injury arbitration representing a man who suffered an injury when his vehicle was rear-ended at high speed.  After litigating the case the parties decided to arbitrate the case.  The arbitrator returned an award in favor of our client in the amount of $472,000.  Madison v. Meza, Civ. No. 07-209 (7th Jud. Cir. Ct.).
• Co-counsel in a personal injury case representing a woman who suffered an injury when an elderly lady turned in front of our client. The jury returned a verdict for our client in the amount of $357,000.  Penticoff v. Smith, Civ. No. 07-1148 (7th Jud. Cir. Ct., Apr. 1, 2010).
• Counsel in a property damage case representing De Smet Insurance Company of South Dakota.  De Smet brought suit against a negligent driver to recover property damage he caused to De Smet’s insured’s vehicle.  The jury returned a verdict in favor of De Smet for the full amount of damage claimed.  De Smet Insurance Company of South Dakota v. Simon, Civ. No. 09-557 (5th Jud. Cir. Ct., Jan. 25, 2011).

• Counsel in a property damage case representing Paul M. Wiskur in a lawsuit brought against him by State Farm Insurance Company.  State Farm alleged Wiskur negligently operated his vehicle and caused damage to the vehicle of State Farm’s insured.  The jury returned a verdict in favor of Wiskur and awarded State Farm zero damages.  State Farm Insurance Company v. Wiskur, Civ. No. 07-165 (3rd Jud. Cir. Ct., Aug. 31, 2011).

• Counsel in a workers’ compensation case representing an employee who injured her neck when she slipped and fell while on the job.  The Employer and Insurer denied that it was responsible for any payments or that Claimant’s injuries arose out of his employment.  After a hearing in front of the Department of Labor, we received a fully favorable decision finding Claimant’s injuries did arise out of her employment and that she was totally disabled. Clyde v. Hardees and American Family Insurance, HF No. 178, 2009/10 (S.D. DOL, May 10, 2013).  

• Counsel in a property damage case representing Hollie Ann Tidemann in a lawsuit brought against her by American Family Insurance Group.  American Family sought to recover damages to its insured’s vehicle as to the result of an accident on I-29.  The jury found American Family’s insured contributorily negligent more than slight and returned a verdict in favor of Tidemann.  American Family Insurance Group v. Tidemann, Civ. No. 07-165 (2nd Jud. Cir. Ct., Dec. 20, 2013).

• Counsel in a personal injury case representing a man who was injured when he was rear-ended by a drunk driver.  After settling with the drunk driver’s insurance company, we made a claim against our client’s insurance company for $150,000, which was the total amount of underinsured motorist coverage available.  That insurer offered zero and then offered $50,000 shortly before trial.  The jury returned a verdict for our client in the amount of $400,000.  Zebrowski v. American Standard Insurance Company of Wisconsin, 51CIV14-631 (7th Jud. Cir. Ct., Sept. 10, 2015).  
• Counsel in a personal injury case representing a woman who was rear-ended and suffered injuries to her neck.  The plaintiff had to have neck surgery and incurred approximately $40,000 in medical expenses.  The other driver denied that he was responsible because there was not much damage to the plaintiff’s vehicle.  The defendant’s insurer, State Farm, only offered $12,500 to settle the case and then offered $50,000 on the eve of trial.  Brad refused the offers to settle and took the case to trial where the jury awarded his client over $100,000.  Dail v. Whites, Civ. No. 17-000657 (7th Jud. Cir. Ct., Oct. 4, 2018).

Representative Cases

• Spiska Eng’g, Inc. v. SPM Thermo-Shield, Inc., 798 N.W.2d 683 (S.D. 2011)
• Kahle v. Leonard, 563 F.3d 736 (8th Cir. 2009)
• The United States v. Miller, 557 F.3d 919 (8th Cir. 2008)
• United States v. Spotted Elk, 548 F.3d 641 (8th Cir. 2008)
• Kahle v. Leonard, 477 F.3d 544 (8th Cir. 2007)

Published Works

Faircloth v. Raven Industries: A Departure from South Dakota Case Law Precedent and Public Policy, 47 S.D. L. Rev. 612

Professional Associations and Memberships

• State Bar of South Dakota
• State Bar of Minnesota
• State Bar of Nebraska
• State Bar of Wyoming
• State Bar of North Dakota
• American Association for Justice
• South Dakota Trial Lawyers Association
• Pennington County Bar Association
• Workers’ Injury Law & Advocacy Group

Honors and Awards

• Young Lawyer of the Year 2011-2012
  • Presented by the Young Lawyers Section of the State Bar of South Dakota for outstanding service to the bar and to the profession.
• Exceptional Lawyer of the Year 2016
  • Presented by the Pennington County Bar Association in recognition of integrity, leadership, and exemplary legal services to clients, the community, and the bar.
• Workers' Injury Law & Advocacy Group^® Top Attorney 2021