An Abbreviated Selection of Russ's Successful Trial Verdicts​ Through the Years​
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Atchison, et al. v. Box, et ux., Taney County Case No 2046-CC00228 (December 2021), Plaintiff verdict after long and contentious litigation where new property owners attempted to block a road that had been used for ingress and egress to a subdivision for over 30 years. The Court awarded judgment for Plaintiffs based on the theory of common law road dedication, among others.
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Carolyn Younger v. VSA Holdings, Inc. d/b/a Destinations, Taney Co. case no. 1446-AC00323 (December, 2019) Plaintiff verdict for actual and punitive damages for a vacation club’s violations of the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act (consumer fraud case)
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Halverson et ux. v. Branson’s Nantucket; (Stone County, 2019) jury trial judgment for Plaintiffs for $43,000 restitution from a fraudulent timeshare transaction, plus cancellation of a $112,000 promissory note.
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Mooneyham v. Dana Guerra; Greene Co. case no. 1831-CC01227; Plaintiff verdict for $24,019.69 for breach of lease and property damage regarding a farmhouse in Greene County.
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Free & Clear Investments, LLC v. Taney County Assessor; Missouri State Tax Commission, Appeal No. 18-89504 (September, 2018) ; lowered client's commercial real estate tax bill by over $30,000 per year.
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DeJager Construction v. Westcott, et al.Taney County Case No. 15AF-CC00894 (August, 2018) Plaintif judgment for failure to pay for construction and remodeling work.
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Tracy DeWaard, et ux. V. Findley Roofing
Taney County, Missouri Case No. 14AF-AC1316-01 (July, 2018) -
Daniel Weber et al. v. Lyn Baker & James Heath, et al.Marion County, Arkansas Case No. 45CV-17-128 (July, 2018) Successfully evicted “squatter” living in shacks with no plumbing or electricity off of an Arkansas farm.
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Innovative Formulations LLC vs. New York Nutrition Company, LLCBoone County, Arkansas Circuit Court, Case No. 05CV-17-100-1 (June, 2017)
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Ramirez v. Fall Creek Condo Association (Taney County); Plaintiff recovery of a $525,000 verdict for a former employee that was shot on the premises.
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Surrey Condominium Association v. Harrison, 13AF-AC01892, Plaintiff judgment to recover funds taken by a real estate appraiser on a large project who failed to deliver any appraisal
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Herd vs. Herd, 14CT-CC01036, Plaintiff verdict for rescission of a fraudulent land transaction; (Christian County, October, 2016)
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Oldenburg v. WCI, et al. 10AF-CC00212, Defense Verdict of $0 damages; (Taney County, June, 2014)
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Bealing v. Spoley 09SN-CC00164; prolonged property boundary dispute; Defense verdict, (Stone County, January 2013)
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​Eagle Road Estate, LLC, et al. v. Ewing Properties, LLC, Case No. 11CT-CC01042-01. (Taney County, December 27, 2012)
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Bronson, et ux. v. Arthur Finch & Paradise Shores, Inc., Case No. 10AF-AC001226. (Taney County, January 30, 2012)
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Berry Equipment Co. v. Gage, et al.(Taney County 2010)
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Ingram v. Dean (Stone County 2010)
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Wyche, et ux. v. Cresswell, et ux., (Stone County Circuit Court, 2009)
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Missouri Partners, Inc. v. Albro (Taney County, 2008)
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Pennel v. City of Branson (Christian County, 2007)
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Teall, et ux. v. Dodson (Stone County, 2007)
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Metro Design & Construction, Inc. v. Lakeshore Resort (Taney County 2005)
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Slama, et ux. v. Martin Homes (Stone County, 2004)
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State of MO ex rel. Twelve Oaks Motor Inn v. Strahan (Taney County 2004)
Published Works
The Magic of Successful Collection Work in Missouri,Lorman Educational Services, Inc., 2005​
Collection Law in Missouri: The Good, the Bad and the Profitable, Lorman Educational Services, Inc., 2007​
Russ Schenewerk, Partner
The firm's founder, Russell ("Russ") Schenewerk was born and raised in the great State of Missouri and is a private practice attorney with offices in Branson, Missouri. He concentrates his practice in the areas of real estate (including contracts, construction defect litigation, condominium law, timeshare – consumer fraud law, and landlord/tenant law), collections, business/commercial litigation and commercial/industrial property tax appeals. He is licensed in Missouri, Arkansas, and in the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri. On January 8, 2015, Russ was appointed as the 46th Circuit Municipal Judge for the City of Hollister, Missouri where he served three two-year terms for a total of six years on the bench until 2021 and received
Education:
J.D., St. Louis University School of Law
B.A., Political Science & Criminal Justice, University of Central Missouri
Pi Sigma Alpha, National Political Science Honor Society
Alpha Phi Sigma, National Criminal Justice Honor Society
Former Legislative Intern, Missouri House of Representatives
Bar Admissions:
Missouri (2001)
Arkansas (2014)
United States District Court, Western District of Missouri
Experience:
Russ Schenewerk has served as the City Attorney for Kimberling City, Missouri from 2013-2020. He also accepts assignments as a Court-Appointed Special Prosecutor for Taney County, Missouri, where he has successfully prosecuted high-profile and sensitive theft cases. After being licensed in Missouri for many years, he was sworn in as a member of the Arkansas Bar in 2014. In 2014 and 2015, Russ served as President of the Taney County Bar Association and assisted the Bar in raising money for needy local families at Christmas and coordinated continuing legal education sessions for local attorneys.
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Before leaving for law school, Russ was a commercial real estate appraiser for the Missouri State Tax Commission and worked at one time or another in at least 85 of the 114 counties in Missouri. He began his legal career with Nodiff and Ellis, a St. Louis law firm that was widely known for its expertise in condominium and community association law.
Mr. Schenewerk successfully completed the Missouri Bar Trial Institute in 2004 and has tried both bench and jury trials in a wide geographic area. He is also an area lecturer on the topics of collections law and landlord/tenant law in the Springfield and Tri-Lakes regions. Russ has authored and presented numerous seminars on Missouri collections law for Lorman Educational Services and on landlord/tenant law for property managers in the Branson area.
Russ is fluent in Spanish and the firm services a growing hispanic clientele. Mr. Schenewerk has historically performed a fair amount of pro bono representation of indigent clients and disabled veterans. The firm also proudly extends pro bono representation to individuals with serious physical disabilities in the Tri-Lakes area on a regular basis.
The end of the last decade and the beginning of the current one have seen Russ continue to fight for the rights of buyers of real estate who allege fraud on the part of the sellers.
Noted Successes:
In a case covered in Missouri Lawyers Weekly, Mr. Schenewerk successfully obtained a trial verdict awarding his clients $447,600 for the rescission of the sale of a lakeside resort in Stone County. The Stone County Circuit Court found that the sellers failed to disclose multiple citations from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and violations of the Missouri Clean Water Act. (Wyche, et ux. v. Cresswell, et ux., Stone County Circuit Court, 2009). That verdict was named by Lawyers Weekly as one of the "Top Missouri Trial Verdicts of 2009".
Russ has filed, tried and settled countless lawsuits on behalf of tourists who have fallen victim to fraudulent misrepresentations made by timeshare companies, vacation and travel clubs and high-pressure sales tactics. He has worked closely with the Missouri Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division to monitor fraud in the timeshare and vacation club industry.
In 2007, Russ received a letter of commendation from the Missouri Attorney General's office for helping to successfully prosecute an individual attempting to practice law without a license, and whom had taken tens of thousands of dollars from multiple victims in Southern Missouri and Northern Arkansas. In 2022, he was invited to speak at the Missouri Bar Real Estate Institute on the issue of Timeshare fraud.
In a case argued in 2009 before the Missouri Court of Appeals (Southern District), Russ represented a seller who sought the rescission of a real estate contract where the seller failed to disclose that the property had a history of methamphetamine-related activity and was the former residence of persons convicted of felonies relating to possession and distribution of the drug. The Court (in Goldiluxe, LLC v. Abbott, Case No. SD29560) refused to rescind the transaction, instead holding that evidence of difference in value of the property had to be shown before the contract was rescinded, regardless of the fraud-induced sale.
Russ continued his fight for defrauded real estate buyers in 2012. A Taney County jury of six men and six women ruled in favor of a married couple purchasing a new home from a local developer who refused to repair serious problems with the home. The jury found that the developer was liable for breach of contract, fraudulent misrepresentation, breach of the implied warranty of habitability and piered the corporate veil, finding the developer personally liable.The jury awarded Plaintiffs a total judgment of $57,000 on all five counts of the lawsuit after deliberating for three hours. (Bronson, et ux. v. Arthur Finch & Paradise Shores, Inc., Case No. 10AF-AC001226. Taney County, January 30, 2012)
In December, 2012, Russ successfully defended a seller of a mobile home park in a case where a $200,000.00 fraud claim was brought against it by the buyer. In the case of Eagle Road Estate LLC, et al. v. Ewing Properties, LLC, et al., the Court found against the Plaintiffs, entering a judgment in favor of the Defendants, and also awarding costs to Defendants.
Russ's reported decisions include significant tax appeal victories such as Crawford v. Strahan, State Tax Commission of Missouri (2003) and Twelve Oaks Motor Inn, Inc. v. Strahan, State Tax Commission of Missouri (2005)., where he successfully appealed the overvaulation of Branson hotels. In the Crawford case, Russ was successful in lowering the hotel owner's property tax bill by more than $63,000. In 2009, he achieved a property tax savings of $25,000 on a motel property on the Branson strip. (Zenith Properties of Missouri v. Strahan, Taney County Board of Equalization). In July, 2014, (working together with Missouri Certified General Appraiser Jerry Jeschke) he successfully argued to the tax valuations of six different Branson hotels in front of the Taney County Board of Equalization, resulting in a combined annual real estate tax savings for his clients of over $250,000.

Mr. Schenewerk has also successfully obtained defense verdicts and/or outright dismissals in favor of Taney and Stone County consumers on over 40 separate lawsuits brought by credit card companies or their assignees seeking to collect on assigned credit card debt.
Russ is known as one of the most determined attorneys in the state when it comes to assisting consumers that have been defrauded, whether it be through timeshare transactions, real estate, fraudulent vehicle sales, or any transaction where important facts were not disclosed or have been omitted to the detriment of the consumer. Russ has personally recovered over a million dollars in restitution from fraudulent timeshare transactions in the Branson area – most of it for senior citizens.
You can email Russ at russ@sfalawfirm.com