Harper, S. Alexander

PERSONAL PROFILE OF CHRISTOPHER (KIT) B. HANTLA

Kit Hantla was born in Belleville, Illinois in April 1974.  In 1976, he moved with his family to Litchfield, Illinois and has been tied to the area ever since.  In 2002 he married his wife, Molly.  Molly and Kit have three children Jack, Julia, and Mitch.  In 2004 Hantla & Hantla, Ltd. opened an additional office in Edwardsville, Illinois where Kit currently resides with his wife and children.  At present Kit splits his time between the office in Litchfield and the office located in Edwardsville.

Kit attended the University of Missouri Columbia from 1991 to 1995 and obtained a Bachelor of Arts in History. While attending Mizzou, Kit worked for Anheuser Busch in one of the Anheuser Busch warehouses in Columbia to subsidize his income and pay tuition. Thereafter, Kit attended Southern Illinois University School of Law and obtained his Juris Doctorate degree in 1999.

Upon graduation from law school, Kit went to work for the Montgomery County State's Attorney for approximately one year. After working in the State's Attorney's Office, he returned to Litchfield to join his father, G. Bradley Hantla, in his practice, and at that time the firm name was changed to Hantla & Hantla, Ltd.

Kit has been active in various legal organizations. He is a member of the Illinois State Bar Association, a member and officer of the Montgomery County Bar Association, and has been a member of the American Bar Association. He also serves on the Young Lawyer Division Section Council of the Illinois State Bar Association. Mr. Hantla has been a speaker at various law schools, per the request of the Illinois State Bar Association, been a member of the ISBA Committee to Develop More Effective Programs for ISBA Members, and was a member of the ISBA Blue Ribbon Committee on Professional Responsibility, which resulted in the Illinois Supreme Court recently adopting a rule requiring every attorney in Illinois to carry liability insurance.

Kit is currently licensed to practice law in the State of Illinois before the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of Illinois, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois, and before the Eight Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals. Kit has also published several articles in the Illinois State Bar Journal and various section newsletters including, Protecting Your Client From Their Own Insurance Carrier and When is the Running of the Statute of Limitations Not a Good Defense.

Kit has accepted appointments in felony criminal cases in Montgomery County, Illinois, and has handled more than 200 criminal cases (primarily felonies and DUI's) since 2001. Kit also represented two defendants charged with first degree murder. Other clients of Kit include Litchfield National Bank, Bank & Trust Company, the Village of Waggoner, Buske Lines, Inc., North Litchfield Township, and the Litchfield Airport Authority. He has been active in the trial and litigation of many matters since his admittance to the bar, in downstate Illinois and the Metro East area. Although Kit has been active and handled many different types of cases, his primary concentration has always been, and continues to be, litigation.

When not working, Kit enjoys playing golf, quail hunting, rooting for Missouri athletics, the St. Louis Rams and the St. Louis Cardinals.