A partnership between Hixson & Brown, P.C. and Trial Lawyers for Justice — built for catastrophic injury, medical malpractice, birth injury, and wrongful death cases across Iowa, Minnesota, and nationally.
"The goal is simple: give every family we represent the trial team they deserve, regardless of who they're going up against."
The Hixson–Rowley Trial Alliance is a co-counsel partnership between Hixson & Brown, P.C., led by J. Russell Hixson in West Des Moines, Iowa, and Trial Lawyers for Justice (TL4J), founded by Nicholas C. Rowley. The alliance represents clients in catastrophic injury, medical malpractice, birth injury, and wrongful death matters across Iowa, Minnesota, and nationally.
Together, the two firms combine the local Iowa and Minnesota trial experience of Hixson & Brown with the national trial resources of TL4J — whose attorneys have secured more than $3.5 billion in verdicts and settlements for injury victims nationwide.
For more than seven decades combined, Hixson & Brown, P.C. has represented families facing the most serious losses imaginable — catastrophic injury, medical negligence, birth trauma, and wrongful death. Led by J. Russell Hixson, the firm is based in West Des Moines and tries cases throughout Iowa, Minnesota, and nationally.
When a case demands the highest level of trial preparation and resources, Russ Hixson partners with Nick Rowley and Trial Lawyers for Justice. Born in Storm Lake, Iowa, Rowley is Iowa-barred and has practiced in Minnesota for more than 18 years. TL4J maintains offices in Des Moines, Decorah, and Minneapolis, alongside locations in more than 20 cities nationwide.
Together, the Hixson–Rowley Alliance brings deep local roots, national trial experience, and the combined resources required to hold powerful institutions accountable.
Three things change when a case is taken on jointly by Hixson & Brown and Trial Lawyers for Justice.
Every case is prepared as if it will be tried. Not most. Not the serious ones. Every one. That preparation posture changes how defendants, insurers, and hospitals respond at every stage — from the first demand letter to the verdict.
Catastrophic cases require specialists — life-care planners, biomechanical engineers, board-certified medical experts, economists. The alliance brings the team and the budget those cases require, without forcing a family to settle early because of resource limits.
Russ Hixson lives and practices in Iowa. Cases are filed where they belong. But when the defense imports out-of-state counsel or the case crosses jurisdictions, the alliance matches that reach with national-caliber trial experience.
The practice areas of Hixson & Brown and Trial Lawyers for Justice align directly. When the case fits within either firm’s scope, the alliance can bring the combined trial team.
Cancer, stroke, heart attack, and sepsis cases where earlier diagnosis would have changed the outcome. Includes emergency room and primary care failures.
Wrong-site surgery, retained foreign objects, never events, anesthesia awareness, and post-operative complications from inadequate monitoring.
Falls, medication errors, hospital-acquired infections, failure to monitor, and institutional negligence by Iowa, Minnesota, and national medical systems.
Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy and cerebral palsy caused by oxygen deprivation during labor, delivery, or the perinatal period.
Shoulder dystocia and excessive traction injuries resulting in permanent nerve damage and limited arm function.
Jaundice/kernicterus, meconium aspiration, neonatal sepsis, and other preventable conditions leading to permanent neurological damage.
Commercial trucking collisions, multi-vehicle crashes, and catastrophic injury cases where the defendant is a corporation or insurer with national counsel.
Traumatic brain injury, paralysis, and catastrophic spinal cord injuries requiring lifetime care, life-care planning, and economic damages modeling.
Death caused by medical negligence, trucking collisions, defective products, or institutional negligence — representing surviving spouses, children, and parents.
Pressure ulcers, falls, malnutrition, medication errors, physical abuse, and wrongful death in Iowa, Minnesota, and nationally licensed long-term care facilities.
Claims against government hospitals and medical centers, including University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, VA facilities, and other public institutions.
Improper claim denials, delays, and lowball settlement tactics — including underinsured and uninsured motorist disputes with significant exposure.
Some cases require resources, specialization, or trial experience beyond what any one firm can provide. When you refer a catastrophic injury, medical malpractice, or wrongful death case to Hixson & Brown, you’re bringing in a trial team with the verdicts and the relationships to give your client the best possible outcome — and you preserve your role in the case and your relationship with your client.
Results below reflect selected cases. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome in any future matter. Cases noted as co-counsel include the involvement of Trial Lawyers for Justice attorneys.
Featured Result – November 2025
Results may vary based on the facts and circumstances of each individual case. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome in any future matter.
⭐ LANDMARK VERDICT
Our client — a Fort Dodge, Iowa mother of two — sought treatment at Mayo Clinic for ulcerative colitis. Her surgeon recommended a three-stage colorectal procedure to rebuild her lower digestive tract. During the second surgery in June 2018, the surgeon failed to remove the entire rectum, leaving 5–7 centimeters of diseased tissue inside her body.
When a CT scan clearly showed the remaining tissue, the surgeon dismissed the imaging and advised our client it was safe to proceed with the third surgery anyway. After that surgeon left Mayo Clinic, the chief of colorectal surgery reviewed the case and determined all prior surgeries needed to be redone — a correction process that took over a year to complete.
What began as three planned surgeries became five total. Our client now lives with permanent disfigurement, pelvic floor disorder, fibromyalgia, PTSD, and lifelong chronic pain.
“World-class reputations don’t excuse life-altering medical negligence.”
Selected results. Full case history available on request.
Born in Storm Lake, Iowa, Nick Rowley is one of the most accomplished plaintiff trial attorneys in the United States. Over his career, he has secured more than $3.5 billion in verdicts and settlements on behalf of injury victims and their families — including what has been reported as the largest medical malpractice verdict in history at $412 million, a $131 million verdict for a catastrophic car crash victim, a $74.5 million birth injury verdict, and a $50 million verdict against Starbucks for a young man severely burned by scalding tea.
Rowley founded Trial Lawyers for Justice in 2007 with a mission that goes beyond any single case: to build a firm known for taking cases to trial when others would settle, and to train the next generation of trial lawyers through programs like Trial by Human. He has led reform efforts on laws like California’s MICRA damages cap, and in 2026 was named to Capitol Weekly’s Top 100 for his impact on law and public policy.
TL4J operates from more than 20 offices nationally, including Des Moines, Decorah, and Minneapolis. Rowley’s Iowa roots, Iowa and Minnesota bar admissions, and long history of trying cases in the Midwest make the partnership with Russ Hixson a natural fit.
J. Russell Hixson is the founding partner and president of Hixson & Brown, P.C. With decades of courtroom experience, Russ has built a reputation as one of the Midwest’s leading plaintiff trial lawyers in medical malpractice, birth injury, and catastrophic personal injury cases.
Russ most recently served as lead trial counsel in the landmark $19.8 million verdict against Mayo Clinic — the largest verdict ever obtained against that institution. He is rated AV Preeminent by Martindale-Hubbell and is a member of the National Trial Lawyers Top 100.
Russ represents clients throughout Iowa, Minnesota, and nationally through the Hixson–Rowley Trial Alliance. He lives and practices in West Des Moines, Iowa.
Through TL4J’s national network, the alliance also accepts catastrophic cases in California, Montana, Washington, Georgia, New Mexico, Massachusetts, and Colorado, with pro hac vice admission available in more than 25 additional states.
The combined footprint of Hixson & Brown, P.C. and Trial Lawyers for Justice covers Iowa and Minnesota directly, with national reach through TL4J’s nine-state bar admission network and pro hac vice practice.
Hixson & Brown, P.C. is based in West Des Moines, Iowa, and handles cases in every Iowa county. The firm represents clients against Iowa hospitals, physician groups, long-term care facilities, commercial trucking defendants, and government entities — including the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics and VA facilities.
Both Hixson & Brown and Trial Lawyers for Justice are licensed in Minnesota. Nick Rowley has practiced in Minnesota for more than 18 years, and TL4J opened a permanent Minneapolis office in 2025. The alliance represents Minnesota clients in medical malpractice, birth injury, and catastrophic personal injury cases.
Your first call or form submission is answered by our dedicated intake team. They gather the key facts of your case, confirm contact details, and log the inquiry securely. No voicemails, no missed calls.
Every intake is reviewed by the firm’s attorneys. Client cases are evaluated by J. Russell Hixson and his team; attorney referrals are reviewed by Russ directly. Medical records are ordered where needed.
When a case is accepted, the trial team is built — Hixson & Brown attorneys, Trial Lawyers for Justice co-counsel, and the case-specific experts the matter requires. You’ll know exactly who is working on your case and how to reach them.
Every case is prepared for trial. Some resolve before verdict. Others require a jury to deliver accountability. Preparation is what gives every case its best shot at the right outcome.
Trial Lawyers for Justice is a national plaintiff trial law firm with offices in more than 20 cities, including Des Moines and Minneapolis. Hixson & Brown, P.C. partners with Trial Lawyers for Justice attorneys, including Nick Rowley, as co-counsel on qualifying cases. Co-counsel arrangements are disclosed to clients in writing and comply with Iowa Rule 32:1.5(e), Minnesota Rule 1.5(e), and applicable rules in other jurisdictions. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome. This page is attorney advertising.
The information on this website is for general informational purposes only and is not intended as legal advice. You should consult a qualified attorney regarding your specific situation.
Contacting Hixson & Brown, P.C. by phone, email, or contact form does not create an attorney-client relationship. Such a relationship is only established through a signed engagement letter.
Please do not send confidential or sensitive information until an attorney-client relationship has been formally established. Information sent prior may not be protected by attorney-client privilege.
Every case is different. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome in your case.
Questions? Call (515) 222-2620
