Jacob D. Bielenberg
Partner
About
Jake focuses primarily on representing governmental entities across Kansas and Missouri. He has successfully defended claims of all types against his clients whether by winning dispositive motions or litigating claims to their necessary conclusions. In addition to litigation, Jake serves as County Counselor or City Attorney to numerous counties and municipalities. In this role, Jake has become a leading attorney in wind and solar energy development and has successfully negotiated some of the largest per-megawatt payments to Counties for wind development projects in the state of Kansas. Additionally, Jake has become a statewide resource to governmental entities with his expertise in open records and meeting issues in both Kansas and Missouri.
While in law school, Jake served as technical editor and notes editor of the Washburn Law Journal and as an editor of Family Law Quarterly. While serving as a staff member, the Journal published his Comment: “When Heavyweights Get Thirsty, Contracts Fall to the Wayside: A Case for Common Contract Principles and Stare Decisis” [Kansas v. Nebraska, 135 S. Ct. 1042 (2015)], 55 Washburn L.J. 759 (2016). Among other law school honors, Jake was named as one of National Jurist Magazine’s 2017 Top 25 Law Students in America and graduated with Distinguished Pro Bono Honors and Dean’s Honors upon graduation.
About
Jake focuses primarily on representing governmental entities across Kansas and Missouri. He has successfully defended claims of all types against his clients whether by winning dispositive motions or litigating claims to their necessary conclusions. In addition to litigation, Jake serves as County Counselor or City Attorney to numerous counties and municipalities. In this role, Jake has become a leading attorney in wind and solar energy development and has successfully negotiated some of the largest per-megawatt payments to Counties for wind development projects in the state of Kansas. Additionally, Jake has become a statewide resource to governmental entities with his expertise in open records and meeting issues in both Kansas and Missouri.
While in law school, Jake served as technical editor and notes editor of the Washburn Law Journal and as an editor of Family Law Quarterly. While serving as a staff member, the Journal published his Comment: “When Heavyweights Get Thirsty, Contracts Fall to the Wayside: A Case for Common Contract Principles and Stare Decisis” [Kansas v. Nebraska, 135 S. Ct. 1042 (2015)], 55 Washburn L.J. 759 (2016). Among other law school honors, Jake was named as one of National Jurist Magazine’s 2017 Top 25 Law Students in America and graduated with Distinguished Pro Bono Honors and Dean’s Honors upon graduation.
About
Jake focuses primarily on representing governmental entities across Kansas and Missouri. He has successfully defended claims of all types against his clients whether by winning dispositive motions or litigating claims to their necessary conclusions. In addition to litigation, Jake serves as County Counselor or City Attorney to numerous counties and municipalities. In this role, Jake has become a leading attorney in wind and solar energy development and has successfully negotiated some of the largest per-megawatt payments to Counties for wind development projects in the state of Kansas. Additionally, Jake has become a statewide resource to governmental entities with his expertise in open records and meeting issues in both Kansas and Missouri.
While in law school, Jake served as technical editor and notes editor of the Washburn Law Journal and as an editor of Family Law Quarterly. While serving as a staff member, the Journal published his Comment: “When Heavyweights Get Thirsty, Contracts Fall to the Wayside: A Case for Common Contract Principles and Stare Decisis” [Kansas v. Nebraska, 135 S. Ct. 1042 (2015)], 55 Washburn L.J. 759 (2016). Among other law school honors, Jake was named as one of National Jurist Magazine’s 2017 Top 25 Law Students in America and graduated with Distinguished Pro Bono Honors and Dean’s Honors upon graduation.
Practice Areas
Education
- University of Northern Colorado (cum laude)
- Washburn University School of Law (Dean's Honors)
Awards and Recognition
- Member, MODL Board of Directors
- 2023 - 2025 Missouri and Kansas Super Lawyers® Rising Stars
- 2025 Honored Listee - Who's Who in America
Bar Admissions
- Missouri
- Kansas
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri
- U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri
- U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
Professional Affiliations
- The Missouri Bar
- Missouri Organization of Defense Lawyers
- Kansas Bar Association
- Johnson County Bar Association
- Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association
Publications & Presentations
Steve Coronado, Mark Katz, and Jacob Bielenberg, Presentation, Mapping New Hazards in the Public Employment Minefield, Missouri Public Entity Risk Management Fund, June 10, 2025.
Jacob Bielenberg, Presentation, Lincoln County v. Neilander Revisited, KAC New Commissioner’s Training, January 16, 2025.
Ann Elliott and Jacob Bielenberg, CLE, Kansas Sunshine Laws: But, Do I Have To Produce It?!, Kansas Association of Defense Counsel Annual Conference, December 1, 2023.
Jacob Bielenberg and Evan Schodowski, M.O. v. Geico General Insurance Company, et al., Misreported by the national media but does it have any effect on the Missouri legal community? Missouri Organization of Defense Lawyers Quarterly Report (Fall 2022).
Jacob Bielenberg, Presentation, The Sunshine Law – A Defense Litigation Perspective, Missouri Municipal Attorneys Association Summer Seminar, July 24, 2021.
Jacob Bielenberg, Presentation, Recent developments related to the Missouri Sunshine law in both the open records and open meetings contexts, KCMBA Governmental Law Committee, November 19, 2020.
Jacob Bielenberg and Stephen Jones, Presentation, A View from Both Sides of the Aisle, Washburn School of Law, April 19, 2019.
Comment: Jacob Bielenberg, When Heavyweights Get Thirsty, Contracts Fall to the Wayside: A Case for Common Contract Principles and Stare Decisis [Kansas v. Nebraska, 135 S. Ct. 1042 (2015)], 55 Washburn L.J. 759 (2016).