Ashley Winkler.

Born on the West Coast and raised with Midwest manners: I'm Ashley Winkler, and I'm so glad you stopped by!

I earned my Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice and Criminology at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, where I also met my husband. After graduation, I felt called to support individuals through their legal journeys in some capacity.

I started looking for any openings to get my foot in the door and was invited to interview with a local Kansas City firm. They took a chance on me as a complete rookie, and to this day, I remain incredibly grateful to them. That first opportunity completely opened my eyes to where I wanted to be professionally and allowed me to build a deep knowledge of the personal injury industry.

I eventually decided to expand my legal horizons to a different city and moved to St. Louis, MO, close enough to Busch Stadium to keep my Cardinals fandom happy.

During school, I chose swimming as my go-to sport. I swam competitively for over two decades, always favoring the 500-meter freestyle. This event required a strong core, a consistent pace, and an even-keel mindset. Eventually, I moved on from competitive swimming to 5Ks, 10Ks, half-marathons, and triathlons, because doing just one activity wasn't enough for my brain.

As someone who's used to wearing different hats in the legal field, it's always been important to me to maintain an ever-growing mental list of what works and how I would want to be treated as a client. I take pride in doing intentional work, whether it is a routine check-in, an e-filing, or a complex deadline.

As I've navigated my way from clerical aid to legal assistant, to case manager to senior paralegal, I learned quickly that every firm differs in its processes and mindset. Some firms I've worked for viewed clients as paychecks. This alone always bothered me, and I knew that was never what motivated me out of bed in the morning. Big motivators for me include helping make a confusing legal item digestible, or staying on the phone just a little longer to see what's really going on, understanding in all areas makes a difference.

Being a boutique firm ensures clients receive the utmost care; having dedicated people in specific roles or teams to hone in on particular aspects of cases is a game-changer. Being a part of Finney Injury Law, it is obvious to me that we all take great pride in our work for our clients. Every person who walks through our door is another opportunity to help, and we take the burden of navigating a claim or lawsuit alone off their plates. It is so exciting to work with such like-minded people who share the same "get-out-of-bed" motivators.