Wilber H. Boies
Wilber H. Boies
Wilber H. Boies is Senior Counsel with McDermott Will & Emery, in Chicago, concentrating his practice in business litigation, including defense of class actions involving securities, employee benefits, and consumer fraud claims. Mr. Boies is the author of numerous articles on federal court litigation. He served as 1991 – 1992 Chair of the Chicago Bar Association’s Class Litigation Committee. Mr. Boies received his A.B. from Brown University and his J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School.
Michael T. Brody
Michael T. Brody
Michael T. Brody is a Partner at Jenner & Block LLP in Chicago, concentrating his practice in appellate litigation and class action litigation. He is a Lecturer in Law at the University of Chicago Law School where he teaches a seminar class on class action controversies and is a Past President of the Seventh Circuit Bar Association. Mr. Brody received his B.A. from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and his J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School. Following law school, he clerked for Antonin Scalia, then a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
Gary S. Caplan
Gary S. Caplan
No bio available.
Timothy J. Chorvat
Timothy J. Chorvat
Timothy J. Chorvat is a Partner with Jenner & Block LLP, in Chicago and London, where he concentrates his practice in the areas of civil and commercial litigation with a particular focus on complex financial disputes. Mr. Chorvat served as Chair of the Illinois State Bar Association’s Civil Practice and Procedure Section Council and serves as Website Cochair of the Seventh Circuit E-Discovery Pilot Program Committee. He was Chair of the Working Group on Electronic Evidence of the American Bar Association’s Cyberspace Law Committee and is a member of the Electronic Discovery in Bankruptcy Cases Working Group of the ABA’s Committee on Bankruptcy Court Structure and the Insolvency Process. He also was an Assistant Professor of Law at the IIT/Chicago-Kent College of Law. He has written numerous articles on civil practice and e-discovery issues, edits several litigation- related treatises, is an author of the chapters in MOORE’S FEDERAL PRACTICE dealing with class actions and derivative actions, and speaks widely on issues related to litigation and e-discovery. In addition to the American and Illinois State Bar Associations, he is a member of numerous other bar organizations. He received his B.A. from Northwestern University, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, and graduated magna cum laude from the University of Michigan Law School, where he served on the Michigan Law Review and was elected to the Order of the Coif.
Michael Dockterman
Michael Dockterman
No bio available.
Marci A. Eisenstein
Marci A. Eisenstein
No bio available.
Kevin M. Forde
Kevin M. Forde
Kevin M. Forde is a Partner in Forde Law Offices LLP, in Chicago, where he focuses his practice in commercial litigation, including trials and appeals. He has served as the President of the Federal Defender Program, Northern District of Illinois; a member of Senator Richard Illinois Durbin’s Judicial Screening Committee (2009 – present); and a member of Justice Anne Burke’s Judicial Screening Committee. Among his recognitions are the 2014 Certificate of Appreciation, presented by the Federal Judges Association; the 2014 John Paul Stevens Award, conferred by the Chicago Bar Association; and the 2002 Amicus Curiae Award, presented by the Illinois Judges Association. Mr. Forde is a member of the American College of Trial Lawyers, the International Academy of Trial Lawyers, and the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers. He received his B.S. from Marquette University and his J.D. from Loyola University School of Law, Medal of Excellence.
William J. Harte
William J. Harte
No bio available.
Clint Krislov
Clint Krislov
Clint Krislov (1949 – 2024) was the Founder and Senior Partner of Krislov Law: Krislov & Associates, Ltd., in Chicago. He was an adjunct professor at Chicago-Kent College of Law and the Founder and Director of Chicago-Kent’s Center for Open Government; he was also the creator and CEO of ConfirmDocs.com, a digital security site. He received the Legal Eagle Award: Independent Voters of Illinois-Independent Precinct Organization (2001) and the Amicus Curiae Award, presented by the Illinois Judges Association, and was involved in over 300 reported decisions. He was a member of the Chicago, Illinois State, and American Bar Associations, serving multiple terms as Chair and Vice Chair of the CBA Class Litigation Committee; the Decalogue Society; and the Rotary (Rotary/One Chicago, Paul Harris Fellow). Mr. Krislov received his B.A. from Northwestern University Phi Beta Kappa and his J.D. from Cornell University Law School.
Elizabeth A. Laughlin
Elizabeth A. Laughlin
No bio available.
Thomas P. Luning
Thomas P. Luning
No bio available.
Ann H. MacDonald
Ann H. MacDonald
No bio available.
Kevin R. Malloy
Kevin R. Malloy
Kevin R. Malloy is an associate at Forde & O’Meara LLP in Chicago, where he concentrates his practice in commercial litigation and appeals. He is a member of the Appellate Lawyers Association, the Chicago Bar Association (where he served as an investigator with the Judicial Evaluation Committee), and the Illinois State Bar Association. He was rated as a Super Lawyer in business litigation in 2024. Mr. Malloy received his B.A. from the University of Notre Dame and his J.D. cum laude from the American University Washington College of Law.
Joan M. Mannix
Joan M. Mannix
No bio available.
Ronald L. Marmer
Ronald L. Marmer
No bio available.
Colin O'Donovan
Colin O'Donovan
No bio available.
Dana M. Pesha
Dana M. Pesha
No bio available.
Henry Pietrkowski
Henry Pietrkowski
Henry Pietrkowski is a Litigation Partner in the Financial Industry Group of Reed Smith LLP, in Chicago. Mr. Pietrkowski is a member of the firm’s Financial Industry Group focusing on high stakes consumer class action defense for a variety of industries, including life insurance, financial services, pharmaceutical, and medical device companies. He has significant experience defending putative class actions involving the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) as well as life insurance and annuity issues. Mr. Pietrkowski has been recognized as an Illinois Super Lawyer in the class action category (2013 – 2015). He received his B.A. from Northwestern University and his J.D. with high honors, Order of the Coif, from IIT/Chicago-Kent College of Law, where he was Notes and Comments Editor of the Chicago-Kent Law Review.
Brian J. Recor
Brian J. Recor
Brian J. Recor is a Partner in the Los Angeles/Paris office (located in Santa Monica, California), of Bryan Cave LLP, where he focuses on class defense and international arbitration. He defends companies in U.S. class actions and other lawsuits brought by consumers alleging false advertising or unfair competition. He also represents companies in international business disputes and is one of very few California litigators admitted to practice law in France. He received his B.S.F.S. from Georgetown University and his J.D. from the University of Southern California.
Michael D. Richman
Michael D. Richman
Michael D. Richman is a Partner at Reed Smith LLP and is head of the firm’s Appellate Practice Group in the Chicago office. Previously he was a semi-finalist for the U.S. District Court Judgeship in the Northern District of Illinois. Mr. Richman is a member of the Appellate Lawyers, Illinois State Bar, and Chicago Bar Associations. Mr. Richman has written for IICLE®’s FEDERAL CIVIL PRACTICE (2015) and the previous edition of IICLE®’s CLASS ACTIONS (2013). He received his B.A. with honors from Indiana University and his J.D. from Case Western Reserve University.
Paul B. Rietema
Paul B. Rietema
Paul B. Rietema is a Partner at Jenner & Block LLP in Chicago, where his practice is focused on business litigation and arbitration and class action litigation. He has been recognized in Best Lawyers in America for Commercial Litigation from 2021 to 2024 and received the Exceptional Service Award in 2016 from the American Bar Association. Mr. Rietema received his J.D. cum laude from Harvard Law School.
Eric J. Schwab
Eric J. Schwab
No bio available.
Lisa S. Simmons
Lisa S. Simmons
Lisa S. Simmons is General Counsel at the American Society for Clinical Pathology in Chicago. She was formerly a Partner at Edwards Wildman Palmer LLP, in Chicago, where her practice was focused on complex commercial disputes, both in and out of court, with expertise in the defense of class actions. She has defended insurance, medical device, and chemical companies in putative class action lawsuits alleging consumer fraud and other claims. In addition, she has extensive appellate experience, including appeals arising from high-profile cases brought by governmental entities against firearms and lead pigment manufacturers. She has been a presenter concerning class action topics for several organizations, including the American Conference Institutes 3rd National In-House Counsel Conference on Defending and Managing Complex Litigation, and was coauthor of Class Action Fairness Act: Reflections on the First Years for the NorthStar Conferences 5th Annual Class Action Litigation Summit. Ms. Simmons received her B.A. from the University of Wisconsin and her J.D. from the University of Wisconsin Law School.
Steven R. Smith
Steven R. Smith
Steven R. Smith is a Partner in the Chicago office of Bryan Cave LLP, where he has more than 35 years of experience in handling complex business litigation matters at the trial and appellate levels. His practice focuses on business and commercial disputes in state and federal courts across the country, including acting as lead counsel in numerous class action cases and consolidated multidistrict proceedings. Mr. Smith is also the Co-leader of Bryan Cave’s Consumer Financial Services Litigation team and writes and speaks nationally on consumer finance and business litigation topics. He received his B.A. from the University of Chicago and his J.D. from the University of Santa Clara, where he was a member of the Santa Clara Law Review.
David Z. Smith
David Z. Smith
David Z. Smith is a litigation Partner in Reed Smith LLP’s Financial Industry Group, in Chicago, where he focuses on complex litigation, including business and commercial disputes and class action defense. Mr. Smith has defended numerous class actions in Illinois and across the county involving a variety of subjects and claims, including TCPA, consumer fraud, mortgage lending, FCRA, life insurance market conduct, data security breaches, and privacy-related claims. He has authored several articles and publications relating to class action law and has spoken on issues relating to data security breaches. He earned his B.A., Phi Beta Kappa, magna cum laude, from Brandeis University, and his J.D. magna cum laude from Harvard Law School.
R. John Street
R. John Street
R. John Street is Of Counsel at Eimer Stahl LLP, in Chicago. Mr. Street has over 25 years of experience in counseling and representing insurance industry clients, including investigating and resolving regulatory issues, negotiating and litigating amounts owed loss-sensitive insurance programs, resolving underwriting and pricing issues with insureds and regulators, and defending allegations that claims were mishandled under loss-sensitive insurance programs. He also has a great deal of experience in class action litigation involving the insurance industry, both in personal lines and in commercial lines matters. In addition, he has significant experience in general commercial litigation and in counseling trade associations with respect to antitrust and other matters. Mr. Street joined Eimer Stahl in June 2013. Before joining Eimer Stahl, John was a Partner with Edwards Wildman Palmer LLP. He is a member of the American Bar Association. He received his B.S. from Ohio University and his J.D. summa cum laude, Order of the Coif, from Case Western Reserve University School of Law.
Howard S. Suskin
Howard S. Suskin
Howard S. Suskin is a Partner at Jenner & Block LLP in Chicago, where he serves as Cochair of the Securities Litigation and Class Action Practice Groups. He is Chambers USA Ranked, has been recognized by Best Lawyers in America, and is General Counsel to the Chicago Bar Association. Mr. Suskin received his B.A. with honors from Northwestern University, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, and his J.D. with honors from the University of Michigan Law School, where he was Editor of the Michigan Law Review.
Charles R. Watkins
Charles R. Watkins
Charles R. Watkins is Of Counsel to Guin, Stokes & Evans, LLC, in Oak Park, where he concentrates his practice on class action litigation. In 2024, he received an Attorney of the Year award from Minnesota Lawyer magazine for his work on Tyler v. Hennepin County, decided by the United States Supreme Court, finding certain Minnesota tax foreclosure statutes unconstitutional. Mr. Watkins received his B.A. with high honors from Michigan State University and his J.D. cum laudefrom the University of Michigan Law School.

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Class Actions (ARCHIVED 2013 EDITION)

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Wilber H. Boies

Michael T. Brody

Gary S. Caplan

Timothy J. Chorvat

Michael Dockterman

Marci A. Eisenstein

Kevin M. Forde

William J. Harte

Clint Krislov

Elizabeth A. Laughlin

Thomas P. Luning

Ann H. MacDonald

Kevin R. Malloy

Joan M. Mannix

Ronald L. Marmer

Colin O'Donovan

Dana M. Pesha

Henry Pietrkowski

Brian J. Recor

Michael D. Richman

Paul B. Rietema

Eric J. Schwab

Lisa S. Simmons

Steven R. Smith

David Z. Smith

R. John Street

Howard S. Suskin

Charles R. Watkins

Class Actions (ARCHIVED 2013 EDITION)