15 Tressler Attorneys Selected as 2019 Illinois Leading Lawyers

15 Tressler Attorneys Selected as 2019 Illinois Leading Lawyers

  • Mar 11, 2019, 12:15 PM
Leading-Lawyers-2019


Tressler is proud to announce that 15 attorneys have been named Illinois Leading Lawyers for 2019. Leading Lawyers are recommended by their peers to be among the top lawyers in their respective areas of practice. Less than 5% of all lawyers licensed in each state have received the distinction of Leading Lawyer.

Learn more about Tressler’s Leading Lawyers:

Daniel R. Formeller
Chairman and Partner, Chicago

Daniel R. Formeller is Chairman of the firm. As a trial lawyer based in the firm’s Chicago office, Dan focuses his practice on business litigation and the resolution of business disputes through mediation and arbitration. Dan handles a wide variety of complex business litigation and counseling, including intellectual property, state and federal securities actions, anti-trust, ERISA, class actions and directors and officers liability matters. He has been lead trial counsel in bench and jury trials in state and federal courts throughout the United States. 

John M. O’Driscoll
Partner, Bolingbrook

John M. O’Driscoll is based out of the firm’s Bolingbrook office. His practice includes representing companies and individuals in business disagreements and providing general counsel services to local governmental bodies such as municipalities, school districts and park districts. John handles a wide variety of disputes such as business litigation, breaches of contract, construction issues, employment disputes, property damage, tort liability defense, labor negotiations, internet defamation, ordinance violations, “sunshine laws” compliance, professional negligence matters and complex litigation.

James K. Borcia
Partner, Chicago

James K. Borcia is a partner in the firm's Chicago office. He serves as an active trial attorney and works in the Commercial Litigation Group with an emphasis on bankruptcy, intellectual property and professional liability matters.  He has extensive experience representing creditors and third parties in bankruptcy proceedings, primarily representing companies and insurers. 

Daniel J. Cunningham
Partner, Chicago

Daniel J. Cunningham’s practice involves insurance coverage and bad faith litigation stemming from underlying consumer protection claims, privacy claims, intellectual property claims, personal and advertising injury claims, defective product claims and environmental claims. Dan has represented insurers in all aspects of litigation throughout the country and has developed skill in successfully asserting coverage defenses arising out of underlying class action lawsuits. Dan frequently represents insurer interests with regard to coverage disputes arising out of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, the Fair Credit Reporting Act and the Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act. He is also involved in counseling insurers with regard to claims arising under various federal and state statutes governing the protection of personal data.

John H. Huston
Partner, Chicago

John Huston is a trial lawyer with 42 years experience representing public and private entities and individuals in court in all areas of tort litigation, including wrongful death, complex products liability, architects and engineers professional liability law suits, and premises liability and motor vehicle accident cases that result in substantial personal injury and/or property damage. He also represents clients in commercial litigation that involves complex technical issues.

Jennifer Jerit Johnson
Partner, Chicago

Jennifer Jerit Johnson is an experienced trial lawyer with over 30 years of experience in the courtroom. She represents individual, corporate and insurance clients in litigation matters involving product liability, toxic torts, asbestos, other torts, construction litigation, trucking lawsuits and insurance claims.

Robert D. Kolar
Partner, Chicago

Robert D. Kolar is an accomplished litigator and trial lawyer who has had extensive trial and appellate experience in state and federal courts. On a pro hac vice basis, he has practiced before state and federal courts in more than 35 States, with only three adverse verdicts within his entire career. 

Edna McLain
Partner, Chicago

Edna L. McLain is a partner in the Chicago office of Tressler LLP where she focuses her litigation practice on the defense of hospitals, nursing homes, physicians, nurses and other medical personnel in medical negligence cases and the defense of corporate clients in toxic tort and general liability cases.  She has coordinated the discovery responses and corporate representative depositions of multiple clients, negotiated settlements, prepared and argued motions, and managed the trial preparation of hundreds of cases.  She successfully argued an appeal before the Illinois Second District Appellate Court and tried multiple medical negligence cases to defense verdicts in Illinois.

William K. McVisk
Partner, Chicago



Bill focuses his practice on complex insurance coverage litigation, and hospital law and medical liability. He has handled all areas of coverage and bad faith litigation, especially third-party bad faith and coverage litigation involving commercial general liability, professional liability coverages, as well as personal lines coverages such as auto and homeowners coverages.

Marshall Seeder
Partner, Chicago

Marshall has been a commercial litigator for more than 35 years. He has represented Chapter 7 bankruptcy trustees, creditors and claimants in complex bankruptcy and receivership proceedings. Marshall is highly experienced in complex commercial litigation including professional liability matters, contractual disputes and securities fraud. He has counseled clients on matters involving commercial disparagement and defamation, and interference with contractual rights. In addition, he has successfully handled cases related to financial reporting and fraud, including accountant liability and post-closure disputes in mergers and acquisitions. As outside general litigation counsel for an international motor carrier and logistics provider for many years, Marshall litigated numerous transportation related commercial and intellectual property disputes, as well as catastrophic personal injury and liability claims, throughout the United States.

Wayne D. Skigen
Partner, St. Louis Metro Area

Wayne D. Skigen represents individuals and business entities, as plaintiffs and defendants, in a wide variety of civil matters, including complex commercial, corporate and partnership litigation, and disputes relating to acquisitions, business divorces, employment claims, real estate transactions, fiduciary duties, privacy rights, officer and director liability, distributorships, enforcement and avoidance of covenants not to compete, and buy-outs of ownership interests. He also is a trained mediator with service as a court-appointed mediator and enjoys providing mediation services in a variety of civil matters.

Noel L. Smith Jr.
Partner, St. Louis Metro Area

Noel L. Smith Jr. is a partner in our Litigation practice. His practice focuses on toxic tort defense (asbestos) and general civil defense litigation. He defends complex business litigation matters, general product liability and personal injury cases through all phases of litigation from pleadings through trial. Noel’s experience includes significant court appearances in Madison County, Illinois, St. Clair County, Illinois & St. Louis, MO, primary client contact for numerous businesses and insurers in these areas of practice, and substantial settlement negotiation work.Noel was a Partner at Heplerbroom, LLC in Edwardsville, IL where he primarily defended complex business litigation matters, general product liability and other personal injury cases, including asbestos. Noel also served as National Coordinating Counsel for an asbestos client with litigation pending in multiple jurisdictions. Noel’s legal experience is quite varied including most recently having represented a local water district in a multi-million dollar dispute arising out of the expansion and upgrading of the district’s water treatment plant, and representing an automobile parts manufacturer in a wrongful death claim. He has tried cases to verdict in both Illinois and Missouri.

Shaun McParland Baldwin
Senior Counsel, Chicago

Shaun McParland Baldwin is a partner in the Insurance practice. She concentrates her practice in the areas of insurance coverage, bad faith, and other insurance-related services. Shaun has handled insurance related disputes and bad faith litigation throughout the country, and has served as a binding arbitrator on insurance related matters. She also has an appellate practice, and has briefed and argued over 40 appeals in state and federal courts of appeal.

Jacqueline A. Criswell
Senior Counsel, Chicago



Jacqueline Criswell chairs the firm’s Intellectual Property group and has been a commercial litigator for more than 28 years. Her practice focuses on the handling of complex litigation with an emphasis on bankruptcy, intellectual property, Internet-based  liability, advertising matters and professional liability. She is a frequent lecturer on trademark, trade dress, copyright, patent and Internet claims. Jackie also provides counseling on cyberspace and electronic technology issues. She is the editor of the firm’s Internet and Intellectual Property Law Update, a quarterly newsletter.

Stephen T. Grossmark
Of Counsel, Chicago

Stephen Grossmark represents clients in the areas of environmental law and sustainable development. He also provides counseling and litigation services regarding claims for personal injury and property damage related to environmental pollution and exposure to toxic materials, including on an industry wide basis. His clients include corporate entities as well as local government bodies such as park and school districts.

About Leading Lawyers - Selection Process and Criteria 

The list of Leading Lawyers and the LeadingLawyers.com website are very different from other attorney search sites or lawyer finder directories. In surveys mailed to all lawyers in each state, Leading Lawyers asks them which of their peers they believe comprise the top lawyers within their respective region and/or area(s) of law. Only those lawyers who are most often recommended, and later approved by their Advisory Board, are selected as Leading Lawyers. They limit the total number of Leading Lawyers selected to less than five percent of all lawyers licensed to practice law in that state. Learn more at www.leadinglawyers.com.