commercial litigation

Under the guidance of Tom Crisham, whose professional reputation among both the plaintiff and defense bars remains unparalleled, the attorneys at Crisham & Kubes have a substantial and extremely successful Commercial Litigation Practice in both state and federal courts. The firm has and continues to successfully represent and defend corporations, municipalities, individuals and insurance companies in a wide variety of disputes, including class action litigation, consumer finance, consumer fraud, intellectual property disputes (including trademark infringement), labor and employment disputes, personal injury and product liability, shareholder disputes, real estate litigation, and air crash disasters.

All attorneys at Crisham & Kubes have extensive litigation experience, providing the foundation for the successful representation of a wide spectrum of clients in the firm’s other practice areas. The firm also has a proven track record in the defense of insurers and their clients in a variety of forums, including state courts and federal trial courts, and appellate courts in many different state and federal venues throughout the United States. A reflection of the firm’s commitment is the active involvement of its attorneys on several DRI and IADC committees on numerous different practice areas that include chairperson positions, seminar presentations, and the authoring of articles and textbooks. Tom Crisham has collaborated on several textbooks, including Prosecuting and Defending Insurance Claims.

The following is a brief sampling of the various types of cases handled by Crisham & Kubes.

A major automobile importer and distributor retained Crisham & Kubes to defend a multi-million dollar action brought by one of its dealers, challenging the company’s distribution methodology. Following a jury trial, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled in the client’s favor on the statute of limitations in a case of first impression.

A group of design professionals retained Crisham & Kubes in multiple wrongful death actions arising from the collapse of a temporary swingstage from the 42nd floor of the John Hancock Building in Chicago, Illinois.

An international aircraft manufacturer retained Crisham & Kubes to assist in the defense and settlement of multiple wrongful death actions stemming from air crash disasters.

A school board turned to Crisham & Kubes to defend the school district’s “zero tolerance” policy in a federal civil rights lawsuit that garnered national attention. Crisham & Kubes prevailed in both the trial and appellate courts.

A national automobile finance company turned to Crisham & Kubes to defend class action Truth in Lending Act and consumer Fraud claims. Crisham & Kubes successfully defeated claims and established law before the 7th Circuit and Illinois Supreme Court.

Crisham & Kubes defended design engineers in connection with the collapse of an underground tunnel affecting the fresh water supply for the entire City of Chicago.

Six national firearms and manufacturers retained the firm to defend public nuisance actions filed by the City of Chicago and proposed class representatives of Chicago residents affected by firearm violence.

National design professionals and insurance organizations enlisted the aid of Crisham & Kubes to file amicus briefs in federal courts around the country to advance issues of great importance to those organizations.

Crisham & Kubes successfully defended the nation’s largest manufacturer of lawn ornaments in a jury trial when the manufacturer was sued for Lanham Act unfair competition claims brought by a competitor.

The country’s largest insurer of design professionals retained Crisham & Kubes to serve as national monitoring counsel for all ADA and Federal Fair Housing Act claims.