Attorneys at Horwitz Horwitz & Associates have been recognized by the American Association of Justice, SuperLawyers and SuperLawyers Top 100, LeadingLawyers, the National Trial Lawyers Association Top 100 Trial Lawyers and Top 40 Under 40, the Million Dollar Advocates Forum, the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum, The Best Lawyers in America©, the National Association of Distinguished Counsel (Nation’s Top 1%), the National Institute for Trial Advocacy, and the American Society of Legal Advocates.

In a recent example of our firm’s record of excellence, Clifford Horwitz, Jay Luchsinger and won a record-setting jury verdict of $64 million for an injured ironworker who fell and was left paralyzed from a job-site accident. The American Association of Justice branded Clifford, Jay and Michael as “masters in the profession.” According to the Illinois Jury Verdict Reporter, when the jury returned their verdict, it was the highest ever in the state of Illinois for an individual. Since 2012, 80% of the lead trial team’s verdicts have been record-setting including what were the largest verdicts in Illinois history for a brain injury, a back (spinal cord) injury, a neck injury, a hand injury, a shoulder injury, and complex regional pain syndrome.

But our distinction is more than a legacy of record-setting verdicts or peer acclaim. It’s found in the satisfaction of thousands of clients. We have recovered more than $1 billion in verdicts and settlements for individuals and families throughout the state of Illinois. Our consultation to determine whether your case has merit is without charge.Insurance companies have no problem ruining your life, but we’ve got a problem with it. Since 1924, the Horwitz family of distinguished Chicago trial attorneys has continued a tradition begun by grandfather, Jacob W. Horwitz, and then his son Andrew J. Horwitz, representing individuals against corporate wrongdoers and insurance companies who routinely take advantage of those who have been injured. Our firm has never represented corporate interests and never will. After securing the largest verdict in Illinois history for an injured construction worker ($64 Million), the American Association of Justice branded Clifford Horwitz, Jay Luchsinger, and as, “masters in the profession.” The complaint, judgement, transcripts of the opening statement and closing argument were published in their annual, Top Verdict Litigation publication, providing insights into trial strategies and techniques, successful methods to prove damages, and the opportunity to learn from this team of experts in their field.Since 2012, an astounding 80% of the lead trial team’s jury verdicts have been record-setting. They have won:

  • The largest personal injury jury verdict in Illinois history;
  • The largest neck injury jury verdict in Illinois history;
  • The largest spinal cord injury jury verdict in Illinois history;
  • The largest brain injury jury verdict in Illinois history;
  • The largest back injury jury verdict in Illinois history;
  • The largest complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) jury verdict in Illinois history;
  • And, the largest adult male shoulder injury verdict in Illinois history.

[contact-form-7 id=”5089″ title=”Contact Us”]When the jury returned their verdict, it was the largest personal injury verdict in Illinois history for an individual. When the jury returned their verdict, it was the largest verdict in Illinois history for a hand injury.When the jury returned their verdict, it was the largest verdict in Illinois history for a shoulder injury.

Jury Verdict Reporter Trial Lawyer Excellence Awards 2017

Plaintiff Achievement Award

On October 26, 2017, nearly 300 trial attorneys and Illinois judges attended the 8th Annual Awards for Trial Lawyer Excellence hosted by the Jury Verdict Reporter, a division of Law Bulletin Media. The by-invitation-only event at the Peninsula Chicago recognized the outstanding achievements of 30 professions from sides of the trial bar in civil litigation. Only two plaintiff’s attorneys in the entire state of Illinois were recognized for their individual body of work, among those individuals honored was Clifford W. Horwitz.

“We’ve been publishing civil jury verdicts for nearly 60 years, and this is the 8th year that we have recognized the state’s top civil litigation attorneys,” said John Kirkton, Editor, Jury Verdict Reporter. He continued, “I congratulate this year’s Trial Lawyer Excellence award winners.”Clifford W. Horwitz was one of two plaintiff’s attorneys to receive the Plaintiff’s Attorney Achievement award. To date, only fourteen attorneys in the history of the JVR Trial Lawyer Excellence Awards have been recognized with the Plaintiff’s Attorney Achievement award. To be eligible for this Trial Lawyer Excellence award, a plaintiff’s attorney must have secured five or more Illinois jury verdicts in excess of $5 million. Although achieving one jury verdict of $5 million is notable, securing five or more is exceptional. Along the way, the trial lawyers honored with this award have achieved many record verdicts, some of which have stood for over twenty years.

Personal Injury

Our team of Illinois injury lawyers are grounded in a wide range of unique backgrounds giving us unmatched expertise in various fields related to personal injury. According to the American Bar Association, the area in which most personal injury actions arise falls under automobile accidents. However, personal injury is quite broad – it covers car accidents, slip and falls, dog bites, truck accidents, construction accidents, nursing home negligence, defective products, railroad accidents, and much more. In fact, personal injury refers to any injury to the body or mind.

Why Do I Need An Injury Lawyer?

If you or a loved one has suffered a serious injury due to the actions of another person, firm, or corporation; Illinois law requires that their insurance compensate you. Sadly, this way of thinking has gone astray as insurance companies know they can save money by delaying and underpaying claims.

At the start of a claim, many people believe that they can negotiate on their own with the insurance company or that a lawyer will charge a fee that will take away too much of their settlement. Unfortunately, most (if not all) injured persons do not understand their legal rights. Insurance companies, on the other hand, have the resources to pay for the most expensive lawyers who understand how to undermine the legal rights of an injured person.

A good lawyer will always have the client’s best interest in mind, and this includes making sure their attorney’s fees do not reduce their client’s recovery to less tan what the client could have recovered themselves. Even with deducting the attorney’s fee from your settlement or verdict, you should receive significantly more by using an attorney than if you were to try and negotiate by yourself.

What Kind of Injury Lawyer Do I Need?

Most lawyers who concentrate in personal injury law will either represent the injured person (plaintiff) or entity(s) that are allegedly responsible for the injury (defendant). If you have been injured, then you want to hire an attorney who focuses solely on representing the injured – also known as a “plaintiff’s lawyer.” Furthermore, you want a plaintiff’s attorney that has a reputation for trying cases to a jury, commonly referred to as a “trial lawyer.”Attorneys of Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates recovered $64 million on behalf of an injured ironworker who fell 15-20 feet from a beam. The construction accident caused a C1 burst fracture, C7 dislocation fracture and C6 spinal cord injury resulting in a loss of the functional use of the ironworker’s hands and loss of complete use of the body from the chest-down.

A Cook County jury awarded the $64 million verdict after a month long jury trial against AIG insurance and the ‘defense lawyer of the year.’ The record-setting verdict was $13 million higher than the previous record verdict, making it the largest verdict in Illinois history.Attorneys represented purchasers of defective computer hard disk drives in a class action suit against International Business Machines Corp.Injury attorneys of Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates recovered $16.4 million on behalf of an injured youth who sustained severe brain and spinal cord injuries in a single-car crash. The defense attorneys failed to negotiate a settlement in good faith with the Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates’ Auto Injury Team and within a reasonable time frame – instead the opposing counsel went to trial.

The lead trial team at Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates prosecuted the case on behalf of the injured youth. The jury awarded our client $16. million.A thirty-foot fall left a union plumber in critical condition with a fractured heel, fractured ankles, multiple severe fractures to both legs, three fractured vertebrae in his back and a herniated disk in his neck.

Clifford W. Horwitz and Jay R. Luchsinger tried the case in front of a twelve person jury in the Circuit Court of Cook County. The jury agreed with Horwitz and Luchsinger’s argument that the consulting engineer permitted a grating to be used as a walkway by the engineers even though it was missing components and unsecured – awarding the union plumber with an $11 million jury verdict.While picking up a prescription for flu like symptoms, a 50 year-old woman was struck in the right calf by a hand truck. The hand truck was operated by Dean’s Transportation.

The lead trial team at Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates secured a $10 million jury verdict. It was the largest jury verdict in Illinois history for a complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) injury.A journeyman ironworker and former professional boxer in the super middleweight division suffered a traumatic brain injury after falling approximately 12-15 feet. The construction accident resulted in multiple seizures that required hospitalization, headaches, double vision, and a myriad of other problems.

The lead trial team negotiated a $9 million settlement on behalf of the ironworker just short of a jury trial.An elderly woman who suffered a total crush injury to her leg after a dump truck ran over her in downtown Chicago.

Michael Wierzbicki, a partner at Horwitz Horwitz & Associates who focuses on commercial transportation and trucking litigation secured a $9 Million settlement on her behalf.A journeyman ironworker suffered a severe shoulder injury after a barge collided with his safety skiff, while working on a bridge on the Chicago River.

The lead trial team secured an $8 million jury verdict on behalf of the ironworker. It was the largest jury verdict in Illinois history for an adult male shoulder injury.A Union Oil explosion tragically took the life of a worker, leaving his wife and three children without a husband and father.

The lead trial team at Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates demonstrated that the explosion was caused by the negligence of Union Oil and recovered $8 million on behalf of the family for the wrongful death of the husband and father.The journeyman carpenter with over 34 years of experience was installing partitions and changing rooms doors when the superintendent of the job-site told the carpenter he was going to help. In less than two minutes, the superintendent managed to drill through the carpenter’s hand, wrapping the carpenter’s ulnar never around the drill bit. The nerve injury from the construction site accident manifested into complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS). The case was previously handled by the largest personal injury firm in Illinois, who told the carpenter that there was no third party case.

The defendant, ISEC, Inc. offered nothing through their insurance carrier, Liberty Mutual Group. After over five years of litigation and a week long jury trial, the lead trial of injury attorneys at Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates recovered a $5.745 million jury verdict on behalf of an injured union carpenter. The verdict is the largest verdict in Illinois history for a non-amputation hand injury, surpassing the previous verdict by over $1 million.Injury attorneys from Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates’ lead trial team recovered approximately $5 million for injuries suffered by a Local 150 operator after a job-site accident.

The remaining conditions of the settlement and the facts are subject to a confidentiality agreement.A union laborer who had been previously permanently disabled suffered a serious back injury while engaging in physical therapy. The laborer was using a vertical bench press when the cable broke. He suffered injuries to both shoulders and a herniated disk in his neck.

Injury attorneys from the lead trial team at Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates filed a claim against the manufacturer of the product and the maintenance company for the product. There was no lost wages, but the jury awarded the laborer a $3.8 million verdict for pain and suffering, disability, and medical bills.A woman fell down a set of stairs after tripping on tape that was left on the stairs. The slip and fall accident resulted in a herniated disk in her back.

The injury attorneys of the lead trial team at Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates successfully tried the case in Will County. The jury awarded the woman a $2.5 million jury verdict for the injuries she sustained after falling down the set of stairs.A Local 786 union Teamster recovered a $2.3 million settlement after suffering a career-ending injury. On the construction site, the crew attempted to hoist a conveyor belt assembly into place. The operator of the crane allowed the hoisting straps provided by the crane company to be used under tension against a sharp edge. Ultimately, the strap broke under the load weight, and the load struck the Teamster on the way down.

The injury attorneys from Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates’ lead trial team recovered a $2.3 million settlement for the injuries the Teamster suffered resulting from the construction site accident.A construction worker slipped off a rack of 2×6’s while on a construction site. He suffered a torn bicep tendon as a result of the slip and fall.

The injury attorneys on the lead trial team at Horwitz, Horiwtz & Associates recovered $2.25 million on behalf of the construction worker.The riverboat janitor was lifting heavy trash which resulted in a back injury requiring a two-level spinal fusion.

Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates’ lead trial team’s injury attorneys prosecuted the case under the Jones Act. The jury award a $2.2 million jury verdict in favor of the janitor. Before the trial, the company offered to settle, and even after the trial the offer increased.A young man was riding his bicycle to work when he was tragically hit by a school bus. Sadly, he was later pronounced dead after arriving to the Dyer Hospital in Indiana.

The school bus driver was not charged by the police, and further investigation by the accident reconstruction team did not fault the school bus driver. Instead, the reconstruction team determined the bus driver was under the speed limit and the police faulted the deceased bicyclist for riding further than necessary from the curb and riding without a front headlight.

Commercial trucking accident attorney, Michael T. Wierzbicki, from Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates successfully prosecuted the case. A seasoned attorney dealing with semi-truck and commercial truck accidents, Wierzbicki obtained critical evidence that demonstrated the bus company’s fault, recovering $2.1 million for the family of the bicyclist.A Local 11 union roofer suffered multiple fractures to both wrists requiring surgical placement of pins and screws, after falling through a hole in the roof.

The lead trial attorneys at Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates recovered $2 million for the roofer.A Local 502 union Cement Mason suffered fractures to his shoulder and vertebrae in his back after falling approximately 20 feet.

The defendant tried to blame the injury on the cement mason and the cement mason’s employer for working in high wind conditions. They event went so far as to secretly film the cement mason to make the argument that he had a great recovery.

The injury attorneys on the Lead Trial Team at Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates recovered $1.9 million for the stone mason.A Local 1185 union Tile Setter suffered a congenital defect in his back, spondyolisthesis and spondyloslysis after tripping over a ladder on construction site. The tile setter did not immediately report the injury.

The defendant, UBM, argued the tile setter was exaggerating his injuries, that the accident was impossible given the dimensions of the ladder and the doorway, and even brought in three employee witnesses to testify against the story of the tile setter.

The lead trial team of Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates had witnesses that thankfully contradicted the deceitful statements against the tile setter’s story, and the jury ultimately did not believe the defendant’s liability expert about the trip and fall accident because everything the expert said was in favor of UBM.

The jury awarded the tile setter a $1.5 million verdict for his injuries.