Catastrophic Litigation

Hinshaw’s catastrophic litigation attorneys are at the forefront of complex, evolving issues. We have defended many challenging, media-intensive catastrophic cases amid ongoing changes in plaintiffs’ strategies, discovery technologies and the statutory and regulatory environment.

Our lawyers handle litigation from all types of crises or disasters, including explosions, fires, industrial accidents and power outages, to name a few. For example, we:

• Represented the building management in litigation arising from the Cook County Headquarters fire in which six people died and 16 were injured. The Governor of Illinois and the President of the Cook County Board appointed commissions headed by the former director of FEMA and the former counsel to President Clinton, respectively, to study this fire. (Media attention about this litigation was extensive.)
• Represented the fire alarm monitoring company in the $140,000,000 John Deere warehouse fire in Davenport, Iowa.
• Represented building ownership in the high-profile Hancock scaffold litigation involving three deaths and numerous injuries.
• Represented LaSalle Bank in the major 2004 highrise fire at LaSalle Bank’s headquarters.
• Advised major transportation companies in the country on legal concerns arising from the post 9/11 anthrax scare.

The cases, while diverse, show the common thread of a catastrophic event leading to serious injury, property damage, or, in several cases, death.

From initial media inquiries to temporary restraining orders concerning evidence preservation, to responding to local, state and federal agencies and regulatory bodies, Hinshaw’s lawyers are uniquely qualified to navigate the avalanche of events that typically follow these disasters.

Our experienced litigators are skilled at planning long-term legal strategies and cost-effectively maneuvering through the discovery process. We are well versed in implementing sophisticated document collection and preservation processes.