Graymont Business Lawyers

Mary Ludwig received her J.D. and M.B.A., along with a Certificate in Food and Agricultural Law from Drake University in 2005. Prior to that she received a Bachelors of Science in Agriculture Economics from the University of Illinois. Mary concentrates her practice in agricultural law, estate planning, real estate transactions and probate. Her agricultural law experience includes organization and representation of production agricultural farm operations, agricultural cooperatives, grain elevators, agricultural input suppliers, ethanol and bio-diesel plants, and specialty farm product companies, wind tower and cell tower leases and easements, pipeline, gas, public utility and fiber optic easements,...

Licensed to practice since 2008, Thomas Howard has represented numerous financial institutions in litigation to enforce their security interests. Over the past decade, he has assisted community banks in complex commercial workouts involving some of the most sophisticated financial products in the banking industry. He has also litigated in contested contract cases on various legal theories. Since 2015, he has been named both a Rising Star from Super Lawyers and an Emerging Lawyer by Leading Lawyers. He also extensively represents secured creditors in various avenues of commercial loan enforcement through all aspects of litigation, from commercial workouts through...

Jim Finegan attended the University of Illinois for undergraduate school and Northwestern University for Law School. He moved to Bloomington, Illinois after graduating law school and he has over 40 years experience. He specializes in bankruptcy, real estate, and civil litigation.

Jacob J. Frost practices in the areas of estate/trust administration, residential and commercial real estate purchases and sales, business organizations, governmental law, and wills and trusts. Attorney Frost has served and represented clients in the Illinois Valley area for several years. Frost earned his law degree from the University of Illinois College of Law, with high honors in Legal Research and Writing. He received his Associate of Arts degree, summa cum laude, from Illinois Valley Community College and his Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He was admitted to both Phi Beta Kappa...

Noah Benckendorf was born and raised in Morton, Illinois. He graduated from DePauw University in Greencastle, IN in 2018 with a degree in history and economics. Noah went on to study law at the Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law where he was a member of the Business Law Association. While in law school, Noah worked for Liberty Mutual Insurance as a law clerk doing insurance defense work. Noah also spent time with Protective Insurance as a law clerk in their corporate legal team. Noah went on to work at first American Title Insurance as a post-closing agent. In...

Alex was born in Galesburg, Ill., and has lived in rural western and central Illinois throughout his life. He attended Knox College in Galesburg, graduating in 2011 with a double major in History/Political Science. Prior to law school, Alex worked as a special education aide at West Central High School in Biggsville, Ill., where he coached the football and track teams.Alex earned his J.D., cum laude, in 2016 from the Saint Louis University School of Law. Alex married his wife Joni in October 2021. They live in the Groveland area along with their two dachshunds and two cats. They welcomed...

I am an attorney who is passionate about my profession and clients. I believe in providing top-notch, innovative, cutting-edge strategies and advice. My clients feel as if they are my only client. I will treat your case as if I was in your shoes. I understand your situations, problems, and dilemmas and formulate a plan of action to resolve the issues at hand. Washington Law Offices P.C. is located in Chicago and Elgin, Illinois. We provide a variety of legal services including Real Estate Law, Business Law, Contract Law, Employment Law, Foreclosure Defense, Bankruptcy and Landlord Tenant...

Robert A. Shipley is the founding partner of Shipley Law Group, Ltd. For decades he has maintained long-standing client relationships while engaged in an active litigation and trial practice, along with general business counseling.

Mr. Shipley focuses his practice in civil litigation involving complex commercial, construction, construction defect, insurance, professional liability and tort litigation and general business counseling, as well as Mediation and Alternative Dispute Resolution. An experienced trial attorney, he has in excess of 100 cases to verdict and has successfully argued cases in the Illinois Appellate Court.

Mr. Shipley has been awarded the AV® Preeminent Peer Review Rating™...

I have been practicing law for over 35 years. I graduated 3rd in my class from law school, so I had the opportunity to work at one of Chicago's largest law firms on Michigan Avenue, Ross & Hardies, right out of law school. At that time my experience was mostly in the area of personal injury law having clerked during law school for one of the nations top personal injury lawyers, Leonard M. Ring & Associates. In April of 1991 I started my own firm that has continued to prosper under the philosophy of providing, "Quality,...

Andrew B. Gordon is the founder and managing attorney of Gordon Law Group, an aggressive tax & business law firm in Chicago. Andrew works diligently to ensure the people he helps get the best possible results. And he fights relentlessly for clients’ best interest, saving them thousands of dollars all while providing them with peace of mind.

Not only is he a practicing attorney who graduated from Chicago Kent College of Law, but he is also a Certified Public Accountant with a BA and Master’s Degree from the University of Illinois.

During Law School, Andrew volunteered at the school’s Low Income Taxpayer...

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Kreisman Law Offices is a Chicago-based personal injury firm that successfully uses a client-based approach to seek justice for victims nationwide. Robert Kreisman is an AV-rated attorney, the highest rating by Martindale-Hubbel with over 45 years of experience litigating a variety of catastrophic injury cases, including those involving medical malpractice, nursing home negligence and abuse, car and truck accidents, wrongful death, products liability, and commercial litigation. He works with some of the leading experts in the nation and employs the newest technology to seek the most favorable results possible for his clients. Most cases are taken on a contingency fee...

Expert Advocacy in Employment Law: Attorney Cynthia Pietrucha ========================================================== I champion the rights of employees and guide employers through the legal intricacies of the workplace. With a decade of dedicated legal service, I am a seasoned employment attorney with expertise in drafting and negotiating separation agreements, litigating medical leave and ADA employment cases, and negotiating remote work terms, even prior to COVID-19! **Your Advocate for Fair Severance and Medical Leave Rights** Navigating the end of an employment relationship or grappling with medical leave can be daunting. As an expert in separation negotiations, I ensure that my clients—whether employees or employers—receive the most favorable terms...

I enjoy working on a variety of legal matters for our firm.

Some of the more regular tasks include representation of clients in an array of tax disputes before the IRS and the Illinois Department of Revenue. These cases often work there way through the administrative level, up through appeals, and often to the United States Tax Court. My clients have scored significant victories in Audit Defense, Offer in Compromise and Innocent Spouse cases.

I am also experienced in drafting employment contracts such as employment and separation and termination agreements as well as restrictive covenants.

I represent buyers and sellers in residential real...

Robert Motta II is the Managing Partner at Motta & Motta LLC. He concentrates his law practice in criminal defense, DUI, divorce & family law. Robert was named 2014 Top 100 National Trial Lawyer and is known in the legal community for his unparalleled pre-trial and trial strategies.

Adam E. Urbanczyk has represented tech startups, online merchants, film producers, software companies, national shipping lines, marketing firms, landlords, IT distributors, and consultants in defense, and pursuit, of intellectual property and commercial disputes. Adam has produced favorable outcomes for plaintiffs and has obtained dismissals and removals based on artful pleading, lack of standing, and preemption in state and federal courts in Illinois. Adam has helped recover millions of dollars for online resellers and merchants.

Mazyar M. Hedayat is the principal of M. Hedayat & Associates, PC, a law firm that has represented Clients for nearly 25 years in the areas of business law and litigation, bankruptcy law and litigation, real property transactions and litigation, construction law and mechanics liens, corporate law, and more. After attending the University of Chicago and University of Michigan, Mr. Hedayat received his MBA from the U.M. Ross School of Business, and his J.D. from DePaul University College of Law. Mr. Hedayat is a title insurance agent and operated a full-service title company for 6 years....

Adam Gana serves as the managing partner of the law firm of Gana Weinstein LLP. His practice focuses on all aspects of securities arbitration. Mr. Gana's experience includes securities arbitration and litigation in various dispute resolution forums including JAMS, NFA and FINRA and litigation in both State and Federal Courts. As lead counsel, Mr. Gana has tried more than forty cases to verdict before the state and federal trial and appellate courts, AAA, and has settled hundreds more cases through mediation and direct negotiation.

Mr. Gana was named in the New York Super Lawyers Rising Stars® for eight straight years (an...

Prior to graduating from law school, Mr. Kottaras received valuable training as an intern for two civil court Judges. After law school, Mr. Kottaras began working with a local law firm, where he honed his litigation skills representing real estate developers and personal injury clients.

In 1993, Mr. Kottaras opened a Law Office in the Chicago-Loop, and has been in continuous operation ever since. During this time, he became general counsel for a local real estate developer and owner of several Chicago-Loop commercial buildings, where he practiced real estate leasing, litigation and transactional law. After the developer retired,...

I am a unique Illinois lawyer who represents individuals, consumers and small business owners. I have two office locations to better serve you--one in downtown Chicago and one just outside Peoria. If you have been seriously injured, physically or monetarily I am here to help you. I handle sexual harassment cases as well as personal injury cases, including wrongful death cases, throughout the state of Illinois. I can help you through the complex legal system. My priority is client satisfaction. Unlike most attorneys I am available seven days a week and can work around your schedule.

I am...

Lisa Bragança protects individuals and businesses from being bilked by Wall Street and bullied by regulators. She knows how to get important information to securities regulators early, before they have reached a decision on whether to charge and what to charge. Lisa served as a Branch Chief in the Division of Enforcement of the Chicago Office of the Securities & Exchange Commission, where she handled investigations of accounting fraud, Ponzi schemes, insider trading, churning, and unsuitability. While at the SEC, Lisa collaborated with the federal criminal prosecutors in securities fraud investigations at major corporations. Since leaving the SEC, Lisa has...

An outstanding trial attorney, Shawn Collins is at his best in a courtroom. Shawn has extensive experience handling “high stakes” litigation in environmental contamination, toxic tort, personal injury, and commercial cases. Most recently, Shawn served as co-counsel in a case resulting in a $363 million jury verdict for a woman who contracted breast cancer after decades of exposure to ethylene oxide. He has also been instrumental in acquiring clean water and contamination-free homes for thousands of families. Shawn has recovered millions for clients, including: $34.5 million for a neighborhood contaminated with toxic vapors; $8.5 million for the family of a...

Services We Provide Include: • Probate & Estate Planning: Estate Administration, Wills, Trusts, Powers of Attorney, Living Wills; • Business Formation & Transactional Matters: Creation of Business Entities (i.e. LLC, Corp., Partnerships) & Other Business Agreements including Mergers & Acquisitions; • Income Tax Returns: Planning & Preparation (Individuals, Partnerships, Corp., Trusts, Gift & Estate Tax, Tax-Exempt Org., Payroll & Others); and • Audits & Appeals: Representation in Problematic Tax & Regulatory Matters.

With almost 20 years of legal experience, Tim O'Brien brings a mature eye to estate planning. As the father of young kids, he also understands and appreciates the needs of families with school-age children. In his work with O'Brien Estate Law, LLC, Tim works to make sure his clients don't get cookie cutter estate plans. He takes the time to understand each person's or family's wishes and builds the plan around their specific circumstances. Tim also firmly believes that an estate plan is not just something you do and put on a shelf. Each plan needs to be reviewed as...

Jeffrey Goldstein is recognized as one of the top franchise litigators who represents franchisees, dealers and distributors in commercial complex litigation cases across the country, although his main base is Washington, DC. Mr. Goldstein has extensive experience representing clients in state and federal courts and arbitrations in cases involving fraud, RICO, antitrust, encroachment, and wrongful termination.

I work with senior citizens, their families, and small business owners to get their affairs organized, safeguard their estates, and prepare succession plans. In matters of probate or trust administration, I work with personal representatives to properly manage the administration of the estate and advise them of their legal duties along the way. My experience in these practice areas has been exclusive since I have been private practice. In 2010, I expanded my practice territory to include Lake County, Indiana by obtaining an Indiana law license.

Charles is a shareholder at The Law Office of Lofgren & Wentworth, P.C. in Glen Ellyn, Illinois, where he practices business, property, and appellate litigation. After graduating from the SJ Quinney College of Law at the University of Utah, he clerked for Chief Justice John Broderick of the New Hampshire Supreme Court. He was then a litigation associate at Kirkland & Ellis LLP in Chicago before opening his own practice. He recently joined Richard Lofgren to form The Law Office of Lofgren & Wentworth, P.C., The Entrepreneur's Legal Resource. Charles' experience as an officer and director of multiple closely-held companies...

Cari is a licensed attorney in the States of New York, Illinois, New Jersey, and Connecticut while being licensed in the District of Columbia. Cari is a general practitioner with concentrations in food/agriculture law, family/matrimonial law, civil litigation, estate planning and mediation. Rincker Law, PLLC has offices in New York City and Champaign, Illinois. Cari is a member of the Association for the Bar in the City of New York's Matrimonial Law Committee. Before starting Rincker Law, PLLC, Cari was an associate at Budd-Falen Law Offices, LLC in Cheyenne, Wyoming where her broad practice...

Jennifer is a Partner who focuses her practice in commercial and business litigation and appellate practice. She has successfully tried both bench and jury trials. Jennifer has also written and argued appeals before the Appellate Courts of Illinois and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. She is currently the Chair of the Appellate Law Committee of the DuPage County Bar Association. Jennifer is a Kentucky native and graduated from the University of Kentucky in 2001. In 2006, she graduated from Tulane University Law School. While in law school, she earned an Environmental Law Certificate and was...

Aja Favors is a mediator that focuses on privacy and technology disputes including Data Breach, Contract Disputes, AI-Generated content, Consumer-to-business privacy disputes, and more. She's gained crucial knowledge in technology mediation by working for a variety of organizations. Attorney Favors is the founder of her own firm, Privacy & Technology Mediation Services. The firm is based out of Illinois but serves clients throughout the United States. Make sure that your data is handled with care. To schedule a free consultation, call 312-767-3900.

Connor is a founding partner of Jackson LLP, an entrepreneurial health law firm. He focuses his practice on the business side of healthcare law, which aligns with his detail-orientation, strong problem-solving skills, and business background.

Connor enjoys working with clients to create their ideal practice environment and build a strong compliance foundation that supports long-term success. He strives to not just counsel, but educate his clients on key laws and regulations, giving them the tools to make legally prudent decisions moving forward.

Connor earned his undergraduate business degree from Oregon State University and worked in the real estate sector. He then graduated...

Geo has handled numerous complex business disputes utilizing technology to assist his clients in handling litigation in an economical and efficient manner. Geo's litigation team has extensive experience in state and federal courts, and places the interests of their clients above all other interests.
Geo has been recognized by other attorneys as one of the best trial lawyers in Illinois:
- rated as an Illinois Super Lawyer for his work in business litigation for the past 15 years;
- recognized as one of the Top 100 Trial Lawyers in Illinois;
- rated as one of the...

Alexander (Alex) Passo is a trial lawyer that represents clients on a variety of matters with a concentration on: internal business disputes, emergency business litigation, breaches of contract, fraud and professional negligence. Alex has successfully resolved several cases where his clients have recovered over $1,000,000.00.

Alex is a problem solver. Akin to the most notable historical Alexander, he enjoys solving the 21st century’s version of the Gordian knot - complex business disputes. These types of legal controversies often contain a multitude of problems and he employs an analytical approach to solving them - first identifying his clients’ objectives and...

Robert Castle is a proven business attorney and trusted advisor. He takes great pride in providing personalized, professional legal services that helps his clients achieve their goals. He has guided businesses of all shapes and sizes through various corporate, franchise, and securities matters—and is highly skilled at drafting and negotiating clear narratives for all types of commercial contracts, franchise documents, and compliance material tailored to each client’s unique needs. Rob has a proven track record for defining and executing nuanced legal strategies relating to business operations, complex transactions, franchise matters, and intricate regulatory compliance issues. ...

Located in Glenview, Illinois, Attorney Matthew A. Livingston is an experienced attorney who concentrates his practice on estate planning, probate & trust administration, real estate, and business formation. As the founder of The Livingston Law Office, Attorney Livingston works diligently to provide peace of mind to his clients. Representing individuals, families, and businesses throughout Cook County and Lake County, call Attorney Livingston at 847-544-6657 or visit his website to schedule a free initial consultation.