Simmons Hanly Conroy LLC, a national litigation firm, is pleased to announce four of its attorneys have been named to the Illinois Rising Star list, placing them among the top, up-and-coming attorneys in the state for 2014. Simmons firm attorneys recognized include Shareholders Randy Cohn and Paul Lesko and associates JoAnna Pollock and John Foley. No more than 2.5 percent of Illinois attorneys receive this honor each year. The selection for this respected list is made by the research team at Super Lawyers.
Cohn returns as a Rising Star for the third year in the area of Personal Injury – Plaintiff: Products. As a Shareholder, he oversees a team of attorneys and investigators and has developed a unique focus on helping victims of Navy-related asbestos exposure.
He has recovered millions of dollars on behalf of his clients, including a recent $2.86 million asbestos verdict against R.T. Vanderbilt. The jury verdict was the largest amount awarded in Delaware during the past ten years.
Lesko has been named a Rising Star in the area of Intellectual Property since 2009. He is a Shareholder and manages a team of intellectual property attorneys and staff as part of the firm’s Complex Litigation Group.
Lesko focuses his practice on helping small business owners, entrepreneurs and inventors maintain equal footing in the marketplace by enforcing their intellectual property rights against infringers. He has represented clients against some of the world’s largest companies. He also writes a popular sports memorabilia industry blog called “Law of Cards.”
Pollock returns as a Rising Star for the third year in the areas of Environmental Litigation and Personal Injury – General: Plaintiff. Her practice focuses on helping those exposed to toxic substances, those who suffer from personal injuries and those businesses that need help protecting their intellectual property rights.
She is the 2014 Chair of the Intellectual Property Group for the American Association of Justice. In addition, she serves as an arbitrator for the Third Judicial Circuit of Illinois and regularly provides pro bono representation to children and emerging artists.
Foley returns for a second year as a Rising Star in the area of Plaintiff Personal injury: Products. Foley represents people who have been harmed by dangerous drugs and medical devices, including transvaginal mesh implants, Yaz birth control, and the diabetes medication Actos.
He was recently appointed to a national leadership role in the multidistrict litigation for transvaginal mesh as a member of multiple plaintiff steering committees.
Super Lawyers, a Thomson Reuters business, is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high-degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The annual selections are made using a rigorous multi-phased process that includes a statewide survey of lawyers, an independent research evaluation of candidates, and peer reviews by practice area.
The complete ranking of the 2014 Illinois Rising Star edition will appear in the February edition of the Illinois Super Lawyers magazine. For more information, visit www.superlawyers.com.
