Leslie J. Rosen concentrates her practice in civil appeals, litigation support and guardianship matters. She was initially trained by the great trial and appellate lawyer, Leonard M. Ring, and has been privileged to work on some of the most important civil appeals in the State of Illinois, beginning with Bernier v. Burris, which reviewed the constitutionality of the 1985 Illinois Tort Reform Act and declared medical review panels to be unconstitutional.

Leslie has an unusually broad range of experience. She has worked with the leading personal injury attorneys in the State to preserve verdicts for catastrophically injured plaintiffs, i.e. Barton v. Chicago & Northwestern Railway Co. (affirmed $29.6 million verdict for acclaimed violinist who lost a leg in a train accident). Significantly, she has also been involved in major appeals on behalf of insurers, i.e. Illinois Cent. R. Co. v. Accident and Cas. Co. of Winterthur (affirmed ruling that insurer not liable for $10 million insurance coverage claim). Further still, she has represented individuals wrongly charged with torts, i.e. Doe v. Dilling (reversed $2 million verdict for woman who sued the parents of her deceased fiancé who did not tell her that their adult, competent son had AIDS). The breadth of her experience on both the plaintiff and defense side of cases gives Leslie the ability to see a problem from many angles and devise winning strategies for her clients.

Prior to becoming a lawyer, in 1981, Leslie worked as a hospital social worker for Tufts New England Medical Center in Boston, MA and her experience and training have helped her serve as an effective advocate for individuals requiring guardianship as well. Leslie is AV rated by Martindale-Hubbell. This rating is a reflection of her expertise, experience, integrity and overall professional excellence. The AV rating is only given to attorneys with preeminent legal ability.

Selected To:

Illinois Super Lawyers 2010
-- among top 50 women lawyers in Illinois

Illinois Super Lawyers 2009

Illinois Super Lawyers 2008

Illinois Super Lawyers 2007

Illinois Super Lawyers 2006

Admitted:

1981, Massachusetts (retired)

1981, United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts.

1982, Illinois

1983, United States District Courts for the Northern District of Illinois and the District of Massachusetts.

United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit

United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit

United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

Bar/Professional Activity:

Leslie is a member of the Chicago Bar Association and served on its Judicial Evaluation Committee for over 10 years. Through this Association, Leslie also co-teaches a class on trial advocacy in the Chicago Public High Schools each spring and the class culminates in a trial competition between the schools. Ms. Rosen is also a member of the Illinois Appellate Lawyers' Association and the Illinois Trial Lawyers' Association.

Pro Bono/Community Service:

Leslie serves on the Board of Directors and Executive Board of her synagogue, the Jewish Reconstructionist Congregation of Evanston. She also serves as the Chair of the congregation's Adult Education Committee.

Most recently, Leslie wrote an amicus brief for the Illinois Trial Lawyers' Association in the matter of Thornton v. Garcini, No. 107028 in the Illinois Supreme Court. In Garcini, the Court affirmed the Appellate Court's holding that a plaintiff is not required to present expert testimony to prove a claim of negligent infliction of emotional distress.

Education:

B.A. Illinois, Urbana, IL 1974
   - Psychology

M.Ed. Boston University, Boston, MA 1975
   - Counseling Psychology/Education

J.D. Northeastern University School of Law, Boston, MA 1981