We Have Won Over $300 Million for Injured Chicagoans
For more than 30 years, our personal injury attorneys at DePaolo, Zadeikis & Pino have protected the rights of injured people like you. We’re not a settlement mill that’s interested in getting the fastest payout at the expense of our clients. We are trial lawyers, and we don’t back down. We have a 95% win rate to prove it.
Whether you suffered injuries in a minor fender bender or a slip and fall, or your injuries are catastrophic, your case, your well-being, and your recovery are our priorities.
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Significant personal injuries can occur anytime, anywhere, and to anyone, and the costs to recover can be astronomical. Hiring the right personal injury attorney to handle your case can make all the difference in your ability to recover physically, emotionally, and financially.
If you’ve been injured because of the negligence of someone else, call DePaolo, Zadeikis & Pino at 312-263-7560 right away for a free consultation. The sooner you act, the stronger your case may be, because important deadlines and evidence can slip away quickly.
Here’s what you can expect when you put your case in our hands:
For more than three decades, our Chicago personal injury lawyers have handled nearly every kind of case you can imagine, from car crashes on the Kennedy Expressway to workplace accidents and medical errors. We know the tactics that insurance companies and corporations use to avoid paying victims, and we know how to counter them.
Below are some of the most common types of personal injury cases we take on for clients throughout Chicago and across Illinois:
Motor vehicle accidents are one of the leading causes of injury in Chicago and throughout Illinois. Whether your crash happened on Lake Shore Drive, I-90/94, or a neighborhood street, the aftermath can leave you with painful injuries, medical bills, and lost income. Our attorneys investigate every angle of your accident, from distracted or drunk driving to defective auto parts and unsafe road conditions, to make sure no detail is overlooked. We build your case with police reports, witness statements, photos, and expert testimony so you have the best chance of recovering full compensation.
Even though Illinois law requires drivers to carry liability insurance, about 13% of motorists drive uninsured, and many more carry only the bare minimum. If you’re hit by one of these drivers in Chicago, your own uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage may be the only safety net you have. Unfortunately, UM/UIM claims are full of technical requirements and strict deadlines that can trip up injured people. Our attorneys cut through the red tape, handle negotiations with your insurer, and fight to make sure you receive the benefits you’ve been paying for.
When an 80,000 pound commercial truck is involved in an accident, it’s usually the other drivers, passengers, or pedestrians who bear the brunt of the injuries. Victims of truck crashes in Chicago suffer spinal cord injuries, brain trauma, amputations, and fatalities at much higher rates than other accident victims. At DePaolo, Zadeikis & Pino, we pursue every liable party, from fatigued or impaired drivers to trucking companies that cut corners on maintenance or overloaded cargo. We work with accident reconstruction specialists and industry experts to hold corporations accountable and maximize your recovery.
You trust doctors, nurses, and hospitals to provide safe, competent care. When that trust is broken, the consequences can be life-altering or even deadly. Medical malpractice claims arise when a healthcare provider deviates from the accepted standard of care, leading to serious harm or death. From surgical mistakes and birth injuries to delayed diagnoses and medication errors, malpractice contributes to thousands of preventable injuries each year in Illinois. Our lawyers know how to take on powerful hospitals and their insurers, and we’ll fight to secure the compensation you need for ongoing treatment, lost wages, and emotional suffering.
A simple fall can lead to broken bones, traumatic brain injuries, or lasting back problems. In Chicago, slip and fall accidents often happen on icy sidewalks, in grocery stores, or in poorly maintained apartment buildings. Property owners and managers have a duty to keep their premises reasonably safe for visitors. When they fail to fix hazards or warn you about dangerous conditions, they can be held financially responsible. Our attorneys gather surveillance footage, maintenance records, and witness testimony to prove negligence and help you recover compensation for your medical care and lost wages.
Families trust nursing homes to care for their loved ones, but abuse and neglect are all too common in Illinois facilities. From untreated bedsores and falls to physical abuse or financial exploitation, nursing home negligence can cause devastating harm. These cases are often complex, involving medical records, facility policies, and state regulations. Our lawyers take an aggressive approach to hold negligent facilities, staff members, and corporate owners accountable, ensuring your loved one’s dignity and safety are protected.
If you were hurt on the job, you may have more options than just filing for workers’ compensation. In many Chicago workplace accidents, a third party, such as a subcontractor, property owner, or equipment manufacturer, shares responsibility for injuries. In these crossover cases, you can file a personal injury lawsuit in addition to receiving workers’ comp benefits. This allows you to pursue damages for pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, and other losses not covered by the workers’ comp system. Our attorneys investigate construction sites, warehouses, and other workplaces to identify every responsible party and maximize your recovery.
One of the first questions many clients ask is: “How much is my case worth?” Illinois law allows injured people to recover several types of damages when someone else’s negligence causes them harm. These damages fall into three main categories: economic, non-economic, and punitive.
Economic damages cover the financial losses you can calculate with bills, pay stubs, or receipts. These may include:
Non-economic damages compensate you for the harder-to-measure impacts of an injury, such as:
In some cases, courts may also award punitive damages. These are not tied to your losses, but instead are meant to punish a defendant whose behavior was particularly reckless, intentional, or outrageous. While less common, punitive damages can result in significant awards. Unlike some other states, Illinois does not cap how much a jury can award in punitive damages.
At DePaolo, Zadeikis & Pino, we carefully evaluate every category of damages to ensure your claim accounts for the full impact of your injuries — not just the obvious expenses.
Call 312-263-7560 today for a free case evaluation. Our attorneys will explain your options and fight for maximum compensation under Illinois law.
Even with a strong case, the steps you take after an accident can make or break your financial recovery. Illinois law places certain responsibilities on injury victims, and failing to meet them can reduce, or even eliminate, the damages you receive.
Here are three of the most important factors that can affect your award:
Illinois follows a modified comparative negligence rule. This means your compensation depends on your share of fault for the accident. If you are 50% at fault or less, you can still recover damages, but your award is reduced by your percentage of fault.
This is one reason insurance companies fight hard to shift blame. Every percentage point matters.
In Illinois, injured people have a duty to mitigate damages — meaning you must take reasonable steps to reduce the impact of your injuries. If you ignore medical advice, skip treatments, or otherwise allow your condition to worsen, the defendant can argue your damages should be reduced. Following through with prescribed care not only supports your recovery, it protects your legal claim.
Illinois law sets a strict statute of limitations for personal injury cases. In most situations, you have two years from the date of the injury to file a lawsuit. Miss the deadline, and you may lose your right to recover damages forever. There are some exceptions, but courts enforce these rules strictly — so it’s critical to act quickly after an accident.
Most personal injury cases in Illinois do not go to trial. About 90% are resolved through settlements with insurance companies. Whether your case goes to trial depends on the other party’s willingness to make a fair offer and your lawyer’s assessment of what’s best for you. If trial is necessary, our attorneys have the courtroom experience to fight for you.
In most cases, you have two years from the date of your injury to file a personal injury lawsuit in Illinois. There are exceptions, such as cases involving minors or hidden injuries, but courts strictly enforce deadlines. Speaking with a Chicago personal injury lawyer as soon as possible helps protect your right to compensation.
Hiring us won’t cost you anything upfront. Like most personal injury lawyers in Chicago, we work on a contingency fee basis. That means we only get paid if we win money for you. Our fee comes out of your settlement or verdict, so you never pay out of pocket.
Since so many factors come into play when valuing an injury case, it’s difficult to tell you exactly how much your case is worth in advance. Our lawyers will consider your medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and the way your injuries impact your life to provide you with an estimate of how much your case is worth.
No. In 2010, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled that setting a cap on damages in personal injury cases was unconstitutional. According to the Court, decisions regarding damage awards should be left up to the Judge and jury.
