"Becoming a trial lawyer who fights for the rights of victims and consumers has been the fulfillment of a lifelong goal. It gives me great personal and professional satisfaction to know that I have helped make an important difference in people's lives."
Now retired, Bruce M. Kohen is well-known for record jury verdicts and settlements throughout his over 32-year legal career. He negotiated the highest settlement in Illinois history for a personal injury case under the Structural Work Act and the largest jury verdicts in the state for medical malpractice in the death of a child and another for psychological malpractice. Bruce has worked tirelessly with legislators in Springfield to protect workers’ rights, and he has consistently generated multi-million dollar awards for his clients.
Bruce was one of the leaders of the Illinois Trial Bar. He served as the President of the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association from June 2007-2008 and was a member of its executive committee.
A leader in the fight to preserve laws that protect consumers and victims, Bruce chaired the Legislative Committee of the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association for ten years and was one of the lead lawyers in the litigation that successfully challenged the constitutionality of the Illinois Tort Reform Act.
Bruce, who joined the firm as a law clerk and is a named partner/owner, focuses his practice in the fields of personal injury, products liability, medical malpractice, wrongful death, and construction-related injuries. He is listed in The Best Lawyers in America, Leading Illinois Attorneys, and Illinois Super Lawyers. He is often invited to speak before the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association, Illinois State Bar Association, Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, the Chicago Bar Association, and top mid-west law schools. He is the author of a wide array of articles and publications in the area of tort litigation. In 1998, he was a finalist for the Trial Lawyers For Public Justice prestigious Trial Lawyer of the Year award.
In 2008, he received the ‘Professional Achievement Award’ from Chicago-Kent College of Law. In 2013, the “Bruce M. Kohen Courtroom”, a state-of-the-art courtroom, was named in his honor at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law. In 2014, he was selected by Chicago-Kent College of Law as one of their 125 Alumni of Distinction. He is a member of the Chicago-Kent Alumni Board of Directors and was appointed by the Illinois Supreme Court to serve on its IPI Jury Instruction Committee for 9 years.
Additional Area of Focus
Bar Admissions
- Illinois, 1979
- U.S. District Court Northern District of Illinois, 1979
- U.S. District Court Central District of Illinois, 1995
- U.S. Court of Appeals 7th Circuit, 1980
- U.S. Supreme Court, 1983
Honors
- Best Lawyers in America Listing
- Professional Achievement Award – Chicago-Kent College of Law 125 Alumni of Distinction – Chicago-Kent College of Law
- Bruce M. Kohen Courtroom - Chicago-Kent College of Law
- Trial Lawyer of the Year Finalist – Trial Lawyers for Public Justice, 1998
- Leading Illinois Attorneys Listing
- Illinois Super Lawyer Listing
Classes & Seminars
- Lecturer, Illinois Trial Lawyers Association
- Lecturer, Chicago Bar Association
- Lecturer, Illinois State Bar Association
- Lecturer, Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education
Professional Associations
- Illinois Trial Lawyers Association, Member, President, Executive Committee
- American Association for Justice, Member, State Delegate
- Illinois State Bar Association, Assemblyman
- Illinois Trial Lawyers Association, Chairman, Legislative Committee
- Society of Trial Lawyers, Board of Directors
- Chicago Bar Association
