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Some athletes are described as five star. Some military are designated as five star. Dick Donohue is a five-star lawyer and person. As a trial lawyer, Dick zealously represents his clients within the bounds of the facts and the law. He respects the judiciary, juries, the court system and opposing lawyers. As a mediator, he bridges the gaps between plaintiffs and defendants and gets cases settled. As a founding partner of his firm, he has helped it to grow into one of the most formidable trial firms in Chicago. As a navy veteran, he gave service in active duty and in the naval reserves. As a person of faith, he has been an Eucharistic minister. Most importantly, he has been married for 46 years; has four adult children; and, seven grandchildren. Dick Donohue is a five-star lawyer and person.”
since 2005 has been included as one of the top 100 Super Lawyers in Illinois in insurance defense for personal injury. In 2021, The Best Lawyers in America honored Donohue for his work in the field of medical malpractice law. Donohue has worked on several big cases during his career. One, though, stands out. In this case, which was tried in the 1990s, an obstetrician was ready to induce labor in a patient ready to give birth. Unfortunately, the anesthesiologist could not be found. It was later discovered that he was having intercourse at the time with a nurse. The baby was deliv- ered but suffered brain damage. Donohue represented the obstetrician in this case. Eventually, the case settled. The challenge was that the hospital and the doctors who practiced there were separately insured. After the case ended, this insurance set-up was tweaked so that both the doctors and hospital were insured together. “That was one good thing that came out of what was a tragic case,” Donohue said. “They changed the system for the better. The case was something of a cause celeb at that time. I didn’t want to get into the limelight, and I was glad that it ended up getting resolved. You do the best you can to represent your client and you move on.” Many of the cases that Donohue tried, of course, didn’t generate the same kind of headlines. But that was fine with him. Donohue said that he started trying cases just about two years after graduating from law school, back when he was working at Baker & McKenzie, where he eventually became partner.
William J. Rogers, Swanson Martin & Bell LLP
Dick and six of his seven grandchildren - Maeve, Patrick and Cara Hotchkiss; Neve and Ivy O’Leary; and Timmy Farmer
Bill Cunningham, Dick Donohue, Pete Wentz and John Garnett in County Donegal
48 JURY VERDICT REPORTER • 2022 ANNUAL TRIAL LAWYER EXCELLENCE AWARDS
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