40 Under Forty 2024

KATIE SCHWARTZ

AGE 39

FIRM Hughes Socol Piers Resnick & Dym

LAW SCHOOL Washington University School of Law

AREA(S) OF PRACTICE Civil rights and employment litigation

2024 ILLINOIS ATTORNEYS TO WATCH

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K ate Schwartz has already amassed a long list of victories for her clients. And her peers say that they expect this civ- il rights and employment law specialist to continue achieving successful results, even in areas of complex litigation outside of her specialty. For instance, earlier this year Schwartz obtained a record $20 million settlement with a Chicago-area hospital and its se- curity company in a wrongful death action involving a young woman who was the victim of an active shooting at the hospital where she worked. Christopher Daddino, an attorney with Chi- cago's Cassiday Schade who was Schwartz’s opposing counsel, learned during the case just how talented an attorney Schwartz is and how fiercely she advocates for her clients. "Because of her preparation, she obtained critical evidence from both witnesses and defendants in deposition," Daddino said. "Because of her oratory skills, she obtained several import- ant court rulings. Moreover, she successfully defended the rul- ing before the Appellate Court. As a result, her client obtained the exceptional result of an eight-figure settlement." This is just one example of Schwartz's legal talent. She also represented individuals subject to an unlawful system of private probation in Giles County, Tennessee. That civil rights case re- sulted in a successful class-wide settlement, which ended the county’s predatory practice of funding its probation system through fees paid by people under its supervision. The county also paid $2 million in damages and attorney’s fees.

Kate has outstanding lawyering skills. ”

Schwartz also successfully settled a procurement action in advance of a preliminary injunction hearing on behalf of United Maintenance Company, a city contractor that alleged the city violated competitive bidding requirements when it failed to renew the company’s contract to provide custodial services at O’Hare airport. Schwartz was also part of the legal team that filed a lawsuit against Cook County judges challenging the unconstitutional use of cash bail to detain people in Cook County. Although that case was dismissed, it has been credited with helping to spur Illinois' abolition of monetary bail. "Kate is the consummate professional in her dealings with opposing counsel and consistently demonstrates kindness, pa- tience and empathy towards her clients," said Greg Swygert, in- terim director of Chicago's Center on Wrongful Convictions who partnered with Kate on a pro bono matter in which they asserted a post-conviction claim of actual innocence. "Kate has outstand- ing lawyering skills, including her strong writing ability, knowl- edge of the law, strategic thinking and excellent oral advocacy."

40 Under Forty 2024

CHICAGO LAWYER & CHICAGO DAILY LAW BULLETIN