Joseph T. Gentleman
Managing Attorney
Joseph T. Gentleman is a Chicago-based attorney with over 25 years of experience representing plaintiffs in complex litigation matters. A Northwestern University graduate and John Marshall Law School Law Review member, he earned the prestigious AV Preeminent rating from Martindale-Hubbell in his first year of eligibility. He maintains offices in Chicago, Illinois, and has been recognized multiple times as a Super Lawyer for his work in professional malpractice cases.
A native of Oak Forest, Illinois, Joseph T. Gentleman is dedicated to serving clients in the Chicagoland area and throughout Illinois. Raised in an entrepreneurial family—his father a successful business owner and his mother the CFO of the family business—Mr. Gentleman graduated from Oak Forest High School before earning his degree from Northwestern University.
About Joseph T. Gentleman
After graduating from Northwestern University with a degree in Political Science and a minor in Philosophy, Mr. Gentleman chose to gain practical legal experience before attending law school. He worked for several prominent litigators in Chicago, Illinois because they had extensive experience trying plaintiff cases in Cook County. Mr. Gentleman decided to attend The John Marshall Law School in downtown Chicago because of its reputation for producing exceptional plaintiff trial attorneys and its proximity to his workplace, allowing him to work full-time while attending law school full-time.
Despite the demanding schedule of working and studying full-time, Mr. Gentleman excelled academically, finishing his first year in the top 5% of his class. This achievement earned him an invitation to join the Law Review, the most prestigious honor a law student can receive. He secured his position by writing an article about the use of pseudonyms to protect litigant privacy, which the Law Review editors approved.
Upon graduating from John Marshall Law School, Mr. Gentleman declined numerous offers from Chicago's large law firms to establish his own practice focused on representing plaintiffs and helping individuals rather than insurance companies, large corporations, or banks. He opened his office at 33 North Dearborn, directly across from the Daley Center, where the attorneys he had worked with during law school provided opportunities for collaboration as co-counsel. Mr. Gentleman has maintained a Chicago office for more than 25 years and continues to practice at 33 North Dearborn today.
Throughout his career, Mr. Gentleman has gained extensive experience litigating cases on behalf of plaintiffs. In his first year of eligibility, he earned the highest possible peer rating from Martindale-Hubbell: AV-Preeminent. This rating, based on evaluations from opposing attorneys and presiding judges, reflects exceptional legal ability and ethical standards. For more than 130 years, Martindale-Hubbell has evaluated attorneys through its Peer Review System, which eliminates bias by accepting evaluations only from opposing counsel and judges who have directly observed an attorney's work. The AV-Preeminent rating is awarded to attorneys with at least 10 years of practice who demonstrate the highest level of professional excellence in legal expertise, communication skills, and ethical standards. Considered the gold standard in attorney ratings, this honor is achieved by fewer than 10% of attorneys.
Mr. Gentleman has also been recognized multiple times as a Super Lawyer for his legal malpractice work. Super Lawyers selects attorneys through a patented multiphase selection process that includes independent research and peer nominations.
For more than 25 years, Mr. Gentleman has represented plaintiffs in various types of litigation, with a primary focus on legal malpractice claims against former attorneys. He exclusively represents former clients in these cases and does not defend attorneys. His practice extends to all forms of professional malpractice, including medical, accounting, broker, investment, construction, and architectural malpractice. In all cases, he represents only the former clients of these professionals, never the insurance companies that represent the professionals.
"I do not and NEVER will represent an insurance company, a bank, a lending institution, a hospital, a large corporation, or other type of institution. Instead, I have dedicated my professional career to fighting for the rights of real people, small businesses, family businesses, homeowners, patients, union workers, and injured persons."
Mr. Gentleman has tried cases in both federal and state courts throughout Illinois. He has been admitted to the Federal Trial Bar, which requires sponsorship and extensive experience as lead trial counsel. He has also filed appellate briefs and argued cases before the United States Supreme Court, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, and numerous Illinois appellate court districts.
Education
- Northwestern University, 1991
- B.A. Political Science, Minor in Philosophy
- The John Marshall Law School, 1998
- J.D., Member of Law Review
Honors
- Rated AV-Preeminent by Martindale-Hubbell
- Recognized as a Super Lawyer in Professional Malpractice
Bar Admissions
- Illinois Bar
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Wisconsin
- U.S. Court of Appeals, 7th Circuit
- Federal Trial Bar
- United States Supreme Court
