Mr. Latherow began his legal career with significant trial experience at the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office, where he was promoted to the Felony Trial Division within two years of being hired. There he prosecuted murder, armed robbery and rape cases in the highly visible Repeat Offender Trial Courts where he tried 25 jury trials to verdict. He then joined Corboy and Demetrio in Chicago where he tried personal injury and medical malpractice cases for over 3 years until he started Latherow Law (now known as Latherow & Duignan Law Office) in 1985. Since that time, he has tried and settled aviation, personal injury, wrongful death, medical malpractice and construction law cases, including a then Illinois record setting plane crash verdict of $18,900,000.
The founder of Latherow & Duignan Law Office, Mr. Latherow is a Past President of the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association. He has been selected to Best Lawyers in America. He has been chosen each year since the award’s inception in 2005 as one of the top 100 attorneys in Illinois by Illinois Super Lawyers. He has also been chosen each year by the National Trial Lawyers Association as one of the top 100 trial lawyers in Illinois. He is rated AV by the Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers. This AV rating as defined by Martindale-Hubbell law directory signifies that he is among those at the highest level of legal ability and that he has a very high adherence to the professional standards of conduct, ethics, reliability and diligence.
- Named one of the Top 10 Attorneys for the state of Illinois by the National Academy of Personal Injury Attorneys and the American Institute of Personal Injury Attorneys in 2017
- Best Lawyers in America, honored by his peers for his work in Personal Injury Litigation.
- Named one of the Top Litigation Lawyers in Illinois every year by the American Society of Legal Advocates since 2015
- Named one of the Top 100 Trial Lawyers in the State of Illinois, each year by the American Trial Lawyers Association now known as the National Bar Association, since the award’s inception in 2010
- President, Illinois Trial Lawyers Association,2011-2012
- Chosen each year since inception of the award in 2005 as one of the Top 100 Attorneys in Illinois by Illinois Super Lawyers
- Listed, Top 100 Verdicts Nationally, National Law Journal
- AV® Preeminent Peer Review RatedSM by Martindale-Hubbell®
- Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers™
- Illinois Leading Lawyers, having been selected by his peers every year since this award began in 2003 as being in the top five percent of all personal injury, professional malpractice and transportation attorneys in Illinois
- Inducted as Charter Member by the Distinguished Justice Advocates, 2016. This is an extraordinary achievement, as less than 1% of practicing attorneys in the U.S. receive this honor.
- Lawyers of Distinction, having been selected by his peers as being in the top ten percent of all personal injury, professional malpractice and transportation attorneys in the United States.
- Recipient of Loyola Law School Leadership and Service Award, 1976
- Recipient of the Loyola Law Alumni Association’s St. Robert Bellarmine Award, 1986
- Invited to become a member of Top American Lawyers. An extraordinary achievement as fewer than 1% of U.S. lawyers are invited.
- Illinois Trial Lawyers Association
- President, 2011-2012
- Member, Executive Committee, 2002–2003, 2004–2013
- Member, Board of Managers, 1988–present
- Illinois State Bar Association
- Member, Political Action Committee, 1993–1999
- Chairman of Political Action Committee, 1998–1999
- ISBA Assembly, six terms
- Chicago Bar Association
- Member, Board of Managers, 2005–2007
- Chairman, Aviation Law Committee, 2003–2004
- Member, 1985–present
- Member, Judicial Evaluation Committee, 1983-1988)
- American Association for Justice
- Member, 1982–present
- Member, Aviation Law Committee
- American Bar Association
- American Bar Foundation
- American Society of Legal Advocates
- Society of Trial Lawyers
- Trial Lawyers for Public Justice
- Loyola Law Alumni Association
- Past President, 1986–1987
- Loyola University of Chicago Law School Student Bar Association
- President, 1975–1976
- Loyola University of Chicago Law School
- Dean’s Circle
- Board of Governors, 1979–1985
- Mr. Latherow’s cases have been reported in the Wall Street Journal, Chicago Tribune, Chicago Sun-Times, Daily Herald, Bloomberg News, Crain’s Chicago Business, Chicago Daily Law Bulletin, ¡HOY!, and a number of legal industry publications.
- Interviewed by Chicago Tribune and Chicago Daily Law Bulletin reporters regarding second highest Illinois verdict in medical malpractice wrongful death case tried by Mr. Latherow and Ms. Duignan.
- Interviewed by NPR and various Chicago news affiliates regarding the filing by Latherow Law Office of lawsuits involving the Chicago Blue Line crash.
- Recognized by the National Law Journal as obtaining one of the top 100 verdicts in the country, $21 million (reduced to $18.9 million due to the co-pilot’s comparative negligence), including $18 million for loss of society damages as a result of a private jet crash, a then record verdict in Illinois for loss of society damages.
- Interviewed for news coverage by local affiliates of NBC, ABC, CBS, Fox News and various newspaper publications regarding various cases he has handled, including high-profile cases involving medical malpractice where surgical sponges were left inside a patient, and sexual abuse cases involving clergy and school employees.
- Mr. Latherow’s cases have been reported in the Wall Street Journal, Chicago Tribune, Chicago Sun-Times, Daily Herald, Bloomberg News, Crain’s Chicago Business, ¡HOY!, and a number of legal industry publications.
- Uncertain Safety for Latino Workers, Chicago Tribune, Mar. 2, 2008.
- Estate of Eli G. Haig vs. Tarek S. Husayni, M.D., Midwest Pediatric Cardiology, d/b/a Heart Institute for Children, Advocate Christ Hospital and Medical Center, Adventist Hinsdale Hospital, Emergency Health Care Physicians, and David Mayor, M.D.
- Paras v. Campbell
- Niakesha Thomas v. CTA
- Estate of Alfredo Valladares v. Ralph Leon
- Lopez v. Romexterra
- Estate of Whitener v. Aon
- Estate of Shirley Fein v. Chicago Transit Authority et al.
- Estate of Cynthia Lee v. Lutheran General Hospital
- Celeste Fraser v. Charles Bjork
- Estate of Marvin Bailey v. Albert Sheetz et al.
- Estate of Shannon Eggert v. George Scully, Jr.
- Estate of Donald Laird v. Cook County Hospital
- Tom Stritzel v. MSD et al.
- Boy Doe v. Sarah Bush Lincoln Health System, Inc. et al.
- John Doe v. Chicago Board of Education
- Lauterbach v. Archdiocese of Springfield
- Loyola University Chicago School of Law, JD, 1976
- Illinois State University, BS, 1973
- Carl Sandburg College, AS, 1971
- Illinois, 1976
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois, 1976
- Lecturer: Personal Injury and Wrongful Death Litigation
- Loyola University Chicago School of Law
- Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education
- Chicago Bar Association
- Lorman Education Services
- Illinois Trial Lawyers Association