Jonathan L. Federman

Jonathan L. Federman is Senior Counsel in the Chicago office of GRSM and is a member of the Insurance, Commercial Litigation, and Appellate practice groups. His practice includes representation of insurance company clients in disputes arising out of commercial general liability, professional liability, business auto, directors and officers, and other types of insurance policies. Jonathan provides opinions and recommendations to insurer clients faced with a potential claim as well as representation in declaratory judgment litigation.

Jonathan also represents clients in a wide variety of civil litigation, including negligence, product liability, business disputes, contract disputes, business torts, professional liability, and commercial litigation. He also represents clients throughout the appellate process, utilizing the experience gained while a judicial law clerk for a justice of the Illinois Supreme Court.

Admissions

• Illinois
• U.S. District Court, Northern, Central, and Southern Districts of Illinois
• U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit

Memberships

• Illinois Defense Counsel
• Illinois Legal Aid Online Young Professional Board
• The Decalogue Society of Lawyers

Community Involvement

• Illinois Defense Counsel – Professional Development Committee
• Illinois Legal Aid Online Young Professional Board Co-Chair – 2019-2021
• Illinois Legal Aid Online Young Professional Board Membership Chair – 2017-18
• Mentors current law school students and recent graduates
• Adjunct Law Profession, University of Illinois Chicago Law School 

Publications

• Author, Evidence and Practice Tips: Last Minute Pleadings in the Age of E-Filing, Illinois Defense Counsel Quarterly, First Quarter 2024 issue, Jonathan Federman and Paula Villela.
• Author, Understanding how the SAFE-T Act has Changed the Cash Bail System and Impacted both Criminal and Civil Litigators, Decalogue Tablet, March 2024
• Author, Evidence and Practice Tips: When Character Evidence May Be Used to Demonstrate Propensity Evidence, Illinois Defense Counsel Quarterly, Fourth Quarter 2023 issue, Jonathan Federman and Paula Villela.
• Author, A Refresher on Important Rules to Remember While Litigating a Civil Matter, DCBA Brief: The Journal of the DuPage County Bar Association, November/December Issue, Jonathan Federman and Britanny Jocius.
• Author, The Protect Illinois Communities Act – What it Does and How it Impacts Gun Laws in Illinois, The Decalogue Tablets, Jonathan Federman and Britanny Jocius.
• Author, Coerced Testimony of a Witness, As Opposed to the Fabrication of Evidence, Should Not Be Used as a Basis to Satisfy a § 1983 Claim for Alleged Due Process Violations in an Underlying Criminal Matter, 55 UIC L. Rev. 40 (2022), Jonathan Federman and Kyle Fleck.
• Author, When Is It OK To Use Expert Testimony After They Withdraw?, Law360, Jonathan Federman and Paula Villela.
• Author, The What, Why and How as to Bystander Reports, IDC Quarterly, Vol. 33, No. 1, Jonathan Federman and Paula Villela. 
• Author, When to Impeach a Witness Versus Refreshing Their Recollection, IDC Quarterly, Vol. 32, No. 4, Jonathan Federman and Paula Villela.
• Author, Defense, Affirmative Defense or Counterclaim? Knowing the Difference and How to Litigate Them, IDC Quarterly, Vol. 32, No. 3, Jonathan Federman and Paula Villela.
• Author, Can a Plaintiff Rely on an Expert Opinion after the Expert has been Withdrawn?, IDC Quarterly, Vol. 32, No. 2, Jonathan Federman and Paula Villela.  
• Author, Practical Considerations in Taking Advantage of Judicial Admissions and Evidentiary Admissions, IDC Quarterly, Vol. 31, No. 4, Jonathan Federman and Paula Villela. 
• Author, The Threat of Reptile Litigation Tactics, IDC Quarterly, Vol. 31, No. 3, Jonathan Federman and Paula Villela. 
• Author, Gillepsie v. Edmier: What is Means to the Admissibility of Expert Testimony, IDC Quarterly, Vol. 31, No. 2, Jonathan Federman and Paula Villela. 
• Author, Potential Consequences of Filing a Frivolous Lawsuit, IDC Quarterly, Vol. 31, No. 1, Jonathan Federman and Paula Villela. 
• Author, Utilizing Summary Judgment to Avoid the Time and Expense of Discovery, IDC Quarterly, Vol. 30, No. 2, Jonathan Federman and Paula Villela.
• Author, Laying Founding to Properly Admit Social Media Content, IDC Quarterly, Vol. 30, No. 1, Jonathan Federman and Paula Villela. 
• Author, Claims Issues Potpourri, October 24, 2019, Donald Patrick Eckler, Paula Villela and Jonathan Federman.
• Author, Character Evidence: Proper Preparation and Tips, IDC Quarterly, Vol. 29, No. 4, Jonathan Federman and Paula Villela.
• Author, Cross Examining an Expert Witness: Proper Preparation and Tips, IDC Quarterly, Vol. 29, No. 3, Jonathan L. Federman, and Paula Villela.
• Author, We Volunteered to What? Liability for Snow and Ice After Mickens v. CPS Chicago Parking, LLC, IDC Quarterly, Vol. 29, No. 3, Matthew F. Tibble, Jonathan L. Federman, and Donald Patrick Eckler.
• Author, The Saga Continues The Further Development of Claims and Insurance Coverage in Construction Defect Cases, IDC Quarterly, Vol. 28, No. 1, Donald Patrick Eckler and Jonathan Federman.

Presentations

• Speaker, Motions – Let the Arguments Begin, Illinois Defense Counsel, April 29, 2024
• Speaker, So You've Passed the Bar...Now What?, Illinois Defense Counsel, April 9, 2024
• Speaker, How Insurance Can Drive Your Employment Lawsuit, National Employment Lawyers Association Illinois Seventh Circuit Conference, Chicago, Illinois, October 19, 2023
• Speaker, A Day in the Life of a Cyber-Attack, Chicago, Illinois, November 17, 2016
• Speaker, Best Practices for Administrative Law Decisions and Recommendations, Chicago, Illinois, August 25, 2017

Education

J.D., summa cum laude, The John Marshall Law School, 2013

• The John Marshall Law Review, Staff Editor
• CALI Awards: Civil Procedure I, Constitutional Law II, Contracts I, Corporations, Criminal Law, Property, Sales Transactions.

B.S., Politics and Government; History, Illinois State University, 2006

Honors

Rising Star Award, Illinois Defense Counsel (2023)

Super Lawyers® - Rising Star distinction in Insurance Coverage (2023)

Clerkships

Justice Thomas L. Kilbride, Illinois Supreme Court