Northern Illinois

Michael J. Warner, a partner in the personal injury law firm of Warner & Zimmerle, in Rock Island, has been appointed to the Board of Directors of the Illinois Bar Foundation (IBF), the charitable arm of the Illinois State Bar Association (ISBA), and will serve a two-year term.

The Foundation raises funds for distribution to Illinois nonprofit organizations whose mission is to provide free legal services to those with limited means. It also provides assistance to lawyers who can no longer support themselves due to incapacity. The Foundation also oversees the Illinois JusticeCorps program, which provides trained part-time student volunteers to serve as guides in courthouses. This year, the Foundation will distribute more than $850,000 in funds.

Warner has been a lawyer in private practice since 1972 after serving for a year in the Rock Island State’s Attorneys Office. He has been a member of the Rock Island Bar Association since 1971. He was a board member of the Mississippi Valley Alzheimer’s Association and is a past president of the Rock Island County Mental Health Board.

Thomas S. Johnson, 73 of Rockford, senior partner of one of Rockford's oldest and largest law firms, died unexpectedly at home on February 15, 2016.

Born May 21, 1942, in Rockford, son of Fred C. Johnson and Pauline Ross Johnson. He graduated from East High School in 1960 where he excelled in debate and received the Oratorical Contest award. He graduated from Rockford College in 1964 and then received his law degree from Harvard Law School in 1967.

He served in the U.S. Army from 196870, where he received the Meritorious Service Medal. Tom then returned to Rockford to join the law firm founded by his mentors, Karl Williams and John C. McCarthy, and began a distinguished legal career that lasted 46 years. He concentrated his practice in trust and estate law and received the highest recognition in his specialty by being named as a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel.

He was instrumental in the growth and success of WilliamsMcCarthy LLP and was President of the law firm from 1987 to 2002. Tom possessed a brilliant mind, a sharp wit, and was unwavering in his support of the firm, his colleagues, his community and the legal profession. In the tradition of Daniel Burnham, his motto was "Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men's blood."

The Lombard family law firm of A. Traub & Associates is pleased to announce that Senior Associate and ISBA Board member Chantelle A. Porter has been promoted to Partner. Porter joined A. Traub and Associates in 2008.

“Chantelle has been a phenomenal asset to A. Traub & Associates and just all in all great to have around. Her unwavering commitment to the local legal community and her clients is impressive. It was an easy decision to name Chantelle as a partner and we look forward to her success within this new role,” says Principal Owner of A. Traub & Associates, Angel M. Traub.

Lombard divorce lawyer Chantelle A. Porter earned her J.D. from DePaul University College of Law and earned her B.A. from Ohio State University. Porter concentrates her legal practice on family law, juvenile criminal defense, domestic violence, orders of protection and DCFS abuse and neglect cases. She also assists clients with landlord and tenant issues and civil litigation defense. Porter is a Guardian ad litem and an appointed Juvenile Conflict Attorney in the 18th Judicial Circuit.

Elgin attorney Loren S. Golden of Golden Law Offices recently received an award for “Trial Lawyer Excellence” from the Jury Verdict Reporter, a division of Chicago-based Law Bulletin Publishing Company. 

Golden was awarded this honor for outstanding representation of his client, who had injuries sustained in a grain bin accident. The three-week jury trial for the case was held in Carroll County, Illinois.  The verdict was appealed by the defense and the Second District Appellate Court in Elgin affirmed the jury verdict of $830,109.50, the highest reported Carroll County Verdict in a personal injury case. Recently, the Supreme Court of Illinois denied Defendant’s request for leave to appeal that decision, making the verdict final.