D.J. Sartorio has more than 25 years experience as an attorney practicing in insurance services, appellate, directors and officers liability and professional liability law. He is also a member of our Executive Committee.
In his insurance practice, DJ’s representative experience includes successfully defending a major GL insurer against a challenge to use of staff counsel, representing three major specialty lines insurers in contingent commission coverage litigation, successfully defending TRO in a challenge to an insurer's right to control defense of an IP lawsuit and representing a major insurer in a gluten class action coverage litigation.
D.J. has extensive appellate expertise and has, for example, obtained the reversal of a multi-million dollar jury verdict and changed Illinois law with respect to expert disclosures, sustained the dismissal of a class action under jurisdictional provisions of CAFA, obtained a reversal of a $100 million judgment in an "advertising injury" coverage case and obtained a reversal of a judgment notwithstanding the verdict in a Jones Act case.
D.J.’s professional liability and trial experience is also extensive. He has defended a law firm in a federal trial in an ERISA action filed by the US Department of Labor, represented a major insurer under an ICPL policy in a "disappearing premium" coverage litigation, successfully defended a client against preliminary injunction in a Franchise Act case, obtained a jury verdict in a Lanham Act case and acted as regional defense counsel for a major insurer of accountants.
D.J. has received an AV® rating from Martindale-Hubbell which is “a testament to the fact that a lawyer's peers rank him or her at the highest level of professional excellence.” He received the Chicago Bar Association Certificate of Appreciation in 1986, 1987 and 1988 and the Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education Certificate of Appreciation in 1987, 1989, 1992, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2004, 2006 and 2008. Additionally, D.J. was selected for inclusion in Illinois Super Lawyers® in 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011.
D.J. has spoken and authored on topics such as insurance coverage, third-party practice and professional liability, as well as state and federal procedure, to various groups, including the American Bar Association, Chicago Bar Association, Illinois Association of Defense Trial Counsel and Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education.