Esther Joy Schwartz

Esther Joy Schwartz has been licensed to practice law since her graduation in 1981 with honors from IIT-Chicago Kent College of Law, where she was a member of the Law Review. She is a member of the Illinois State and Chicago Bar Associations, as well as the Appellate Lawyers Association and the Defense Research Institute. Her Martindale-Hubbell rating is the highest available, an "AV" rating. She was previously the head of the Insurance Coverage and Appellate Departments at a medium-sized insurance defense firm in Chicago. While she has trial experience, she concentrates her practice in insurance disputes, both in Illinois and nationally, having prosecuted or defended over 400 declaratory judgment actions for commercial, personal lines, E&O and D&O insurance carriers. Additionally, she has handled in excess of 150 appeals, both in Illinois and nationally. She has handled complex multi-party litigation, class action lawsuits and regulatory matters before the Department of Insurance and drafted insurance policies for major insurance companies for whom she has often spoken at in-house seminars. Ms. Schwartz also acts as consultant to car rental companies on risk management and insurance issues, having drafted major changes to the rental and lease agreements. Most recently, Ms. Schwartz was invited to contribute a lead article to the IDC monograph on insurance law. As an accomplished musician, Ms. Schwartz plays violin in the symphony orchestra of the University of Chicago, where she did her undergraduate work.