William Lazarus looks forward to expanding the long record of professional success he has enjoyed. That record spans two fields, law and journalism, and some of its highlights are detailed below.
Law
Included among his’ many successes at his prior firm Kenneth J. Allen & Associates, Lazarus won his last three appeals with the firm. In Franciose v. Jones, 907 N.E.2d 139 (Ind. Ct. App. 2009), the court upheld a substantial jury verdict on behalf of KJA client Aaron Jones, rejecting defendants’ arguments on presentation of evidence, expert witnesses, and causation. In Fitzpatrick v. Kenneth J. Allen & Assoc., 913 N.E.2d 255 (Ind. Ct. App. 2009), the court affirmed a large attorney’s fee judgment against an Illinois lawyer who sought to back out of his fee splitting agreement with KJA. In Van Swol v. ISG Burns Harbor, LLC, 910 N.E.2d 1289 (Ind. 2009), the court reversed the trial court’s dismissal of the case on grounds of the worker’s compensation bar. To see Lazarus’ briefs or portions of briefs for KJA in these matters, go to “Writing Persuasively.”
Lazarus is an active member of the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association and its Amicus Curiae Committee. In 2010, he was honored with an ITLA William J. Harte Amicus Volunteer Award. Lazarus has remained a member of the American Association for Justice since his return to law in 2004. He also is a member of the Appellate Lawyers Association, an organization of Illinois attorneys who regularly practice in state and federal reviewing courts, the Indiana State Bar Association, the Lake County Bar Association and the South Suburban Bar Association.
Journalism
During 24 years as an investigative reporter at the Miami Herald, the Times of Northwest Indiana, the Alaska Advocate and other daily newspapers, Lazarus won more than thirty state, regional and national awards. To see details concerning many of these honors, see Journalism Awards.