THL – TorHoerman Law

Jacob Plattenberger

Jacob W. Plattenberger started his career trying cases at one of the busiest civil courthouses in the country – the Richard J. Daley Center in downtown Chicago. He started out doing insurance defense because he knew that afforded him the best opportunity to get courtroom experience.

“When I was working the defense side, I always knew that I was going to be a plaintiff’s lawyer. I knew that being able and willing to try a case to a jury was a skill that I needed to have if I was going to be able to offer my clients the best legal representation. Insurance companies and corporate defendants need to believe you when you say you will take them to trial – they need to fear that.”

Throughout his career, Jake has taken hundreds of depositions, argued in countless hearings and tried over 35 cases to a jury. This type of real trial experience is exceedingly rare in complex civil litigation and having seen it from the defense side gives Jake an added advantage.

At TorHoerman Law, Jake manages our Chicago office where he leads trial teams in nationwide, complex litigations such as representing dozens of workers across the US who were exposed to Diacetyl at work and now suffer lung disease; the Incretin Mimetics Products Liability Litigation currently pending in the Southern District of California, where he was named to the Plaintiff’s Steering Committee; and the various Transvaginal Mesh multidistrict litigations pending in the Southern District of West Virginia.  Jake also maintains a personal injury practice in Chicago, representing people and their families who have been victims of catastrophic auto and truck accidents, products liability, maritime accidents, premises liability, and medical negligence.

Jake believes that to successfully represent his clients is to get personally involved.

“I talk to my client’s families, I talk to their kids. My clients have my cell phone number and I am happy to talk to them at all hours of the day and night. When I go to the negotiating table or the courtroom I am thinking of their families.”

Born in Chicago, Jake earned his undergraduate degree from DePaul University where he was a National Political Science Honor Society member, and he earned his law degree from The John Marshall Law School where he was a Dean’s Scholarship Recipient and a member of the American Bar Association National Mediation Advocacy Team.
Personal Bio

Jake was born and raised in Chicago.  He now lives in the Chicago suburbs, where his two young sons keep him busy. When he isn’t working, Jake is a lifelong Bears and Cubs fan and loves participating in the (mostly) healthy rivalry between the Cubs and Cardinals fans at TorHoerman Law.

 

Professional Leadership Roles

• Plaintiff’s Steering Committee in national Incretin Mimetics litigation

Bar and Court Admissions

• The State of Illinois
• S. District Court, Northern District of IL
• S. District Court, Central District of IL
• S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit
• Admitted Pro Hac Vice – New York, California, and Wisconsin

Education

• The John Marshall Law School, Chicago, IL, 2008, JD;
  Honors: Dean’s Scholarship Recipient, Associate Editor, The Francis D. Morrissey Scholars Legal Ethics Writing Group, American Bar Association National Mediation Advocacy Team – 2008,
• DePaul University, Chicago, IL, 2003, BA; Major: Political Science
  Member of Pi Sigma Alpha – The National Political Science Honor Society
  DePaul University Honors Program

Professional & Community Affiliations

• American Bar Association Section of International Law
• American Bar Association Section of Litigation
• Chicago Bar Association
• American Association of Justice
• Injury Board

Professional Engagements and Writings

• Co-presenter on Topamax litigation at AAJ conference, NYC, July 2011.