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Illinois commercial trucking corridor — illustrative

Truck Accident Lawyers in Illinois

Independently reviewed truck accident attorneys across Chicago, Joliet, Decatur, Waukegan, Rockford and Naperville. 30 firms reviewed, with verified data from the State Bar of Illinois, Google Maps, and our editorial methodology.

Portrait of Mark Sullivan

By Mark Sullivan, Editor

· How we research

Illinois sits at the crossroads of US interstate freight, with Chicago's O'Hare and Midway airports anchoring air cargo, the Mississippi and Illinois rivers handling bulk shipping, and I-80 / I-90 / I-55 / I-57 converging in the metro. Cook County juries are historically among the most favorable in the country for plaintiffs in commercial vehicle litigation — Illinois has produced multiple nine-figure verdicts in trucking cases over the past decade.

Illinois truck accident law — key points

Three legal questions affect almost every truck accident case in Illinois. Each is governed by a public statute we link below — you can verify everything.

Comparative negligence rule

Modified comparative negligence (50% bar)

See statute

Illinois follows modified comparative negligence with a 50% bar (735 ILCS 5/2-1116). You can recover only if you are LESS than 50% at fault — at exactly 50%, you recover nothing. Recovery is reduced by your fault percentage.

Damages caps

No cap on compensatory damages

See statute

Illinois has no statutory cap on compensatory damages in ordinary personal injury cases. Past attempts at non-economic damages caps were struck down by the Illinois Supreme Court (Best v. Taylor Machine Works, 1997). Punitive damages are available but not common against trucking defendants outside of clear gross-negligence cases.

Top 5 truck accident law firms in Illinois

Sorted by our editorial score. Each firm has been reviewed with our public methodology and verified across multiple data sources. Click any firm to see the full side-by-side comparison.

  1. 1

    LiSi Law, LLC

    Joliet, IL · Offices in Joliet

    Google ★ 5 · 57 reviews Editorial 10/10 · Local Joliet personal-injury practice
    See full profile and sources →
  2. 2

    Onward Accident & Injury Law

    Decatur, IL · Offices in Decatur

    Google ★ 5 · 156 reviews Editorial 10/10 · Local Decatur personal-injury practice
    See full profile and sources →
  3. 3

    Pignatelli & Associates, PC. Rockford Personal Injury Attorney

    Rockford, IL · Offices in Rockford

    Google ★ 5 · 79 reviews Editorial 10/10 · Local Rockford personal-injury practice
    See full profile and sources →
  4. 4

    The Law Offices of Michael W. Kopsick

    Waukegan, IL · Offices in Waukegan

    Google ★ 5 · 61 reviews Editorial 10/10 · Local Waukegan personal-injury practice
    See full profile and sources →
  5. 5

    217 Law LLC

    Decatur, IL · Offices in Decatur

    Google ★ 4.9 · 49 reviews Editorial 9.8/10 · Local Decatur personal-injury practice
    See full profile and sources →

Looking for firms in a specific city? Chicago, Joliet, Decatur, Waukegan, Rockford and Naperville.

State Bar of Illinois verification

Every lead attorney for the firms we cover in Illinois has a verified State Bar profile. Click any name to see the live record on the State Bar website.

  • Patrick A. Salvi · admitted 1978 · Active per IARDC public record · No public discipline
  • Robert A. Clifford · admitted 1976 · Active per IARDC public record · No public discipline
  • Joseph A. Power Jr. · admitted 1977 · Active per IARDC public record · No public discipline
  • Steven M. Levin · admitted 1976 · Active per IARDC public record · No public discipline
  • Antonio M. Romanucci · admitted 1985 · Active per IARDC public record · No public discipline

Frequently asked questions about Illinois truck accident cases

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the deadline to file a truck accident lawsuit in Illinois?

Two years from the accident date (735 ILCS 5/13-202). If a municipal entity is involved (e.g., a CTA bus, a Chicago city truck), you must file a notice of claim within 1 year (745 ILCS 10/8-101).

What if I was partly at fault?

You can recover only if you were less than 50% at fault. At 50% or more, your claim is barred (735 ILCS 5/2-1116).

Illinois truck accident guides

Deadline

Statute of limitations

2-year deadline, tolling exceptions, government claim deadlines.

Action guide

What to do after a truck accident in Illinois

24-hour, 7-day, 30-day checklists. What to never do. State-specific warnings.

Settlement data

Average settlement amounts in Illinois

Typical ranges by injury severity, calibrated to Illinois jury tradition and damages caps.

Fault rules

Illinois comparative negligence explained

How Illinois divides fault, with recovery examples at every fault percentage.

Browse Illinois cities

Chicago IL Joliet IL Decatur IL Waukegan IL Rockford IL Naperville IL

All US states we cover (legal framework + firms where reviewed): Texas, California, Florida, Georgia, Arizona, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, New Jersey, North Carolina, Tennessee, Michigan, Massachusetts, Maryland, Virginia, Indiana, Wisconsin, Missouri, Minnesota, Washington, Colorado, Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, Wyoming.

States with similar laws to Illinois

Same comparative-fault rule (modified-50): Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, Michigan.