Daniel B. Meyer

312-763-6222

Education

DePaul University College of Law (J.D.)
Purdue University (B.A.)

Admissions

Illinois Supreme Court
Wisconsin Supreme Court
United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
United States District Court for the Central District of Illinois
United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois
United States Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of Illinois
United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit

Dan Meyer spends his professional life representing professionals in malpractice claims and ethics proceedings, representing shareholders and corporations in shareholder disputes and other business litigation, and providing advice and counseling to condominium and homeowners’ associations. While a significant part of his practice is dedicated to defending lawyers in legal malpractice claims, he also devotes considerable time advising lawyers and law firms on their ethical obligations and risk management tools, acting as outside general counsel to several of Chicago’s many condominium associations, and representing the interests of family members and shareholders in disputes that arise within closely-held corporations.

A strong believer in giving back to the industry that has given so much to him, Dan is a frequent speaker and author on cutting edge issues that affect licensed professionals. He has written and co-written a number of articles published in the Professional Liability Underwriter’s Society’s PLUS Journal and the Defense Research Institute’s For The Defense. He is also frequently invited to speak at legal conferences around the country, to local bar organizations, and at client-sponsored continuing legal education events.

Dan has also had the great honor of serving a two-year term as the chair of the DRI Professional Liability Committee, where he continued the work of his predecessors in raising the stature of that Committee within the professional lines industry, and putting the Committee’s annual seminar on the map of must-attend seminars for professional liability attorneys and claims professionals.

Dan received his undergraduate degree in Political Science from Purdue University. After taking a year off, he attended DePaul University College of Law. Before graduation from DePaul, he served on the Executive Board of the Moot Court Society and was a member of one of the teams to participate in the National Security Law Moot Court Competition hosted by George Washington University Law School.

Dan began his legal career with a small Chicago firm that concentrated its practice on defending professionals – primarily lawyers – before regulatory bodies and in malpractice and fiduciary claims. Before forming Meyer Law Group in 2013, he worked for a specialty insurance defense firm and, before that, a litigation boutique spun off from one of the country’s largest law firms.

Dan and Ted defended a probate attorney who represented an heir in a will contest proceeding. The plaintiff, a fifty-percent beneficiary of an estate valued at just over $10,000,000, claimed that the $7,500,000 her lawyer secured for her in the will contest proceeding wasn’t enough and sued him for legal malpractice. After Dan deposed the plaintiff’s expert witness, the plaintiff voluntarily dismissed her case.
At trial, Dan defended an insurance agency and producer who were alleged to have breached the standard of care by procuring a commercial property policy written on an actual cash value basis, rather than a replacement cost basis. After a fire destroyed the property, valued at $900,000 but with a $4,500,000 replacement cost, the customer sued the agency and producer for failing to procure a replacement-cost policy. At the close of the plaintiff’s case-in-chief, the trial court granted a motion for directed verdict in favor of the agency and producer, finding that the customer was required to prove the breach through expert testimony, even though no reported Illinois case law at the time required such testimony.
Retained to hire expert witnesses and for trial, Dan defended an attorney who had represented the husband, an owner of several businesses, in his divorce. The plaintiff alleged that his attorney breached the standard of care by not securing accurate valuations of his businesses, which led to an inflated maintenance award in favor of his wife. He also claimed that his attorney’s breaches ultimately led to the failure of his businesses. The plaintiff claimed over $7,500,000 in damages. After the trial court granted Dan’s motions in limine to bar most aspects of the plaintiff’s damages model, the plaintiff agreed to accept high five-figures in settlement.
After a sub-contractor’s network was hacked and fraudulent wire-transfer instructions were sent to a general contractor, Dan represented the general contractor against the sub-contractor’s claim that it failed to pay invoices exceeding $500,000. After written discovery was completed, Dan negotiated a favorable settlement that also maintained the ongoing and future business relationship between the parties.
Two months before trial, Dan was retained to defend a lawyer in a legal malpractice claim arising from a series of real estate transactions. On speculation that the City of Chicago would be awarded a bid for the Summer Olympics, the plaintiff, represented by our client, acquired multiple properties in areas of Chicago slated for Olympic venues. When the Olympics bid was rejected, the plaintiff discovered purported flaws in the closing documents that it contended rendered its real estate holdings worthless, and claimed over $500,000 in loss in its legal malpractice claim against our client. After a bench trial, the trial court entered judgment against our client for less than $3,000, which the Illinois Appellate Court affirmed.
Dan, Ted and Mark represented an insurance producer in a disciplinary proceeding before the Wisconsin Office of the Commissioner of Insurance and in a related civil claim. The customers alleged that the producer had sold them $45,000,000 in unsuitable life insurance policies with associated annual premium approaching $1,000,000. The customers sought damages equaling the premium paid plus lost opportunity costs, and the Wisconsin insurance regulators sought a permanent license revocation, restitution of $1,000,000 and civil forfeiture of $2,000,000. On the eve of the disciplinary trial, soon after Dan had deposed the customers, they agreed to accept less than a third of their claimed damages in settlement, and the OCI agreed to a nominal amount (four figures) of forfeiture.
Dan defended a bankruptcy attorney in a federal disciplinary proceeding initiated by the Office of the United States Trustee, contending that she had filed nearly two dozen bankruptcy petitions for improper purposes, filed Rule 2016 Disclosures of Compensation containing false information, and utilized client retainer agreements with improper provisions, all in violation of the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure and the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct. The United States Trustee requested that the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois impose discipline on the attorney, including a life-time suspension and restitution of fees to each of the attorney’s clients. After discovery, the United States Trustee agreed to a one-year suspension and restitution to only one of the attorney’s clients.
Dan and Ted defended the former chief executive officer of an ethanol facility located in central Illinois. After the corporation was involuntarily placed into bankruptcy, the bankruptcy trustee initiated over thirty-five adversary proceedings, including one against the former executive for authorizing over $10,000,000 in payments to various creditors in breach of fiduciary duties to other creditors. After significant discovery, Dan and Ted negotiated a settlement amounting to approximately ten percent of the payments.
Dan and Ted represented a health maintenance organization (HMO) against breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, negligence and fraud claims filed by one of its member-employers, contending that the HMO miscalculated the savings it had achieved against billed charges from medical providers, and seeking over $2,000,000 in actual damages and over $1,000,000 in attorney’s fees and litigation costs. After a contested arbitration hearing, the panel awarded the member-employer less than $400,000 (which the HMO had admitted it owed from the start) and ultimately denied the member-employer’s petition for attorney’s fees and costs.
Dan represented one of the largest independent broker-dealers in the country against tortious interference claims arising from allegations that it had systematically induced registered representatives appointed by other broker-dealers to breach their appointment agreements. Dan negotiated settlements involving nominal payments on some claims and no payments on others.
Dan petitioned the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) to expunge a financial advisor’s Central Registration Depository (CRD) and BrokerCheck® reports after a customer complained that the advisor’s investment advice had depleted the customer’s retirement accounts to nothing. In a contested hearing, Dan established that a super-majority of the trades in the customer’s accounts were not only unsolicited, but were against the advisor’s explicit advice. He also established, through a time-weighted analysis, that the customer’s retirement account value would have increased by at least forty percent had the customer heeded the advisor’s advice. Two days after the close of the hearing, the FINRA panel entered an award recommending expungement, which was later confirmed by an Illinois state court.
Dan and Ted defended one of the nation’s leading specialty chemical companies against multiple claims by manufacturers and distributors of diacetyl (butter flavoring) that specialty chemicals, not diacetyl, caused pulmonary injury, including bronchiolitis obliterans (also known as “popcorn lung”), to workers exposed to both. Each of these claims resolved without the firm’s client making any payment to anyone.
Dan defended malicious prosecution claims made against a plaintiff-side employment attorney by an employer she had sued on behalf of a client. The employer argued that multiple proceedings filed by the attorney amounted to “special damages”, an element of a malicious prosecution claim. The trial court dismissed the claims against the attorney, the Illinois Appellate Court affirmed, and the Illinois Supreme Court denied the employer’s petition for leave to appeal.

Midwest Mailing & Shipping Systems v. Schoenberg Finkel Newman & Rosenberg LLC, 2021 IL App (1^st) 200669.
Hubertus Investment Group v. Smiegelski & Wator, PC, 2014 Ill. App. Unpub LEXIS 824 (1st Dist. 2014), petition for leave to appeal denied, 20 N.E.3d 1254 (2014)
Marina Towers Condo. Assoc. v. Mathers, 2013 Ill. App. Unpub. LEXIS 2205 (1st Dist. 2013)
Independence Plus, Inc. v. Walter, 2012 Ill. App. LEXIS 1009 (1st Dist. 2012)
Cox v. Smith (In re Central Ill. Energy Coop.), 2012 Bankr. LEXIS 3848 (C.D. Ill. Aug. 22 2012)
Freedom Mortgage Co. v. Blair, 2012 Ill. App. Unpub. LEXIS 1136 (1st Dist. 2012)
Healy v. Worobec, 2011 Ill. App. Unpub. LEXIS 2075 (2nd Dist. 2011)
Sheriff v. Bridgeford Foods Corp., Case No. 08 C 3570, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 82809 (N.D. Ill. Sept. 9, 2009)
Sobilo v. Manassa, 479 F. Supp. 2d 805 (N.D. Ill. 2007)
Redelmann v. Claire-Sprayway, Inc., 874 N.E.2d 230 (1st Dist. 2007)
Sanchez & Daniels v. Koresko & Associates, 2006 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 82222 (N.D. Ill. Nov. 8 2006) and related proceedings
Daniels v. Bursey, 430 F.3d 424 (7th Cir. 2005), for cert. denied, 548 U.S. 904 (2006) and related proceedings
Mikulecky v. Bart, 355 Ill. App. 3d 1006 (1st Dist. 2004)
MP Kenes v. Corrosion Fluid Products, 343 Ill. App. 3d 1280 (1st Dist. 2003)

Presenter, It Wasn’t Me, It Was the Loch Ness Monster: Using Errors of Others in Defense of Legal Malpractice Claims, given at ArgoPro Annual Panel Counsel Meeting (June 2017, Las Vegas, Nevada)
Panelist, Architects & Engineers: Liability & Copyright Issues, 11th Annual National Errors & Omissions ExecuSummit (June 2017, Uncasville, Connecticut)
Presenter, Underwriting & Claims Concerns Arising From Multi-Jurisdictional Practice & Pro Hac Vice Admissions, given at Swiss Re (May 2017, Chicago, Illinois)
Panelist, Estates, Trusts and Probate Lawyers’ Liability & What the Market May Do in Response, American Conference Institute’s Advanced Forum on LPL/Legal Malpractice (October 2016, New York, New York)
Panelist, From Defense Costs to Damages: What Drives Professional Liability Claim Value, 10th Annual National Errors & Omissions ExecuSummit (June 2016, Uncasville, Connecticut)
Presenter, Issues Commonly Arising in Legal Malpractice Claims Against Family Law Practitioners, presented to the Lake County Bar Association Family Law Committee (November 2015)
Panelist, Coverage Implications for Non-Client Litigation, American Conference Institute’s Advanced Forum on LPL/Legal Malpractice (November 2014, New York, New York)
Contributing Author, Insurance Agency Risk Management: A Comprehensive Guide to Avoiding E&O Claims (Chapter 1: Licensing), Thomson Reuters WestLaw (2013 Ed.)
Panelist, The New Age of Professional Service Advertising: Tweeting, Blogging and Other Social Media Tools, presented at the 7th Annual National Errors & Omissions ExecuSummit (June 2013, Uncasville, Connecticut)
Author, United States Supreme Court Quiets the Discussion on Jurisdiction of Patent-Based Legal Malpractice Claims, PLUS Journal (May 2013, Vol. XXVI, No. 5)
Co-Presenter, Two Defense Measures: Limitations and Contribution, given to various LPL claims departments (March 2013)
Panelist, Remedy Without A Cause: Risk Control Measures in Professional Service Contracts, presented at the Defense Research Institute Professional Liability Seminar (December 2012, New York, New York)
Contributing Author, Insurance Agency Risk Management (Chapter 1: Licensing), Agents of America (December 2012)
Panelist, Social Networking: Ethics and Professionalism, presented to Professional Lines Attorney Network (October 2012, Schaumburg, Illinois)
Panelist, Closely-Held Corporations: The Pitfalls for Professionals, presented at the 6th Annual National Errors & Omissions ExecuSummit (June 2012, Uncasville, Connecticut)
Moderator, A Mortician, A Surveyor and a Home Inspector Walk Into A Bar: Common Issues in the Defense of Miscellaneous Professional Liability Claims, presented at the Defense Research Institute Professional Liability Seminar (December 2011, New York, New York)
Moderator, Current Trends in Claims Against Lawyers, presented to Professional Lines Attorney Network (April 2011, Hartford, Connecticut)
Co-Author, Duty – A Modernized Guide for Defending the Insurance Producer Claim, For The Defense (DRI, January 2011)
Co-Author, A Case for Business Accountability: Statutorily Limited Duty to Procure by Illinois Insurance Producers, Agents of America Newsletter (January 2011)
Co-Presenter, Legal Malpractice Claims in Real Estate Transactions, given to various LPL claims departments (November 2010)
Presenter, Current Trends and Developments in Lawyers Professional Liability Claims, presented to Professional Lines Attorney Network (October 2010, Schaumburg, Illinois)
Moderator, Who Let The Data Out??? Professional Exposure for Data Breaches and Releases, Defense Research Institute Annual Meeting (October 2010, San Diego, California)
Presenter, The New Rules of Professional Conduct – Reporting Professional Misconduct, presented to the Chicago Bar Association (June 2010, Chicago, Illinois)
Panelist, Employment Liability Claims Unique To Law Firm Operations, presented to insurer panel counsel meeting (June 2010, Las Vegas, Nevada)
Presenter, Technology and Legal Malpractice, presented to the Lake County Bar Association, Technology Committee (June 2010, Waukegan, Illinois)
Presenter, Legal Malpractice Concerns for the Family Lawyer, presented to the Lake County Bar Association, Family Law Committee (January 2010, Waukegan, Illinois)
Presenter, The New Rules of Professional Conduct – Reporting Professional Misconduct, presented to the Chicago Bar Association (January 2010, Chicago, Illinois)
Panelist, Swords & Shields: Offensive Means of Defense, presented to Professional Lines Attorney Network (September 2009, Chicago and Schaumburg, Illinois)
Co-Author, Pay It Forward: Legal Malpractice and the Liability of Successor Counsel, For The Defense (DRI, May 2009)
Presenter, A Thoroughly Random Discussion of Illinois Legal Malpractice Issues, presented to various LPL claims departments (October 2009)
Panelist, FINRA Arbitration: The Practical Reality, presented to Professional Lines Attorney Network (September 2008, Schaumburg, Illinois)
Presenter, Illinois Insurance Producers: Standards of Care, presented to various Agents & Brokers claims departments (November 2007)
Co-Author, My Negligence? What About Yours? Legal Malpractice and a Client’s Comparative Fault, For The Defense (DRI, October 2007)
Contributing Co-Author, The Consultant’s Role in Construction Claims and Litigation, Construction Litigation (IICLE – 2nd Ed. 2006)
Presenter, No Good Deed Ever Goes Unpunished: Avoiding the Union of Divorce and Legal Malpractice, presented to the Lake County Bar Association, Family Law Committee (November 2006, Waukegan, Illinois)
Presenter, Construction Litigation, given to various Construction Defect claims departments (May 2005)
Co-Presenter, Insured Versus Insured Exclusions – Strategies and Tactics in Director & Officer Litigation, presented to USLaw Network (March 2005, New Orleans, Louisiana)
Editor, Illinois Construction Law, and Contributing Author on Chapters concerning Contract Formation, Economic Loss Doctrine and Contractual Risk Transfer (Aspen Publishing, 2002)
Co-Presenter, Contractual Risk Transfer in Construction Agreements, presented to the Northern Illinois Building Contractors’ Association (November 2000, Rockford, Illinois)
Co-Author, The Discovery Rule – Defendants’ Perspective, International Association of Defense Counsel, Toxic Tort Committee Newsletter (1999)

Claims & Litigation Management Alliance (CLM)
Defense Research Institute (DRI) (Chair, Professional Liability Committee (Fall 2011-Fall 2013); Vice-Chair, Professional Liability Committee (Fall 2009-Fall 2011); Publications Chair, Professional Liability Committee (Fall 2008-Fall 2009); Editor, Riding the E&O Line (Fall 2008-Fall 2009); Steering Committee (Summer 2007-Present))
Professional Liability Underwriters’ Society (PLUS)
Agents of America
American Bar Association