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Evanston Personal Injury Lawyer
Evanston is walked, biked, and ridden more than most of Cook County, and its injury claims reflect that. A large share of serious harm here happens to someone who was not in a car when they were hit.
We handle those claims, we come to you, and you pay nothing unless we win.
In Evanston, the Person Who Gets Hurt Is Often on Foot
The city's street grid puts heavy vehicle traffic, transit, a university campus, and a dense residential population onto the same few miles of pavement. That combination produces a claim profile weighted toward pedestrians and cyclists:
- Sheridan Road, carrying through traffic directly past and through the Northwestern campus, where student foot and bike volume peaks at the same hours as commuter traffic
- Ridge Avenue and Asbury Avenue, high-speed one-way pairs running through residential blocks with frequent unsignalized crossings
- Chicago Avenue, running parallel to the CTA Purple Line and Metra tracks, with commercial parking, bus stops, and bike traffic competing for the curb
- Dempster Street, Church Street, Emerson Street, and Central Street, the east-west arterials where most turning-vehicle pedestrian strikes occur
- Dodge Avenue, where bike infrastructure and vehicle traffic share a corridor that was not originally designed for both
The Argument You Should Expect
In nearly every Evanston pedestrian or cyclist claim, the driver's insurer will argue you stepped out, rode out, or were not visible. That argument is made before anyone reviews the evidence, and it is made whether or not it is true.
What defeats it is specific: signal timing at the intersection, sight lines from the driver's approach, transit and business camera footage, the position of the impact on the vehicle, and where your belongings landed. Most of that evidence has a short life. Business and transit cameras overwrite on cycles measured in days. Nobody preserves it unless someone sends a letter.
Evanston Has Its Own Trauma Center, and That Helps Your Case
Evanston Hospital at Ridge Avenue and Central Street is a Level I trauma center, which means a seriously injured Evanston patient is usually treated in the city rather than transferred out of it. Your records stay in one place, the treatment timeline is continuous, and there is no handoff gap for an adjuster to point at.
We still request the full file rather than the summary. Trauma documentation is where a brain injury is either recorded properly or missed entirely, and the difference shows up years later in what the claim is worth.
Where an Evanston Claim Gets Filed
A serious Evanston injury claim is filed in the Law Division at the Richard J. Daley Center in Chicago, like every substantial Cook County injury claim. The Second Municipal District courthouse in Skokie handles Evanston traffic matters and smaller civil claims. Those are two different buildings for two different proceedings, and only one of them is your injury case.
What We Recover for Injured Clients
$7,925,000
Bus accident recovery
$825,000
Brain injury pretrial settlement
$1,200,000
Car accident pretrial settlement
$7,925,000
Bus accident recovery
$825,000
Brain injury pretrial settlement
Recoveries across our practice range from $525,000 to $7,925,000, and every case is personally overseen by Managing Partner R. Joseph Kramer rather than assigned to a case manager.
Our practice areas.
We approach every legal matter with a broad perspective and a sharp focus, integrating insights across our practice areas to deliver unparalleled results for our clients.
The Evanston Cases We Handle Most
Crosswalk strikes and failure-to-yield collisions on Sheridan Road, Ridge Avenue, and the east-west arterials, where the driver's insurer starts from the assumption that you were at fault.
Dooring, bike lane collisions, and right-hook crashes, where the first police report often reads as though the rider caused it.
Head trauma from vehicle, bike, and fall injuries, documented with neurologists and life care planners rather than an emergency department note.
Intersection and turning collisions across the Evanston grid, where signal timing and camera footage frequently contradict the crash report.
What Evanston Clients Say About Working With Us
Rated by the Organizations That Watch This Work Closely
Evanston Injury Questions We Hear Most
I was hit while walking in a crosswalk and the driver says I stepped out. What now?
Expect that claim and do not treat it as the end of anything. What matters is signal timing, the driver's sight lines on approach, the impact point on the vehicle, and any camera covering the intersection. We identify and request that footage first, because it is the piece that stops the argument and it is the piece that disappears fastest.
Does a bike lane crash change how the case works?
It changes the evidence, not the standard. A driver turning across a bike lane or opening a door into one has a duty to look. Bike lane cases turn on lane markings, the vehicle's position at impact, and whether the driver signaled, which is why photographs of the scene and the bike itself matter before anything gets repaired or moved.
Where is my Evanston injury case filed?
In the Law Division at the Daley Center in Chicago. The Skokie courthouse handles Evanston traffic tickets and smaller civil matters, not serious injury claims. If you received a citation as well, that is a separate case on a separate schedule.
I was treated at Evanston Hospital. Do you need those records?
All of them, not the discharge summary. Evanston Hospital is a Level I trauma center, so the file is usually detailed and complete, and the details are what establish severity. Summaries flatten a brain injury into a line item.
Do I have to travel downtown to meet you?
No. We meet Evanston clients at home, at the hospital, or by video.
What does it cost?
Nothing up front, and nothing at all unless we recover money for you.
Hurt in Evanston? Get the Footage Before It's Gone
Tell us what happened and where. We will tell you what evidence exists, what needs a preservation letter this week, and whether the claim is worth pursuing. Free consultation, no fee unless we win, and someone answers at any hour.
Serving Evanston and all of Cook County.
"Stephen is an asset to our company. He skillfully reviews and negotiates multimillion-dollar contracts, he artfully drafts subcontracts and leases, and he has successfully represented us in court and before municipal boards. He is an accomplished lawyer that is always there when we need him. He is our confidant and friend."
Furino & Sons Inc. (Brothers Four)
"It is truly our pleasure to recommend Stephen to any individual or corporation looking for highly skilled legal counsel. He has represented us on a variety of corporate legal matters and he is a master with both contract and lease negotiations, always offering exceptional strategic advice. More recently, he represented us in front of the Township Planning Board and helped us achieve our desired results when it seemed impossible. We highly endorse Stephen both personally and professionally."
HEC Holding Co., LLC
"Stephen has successfully represented our company’s interests in several matters involving intricate fact patterns and novel legal theories. In one, a particularly aggressive plaintiff was convinced by Stephen to voluntarily dismiss a lawsuit in which it sought significant monetary damages. These favorable outcomes have resulted from Stephen’s thorough and careful review of all facts and circumstances and his dedication to the best interests of his client. In every matter in which we have retained Stephen he has sought to obtain the best possible result in the shortest possible time. We recommend Stephen without reservation."
RPM Development Group
What sets your approach apart?
Our attorneys combine academic rigor, industry leadership, and a deep understanding of complex legal landscapes to deliver strategies uniquely tailored to each client.
How do you handle intricate legal challenges?
We thrive on complexity, leveraging decades of experience to uncover solutions others might miss. Every case is approached with precision, diligence, and creativity.
What kind of communication can clients expect?
We prioritize direct and consistent communication, offering clear updates and actionable insights throughout the legal process, so you remain confident and informed.
How do you approach long-term legal partnerships?
We build enduring relationships by aligning with our clients’ long-term objectives, acting as trusted advisors who guide and support through every phase of their ventures.
What can I expect during my consultation?
Your initial consultation will involve an in-depth discussion of your goals and challenges, allowing our attorneys to outline tailored strategies and next steps. See below for a typical process cadence.
Plan
We develop a tailored legal and business strategy to bring clarity to your path forward.
Execute
We handle all the details, transactions, and filings with expertise and efficiency.
Assess
We listen to your needs, goals, and concerns to understand your unique situation.
We build lasting relationships—offering guidance and support long after the initial engagement.