What's New at Zane D. Smith & Associates, LTD

2009 has been a very busy year for the firm so far. With the recession we have seen a significant increase in our business litigation section. We are helping clients with issues ranging from basic contract actions to real estate disputes on both the commercial and residential levels. Most of these matters are able to be settled but they still require a significant amount of pretrial work to get there.

Mr. Smith completed a trial in federal court on a civil rights claim that resulted in a judgment against the City of Chicago that also allows for attorney's fees. Because of the verdict in favor of our client. This case is an important victory for civil rights because it was the result of police misconduct in the search of a house, the issuance of a warrant and the requirements for so called "John Doe" or "confidential informant" warrants. As a result of our court victory the City has stopped issuing these types of warrants the way they had in the past. The firm is especially proud of this victory because it was the first loss by the city on this issue.

We have also been asked to do some insurance defense work. This is a new area for us. Both State Farm and Zurich Insurance have asked us to represent their clients on litigated matters. We look forward to working on these.

Andre is also the principal attorney handling numerous cases in Federal Court in all three districts brought under the Communications Act of 1934 as well as the Cable and Television Consumer Protection and Competition Act of 1992 against defendants pirating and unlawfully distributing licensed television programs. Andre has recently been admitted to practice in the United States District Court for the Central District and the Southern District of Illinois. Andre has also handled various real estate matters, including foreclosure and debt resolution as well as residential closings.

We look forward to the remainder of 2009 and into 2010. While the economy continues to improve, we expect to be very busy protecting our clients rights going forward.