Hugh Balsam has been a valued member of the Firm's appellate section since 1995, and he is responsible for drafting and editing briefs and arguing appeals in all areas of the law, including commercial litigation, intellectual-property law, insurance liability, bankruptcy law, property law, employment law, constitutional law, product liability, medical litigation, and state and federal procedural law.
His practice is nationwide, in both state and federal courts. He has handled matters in the United States Supreme Court, and has extensive experience in the United States Courts of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and for the Seventh Circuit. He has argued or briefed appeals in most of the other Circuit courts as well, and has briefed or argued cases in numerous state appellate courts.
Mr. Balsam has served on the board of directors of the Appellate Lawyers Association of Illinois. He has also taught courses in legal writing as an adjunct professor at The John Marshall Law School. He is an active member of the Chicago Bar Association’s Judicial Evaluation Committee.
Mr. Balsam wrote chapters on rescission, reformation, and specific performance in the 2008 Handbook of Illinois Causes of Action: Causes of Action (Illinois): Estate, Business & Non-Personal Injury Actions and is co-author of a chapter on rescission and reformation in the 2009 Practice Handbook on Chancery and Special Remedies, both published by the Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education. He was the editor of a 1999 revision of A Guide to Illinois Civil Appellate Procedure, published by the Appellate Lawyers Association of Illinois. He also co-authored an article, "The Standard of Review in Civil Cases in Illinois: More Than Meets the Eye", that was published in 2003 in the Appellate Law Review.
Mr. Balsam is a member of the Firm's Diversity Committee. He has been chosen by his peers as an Illinois Super Lawyer for 2006-2009 and a Leading Lawyer for 2009.
Education
- J.D., summa cum laude, John Marshall Law School, 1995
- B.A., Lawrence University, 1981
- M.M., Northwestern University, Kellogg Graduate School of Management, 1987
Bar Admissions
Admitted To Practice
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit