PRESS RELEASE

CURT N. RODIN AWARDED LEONARD M. RING
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

Curt N. Rodin of Chicago will be awarded the prestigious Leonard M. Ring Lifetime Achievement Award at the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association (ITLA) Convention on Friday, June 6, 2008. The convention will be held at the Oak Brook Hills Marriott Resort in Oak Brook, Illinois.

The criteria of the award is as follows:

"This award is given annually at the convention banquet to someone selected by a committee appointed by the president. The recipient is someone who has devoted, as Leonard did, a substantial part of their life and their practice to ITLA, someone who has done more than is called for. Someone who had the standards of Leonard, the work ethics of Leonard and the commitment to ITLA that Leonard had. At the same time, it keeps alive the memory of Leonard Ring."

Curt Rodin entered the practice of law in Illinois in 1975 after graduating from Loyola University of Law in Chicago. He began his distinguished career at Horwitz, Anesi & Ozmon in Chicago, where his mentor, Nat Ozmon encouraged him to become active in the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association.  He immediately began trying complicated and diverse civil injury suits and enjoyed great success in the courtroom culminating in his 1993 recognition by the National Law Journal as one of 12 "achievers" in the country. 

In 1986, Mr. Rodin was elected to the Board of Managers of ITLA and became active in both the Legislative Committee and the Products Liability Committee.  In 1990, on his 40th birthday, the firm name was changed to Anesi, Ozmon & Rodin, Ltd. and Mr. Rodin was elected Third Vice-President of ITLA, eventually becoming the President in 1994-95.

His term was difficult as it saw the passage of the 1995 "tort reform" which sought to greatly restrict the rights of injured people to a fair trial.  Mr. Rodin immediately appointed, and became chairman of the ITLA Constitutional Challenge Committee, which successfully overturned this legislation in the Illinois Supreme Court.  This resulted in the Court finding that this attempt to curtail the rights of Illinois citizens violated the Illinois Constitution in the case of Best v. Taylor Machine Works.  Mr. Rodin's efforts in this successful case earned him recognition as a finalist for the prestigious Trial Lawyer of the Year in 1998 by the Trial Lawyers for Public Justice. 

Mr. Rodin has lectured numerous times for the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association, the American Association for Justice, and the Illinois State Bar Association, as well as various law and medical schools and other legal associations. He has authored numerous articles for legal publications on trial tactics, damages in personal injury cases, product liability and construction negligence. He is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates and is certified by examination by the National Board of Trial Advocacy as a Civil Trial Advocate.

In 1994, upon the death of Mr. Ring, Mr. Rodin was appointed by the Illinois Supreme Court to take Mr. Ring's place on the Illinois Pattern Jury Instruction Committee.  This committee, composed of lawyers and judges throughout Illinois, authors and publishes the instructions that judges give to juries in every civil lawsuit in Illinois.  From 1999-2002, Mr. Rodin served as chairman of this committee and he continued to serve on the committee until 2004 when mandatory retirement required he step down.  His service was recognized by the Illinois Supreme Court as "outstanding."

Mr. Rodin has remained active in ITLA since his term as President, serving on various committees and continuing ITLA's strong presence in Springfield. 

In 1999, Mr. Rodin was elected treasurer of The Society of Trial Lawyers and became President in 2002-03.  He is the only Illinois trial lawyer to have served as President of this state's two leading trial lawyer associations.  Also in 1999, Mr. Rodin became an adjunct professor of law at his alma mater Loyola University, a position he continues to hold today. 

Mr. Rodin stresses that every successful person has an obligation to repay the many benefits they have received by helping others to achieve. 

Curt Rodin and his wife, Linda, live in Northbrook and enjoy traveling to their home in Ft. Myers, Florida during the winter.  Linda and Curt have two adult children:  Joshua, age 31, who is an assistant Illinois Attorney General, and Gayle, age 27, who teaches 6th grade in Wheeling, Illinois.  Linda and Curt are especially proud that each of their children married wonderful spouses within the last year.  Curt is an avid golfer whose only regret about his service to ITLA is that it kept him off the golf course. 

Past award recipients include Jon G. Carlson, Rex Carr, Robert J. Cooney, Philip H. Corboy, George J. Cullen, David A. Decker, James Thomas Demos, Geoffrey L. Gifford, William J. Harte, Thomas F. Londrigan, Philip F. Maher, Nat P. Ozmon, Eugene I. Pavalon, and John G. Phillips.