Gretchen H. Sperry

Appellate Counsel Embedded at Trial

• Served as appellate counsel embedded with trial team on behalf of concert venue in claim brought by individual who alleged inadequate security caused her to sustain a traumatic brain injury after falling in the crowd at a concert. After a $10 million demand, strong pre-trial briefing resulted in very favorable six-figure settlement for clients.
• Served as appellate counsel embedded with defense team to develop legal strategy on behalf of private university medical center against hundreds of claims of sexual abuse by a former doctor.
• Served as appellate counsel embedded with trial team on behalf of professional sports league and individual sports team after player alleged he sustained career-ending injuries in field of play due to stadium design features. After a demand upwards of , strong pretrial briefing resulted in very favorable six-figure settlement for clients.
• Served as appellate counsel embedded with trial team in catastrophic injury case valued in excess of $50 million dollars. Handled emergency stay of trial proceedings and interlocutory appeal of trial court’s decision ordering that the civil trial proceed while criminal charges remained pending against the defendant for the same occurrence, in violation of the defendant’s fifth amendment rights. Legal positioning resulted in favorable settlement for client.
• Served as appellate counsel embedded with trial team on behalf of auto dealership in wrongful death case where an independent transport driver’s intoxication and excessive speed caused the death of two people. Case resolved favorably for client after strong pretrial briefing.
• Served as appellate counsel embedded at trial in a wrongful death action seeking over $750 million in compensatory and punitive damages against distributor of commercial food service products after young woman was fatally hit by a car driven by individual who was intoxicated after illegally misusing commercial-grade food service products.

Expedited and/or Injunctive Relief

• Principal brief writer and legal strategist on legal team that successfully defended a government agency against constitutional challenges to its COVID-19 protocols. The litigation, brought by an institutional civil rights group, sought emergency injunctive relief on a class action basis. Through extensive motion practice, we significantly narrowed the scope of the preliminary injunction. Handled expedited appeal in the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, which vacated the primary terms of the injunction.
• Appointed as Special Assistant State’s Attorney to represent government agency as legal strategist and principal brief writer in a constitutional challenge asserting that the widespread use of excessive force by officers was effectively agency policy. The litigation, brought by an institutional civil rights group, sought emergency injunctive relief on a class action basis. After extensive briefing on the constitutional claims and an evidentiary hearing, the Court denied all requests for injunctive relief and we obtained fees and costs for the agency.

Constitutional Law and Public Entity Representation

• Represented municipality in parallel state and federal litigation arising out of an alleged illegal search and seizure and excessive use of force used against an individual. Handled extensive posttrial proceedings in state court litigation asserting legal error in the court’s failure to apply immunity against intentional tort claims and erroneous introduction of internal investigation as substantive evidence of guilt. Handled the appeal from federal district court’s denial of qualified immunity in Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. Both matters resolved favorably based on strength of legal positions.
• Appointed as Special Assistant State’s Attorney to represent government agency on appeal from dismissal of a section 1983 claim brought by commercial property owners asserting that their tax treatment by the agency was an unconstitutional violation of their equal protection rights, contrary to Tax Injunction Act prohibitions.
• Appointed as Special Assistant State’s Attorney to represent government agency on administrative appeal in the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Office of Federal Operations against allegations of age discrimination.
• Appointed as Special Assistant State’s Attorney to devise and execute successful trial and appellate strategy to defend government agency against coordinated litigation by hundreds of former employees attempting to resurrect their termination proceedings based on alleged procedural irregularities.
• Appointed as Special Assistant State’s Attorney to represent government agency on appeal from dismissal of an alleged False Claims Act violation brought by employee-whistleblower claiming allegedly fraudulent application for and use of federal grant funds.

Medical Malpractice and Catastrophic Personal Injury

• Successfully vacated a $3 million default judgment and order of default against nursing home facility on due process grounds because it was not given statutory notice of default proceedings after withdrawal of prior counsel.
• Successfully petitioned for leave to appeal forum non conveniens decision and handled appeal on behalf of all defendants in medical negligence case challenging plaintiff’s attempt to voluntarily dismiss and refile her lawsuit in a different county after obtaining adverse rulings in original lawsuit.
• Successfully defended long term care facility on appeal from summary judgment in its favor on wrongful death claims alleging negligent post-chemotherapy treatment of a disabled adult.
• Defended internal medicine doctor in post-trial proceedings after she was found liable in a medical negligence case, which resulted in favorable post-judgment settlement.
• Defended private school on appeal from summary judgment in its favor finding that it was not liable for catastrophic injuries to 5-year-old student who was hit by a car while crossing the street from the school to a public park playground for afterschool activities based on statutory immunity.
• Defended outpatient mental health practitioner on appeal from summary judgment in her favor on wrongful death and medical negligence claims alleging that she violated a duty of care to patient who committed suicide.
• Defended OB/GYN and her practice on appeal from dismissal of medical malpractice claims due to an insufficient affidavit of a meritorious claim in a medical negligence action.

Gretchen authored a bimonthly column in the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin titled “On The Docket,” in which she analyzed cases to be heard by the Illinois Supreme Court. She also contributes regularly to The Brief and Cases Pending, both publications of the Appellate Lawyers Association. She authored the introduction, case analysis and discussion questions for “Education Law and Policy,” (Aspen 2004), written by Michael J. Kauman. Following is a selection of her articles and other publications:

• Co-Author, Editor, Chapter 2, “Preserving Error for Review in Illinois Trial Proceedings,” Chapter 19, “Record on Appeal,” Chapter 20, “Motion Practice,” and Chapter 23, “The Appendix,” Civil Appeals: State and Federal 2025 Edition, June 2025.
• Featured, “Playing Chess: How Appellate Lawyers Can Shape the Record Long Before Appeal,” Gaetan Gerville-Reache, March 26, 2025
• Quoted, “Illinois Cases To Watch: A Midyear Report,” Lauraann Wood, Law360, 2019-2023
• Quoted, “Biggest Illinois Decisions,” Lauraann Wood, Law360, 2019-2023
• Letter to the Editor, “Appointments of qualified justices show system works,” Chicago Daily Law Bulletin, December 15, 2020
• Quoted, “Paul Clement Provides Off-Ramp in CFPB High Court Arguments,” Evan Weinberger, Bloomberg Law, March 2, 2020
• Quoted, “Court Conservatives Disagree on Curbing Agencies in CFPB Case,” Evan Weinberger, Bloomberg Law, March 4, 2020
• Author, “Record on Appeal,” chapter 20, and “The Appendix,” chapter 24, IICLE’s Civil Appeals (Illinois): State and Federal, 2015 edition
• Author, “Preserving Error for Review in Illinois Trial Proceedings,” chapter 2, “Record on Appeal,” chapter 20, and “The Appendix,” chapter 24, IICLE’s Civil Appeals (Illinois): State and Federal, 2022 edition
• Author, “Supreme Court to address med-mal privilege, administrative hearings,” Chicago Daily Law Bulletin, On the Docket, January 8, 2015
• Author, “Two state high court cases have lawyers and employers on alert,” Chicago Daily Law Bulletin, On the Docket, June 19, 2014
• Author, “Illinois Supreme Court looks at self-critical analysis, insurance case,” Chicago Daily Law Bulletin, On the Docket, May 1, 2014
• Author, “Supreme Court takes on duty of care in two new cases,” Chicago Daily Law Bulletin, On the Docket, February 27, 2014

• Speaker, “The Concept of Preservation – Introduction and Overview,” with Justice Jesse G. Reyes, Illinois Appellate Court, Preserving the Trial Record for Appeal in Illinois Civil Cases, Pincus Professional Education, July 18, 2023
• Speaker, “Preservation Issues During Trial,” Preserving the Trial Record for Appeal in Illinois Civil Cases, Pincus Professional Education, July 20, 2023
• Moderator, “Unsettling Settled Law?: The Doctrine of Stare Decisis After Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization,” Appellate Judges Education Institute Summit, Scottsdale, Arizona, November 11, 2022
• Moderator, “Politicians, Choose Your Voters: Legislative Redistricting After Rucho v. Common Cause,” Appellate Judges Education Institute Summit, Scottsdale, Arizona, November 10, 2022
• Speaker, “Fireside Chat: Partner Perspective on the Power of Analytics in Legal Research,” Law Firm Libraries 2021 Conference, April 28, 2021
• Speaker”Impulse Control: Written Communication in Litigation,” Internal Firm University March 22, 2017
• Speaker, “Motion Practice in Appellate Court,” IICLE program, April 21, 2016
• Speaker, “Illinois Supreme Court Criminal Year-in-Review,” Appellate Lawyers Association, January 2015 – Present
• Speaker, “Advanced Appellate Practice Seminar,” Appellate Lawyers Association, April 2015 – Present
• Speaker, “Real Talk on Women in the Law: Grit and the Growth Mindset,” American Bar Association Commission on Women in the Profession, April 2015

Admissions

• Illinois
• U.S. Supreme Court
• U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth, Seventh, and Ninth Circuits
• U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois
• U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Michigan

Memberships

• Illinois Supreme Court
  • Appointed to Character and Fitness Committee of Illinois Board of Admission to the Bar, 2014 – 2024
• Appellate Lawyers Association
  • Elected as President, 2019 – 2020
  • Elected as Vice President, 2018 – 2019
  • Elected as Secretary, 2017 – 2018
  • Elected as Treasurer, 2016 – 2017
  • Member of the Board of Directors, 2013 – 2015
  • Cases Pending Committee, Co-Chair
  • Seminars Committee
• Loyola University Chicago School of Law’s Alumni Board of Governors
  • Elected Member (2020-present)
• American Bar Association Council of Appellate Lawyers (CAL)
  • Chair (2024-2025)
  • Chair-Elect (2023-2024)
  • Secretary (2022-2023)
  • AJEI Summit Liaison (2022)
  • Executive Board Member (2019-2022)
  • National State Chairs Committee, Co-Chair (2018-2022)
• Women’s Bar Association of Illinois
  • Mary Heftel Hooton Fund Committee (2014-Present)
  • Nominating Committee (2013-2015)
• Women’s White Collar Defense Association, Chicago Chapter
  • National PR and Branding Committee, Co-Chair
• Chicago Bar Association
  • Judicial Evaluation Committee (2013-2015)

Education

• J.D., Loyola University Chicago School of Law
  • Publication Editor, Annals of Health Law
• B.S., Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Honors

• Top Women in Law Honoree, Chicago Daily Law Bulletin & Chicago Lawyer
• Best Lawyers in America® distinction in Appellate Practice, 2025-2026
• Super Lawyers® distinction in Appellate and Civil Litigation 2020-2024
• Named to the Notable Women in Law, Crain’s Chicago Business, 2022
• Recognized as a Notable Gen X Leader in Law, Crain’s Chicago Business, 2021
• Recognized by her peers as a “Leading Lawyer,” Civil Appellate Law and Commercial Litigation
• Recognized by her peers as an “Emerging Lawyer,” 2015