A collapsed stairwell in a commercial high-rise. A structural failure at a construction site that leaves a worker paralyzed. A wet hospital corridor that sends a patient into spinal surgery. When dangerous conditions on someone else's property cause catastrophic harm, the injuries don't just heal - they reshape every part of your life.
At Cirignani, Heller & Harman, we handle the premises liability cases that demand more than legal skill alone. For over 40 years, CHH Law has represented people throughout Chicago who have suffered the most severe premises liability injuries - brain damage, spinal cord injuries, respiratory compromise, amputations, and permanent disability - caused by negligent property owners, corporations, and commercial entities that failed to maintain safe conditions.
What makes our law firm different from other premises liability lawyers is the medical expertise built into our legal team. CHH Law includes a licensed physician and a certified respiratory therapist, both of whom are also practicing attorneys. We don't just review your medical records - we read them the way a clinician would, identifying injuries other firms miss, challenging defense medical experts with clinical precision, and accurately projecting the lifetime care costs your case demands.
If you or someone you love has suffered a catastrophic injury due to a property owner's negligence at a commercial property, construction site, medical facility, or any private property in the Chicago area, you need legal representation that understands both the medicine and the law.
Our attorneys identify hidden injuries, challenge defense medical opinions at the clinical level, and build life care plans that reflect what your recovery will actually cost over a lifetime
We investigate corporate safety policies, maintenance logs, inspection routines, and prior incident histories to prove that a property owner knew or should have known about the hazard
The most complex premises liability lawsuits in Chicago - involving multiple defendants, regulatory violations, and contested causation - are the cases we were built to take on
CHH Law focuses on catastrophic premises liability injuries caused by hazardous conditions at commercial properties, industrial sites, and medical facilities. These are cases where the stakes are highest, the evidence is most complex, and the defendants have the deepest pockets and most aggressive legal teams.
Under Illinois premises liability laws (740 ILCS 130), property owners owe a duty of care to exercise reasonable measures to keep their premises reasonably safe for anyone lawfully on the property. When a property owner failed to meet that standard and someone suffers serious harm, the injured party has the right to seek compensation.
Retail centers, office buildings, restaurants, and shopping malls see massive foot traffic daily. Common hazardous conditions include broken stairs, poor lighting, and slippery surfaces - all of which can cause devastating fall accidents. In 2022, Illinois had 2,163,297 fall incidents, and over 8 million people seek emergency treatment for falls annually across the country. Fractures often occur from slip and fall accidents, but in severe cases, spinal cord injuries can result from serious falls.
Our Chicago premises liability attorneys handle cases involving corporate negligence in property maintenance and safety protocols, including scenarios where multiple parties - property owners, management companies, and maintenance contractors - share liability. We investigate whether reasonable precautions were taken, whether warning signs were posted, and whether proper maintenance schedules were followed.
Chicago's dense commercial real estate environment means construction is constant - and so are the risks. Structural flaws can cause serious accidents and injuries, from scaffolding collapses to falling debris to exposed hazards at active job sites. These cases frequently involve multiple defendants: the property owner, general contractor, subcontractors, and safety engineers.
We bring expertise in building code violations, OSHA compliance failures, and industrial safety standards. Our team works with engineering and safety experts to establish how unsafe conditions were created and why the defendant's negligence led to catastrophic harm. Illinois courts scrutinize corporate structure, control of premises, and safety inspection records - and we know exactly how to build that evidence.
Injuries at hospitals, clinics, and medical centers present unique challenges that require both legal and medical understanding. A patient who slips on a wet floor and suffers a traumatic brain injury, a visitor injured by defective equipment, or someone exposed to pathogens due to facility negligence - these cases sit at the intersection of premises liability and medical knowledge.
CHH Law's medically trained attorneys are uniquely positioned to evaluate medical facility safety standards, assess whether clinical protocols were breached, and understand the mechanism of injuries caused by facility defects. This includes cases involving respiratory failure from toxic exposure, infection from inadequate sanitation, and injuries requiring understanding of medical equipment and procedures.
Every catastrophic premises liability case begins with understanding both the law and the medicine. Our process is designed to preserve critical evidence, build the strongest possible case, and pursue maximum fair compensation for injuries that will affect you for years or a lifetime.
Your case starts with a comprehensive free case evaluation by attorneys who have medical training. We review your medical records, imaging, surgical reports, and treatment documentation - not as lawyers scanning for keywords, but as clinicians evaluating the full clinical picture. We assess your long-term care needs, future medical expenses, and the trajectory of your recovery. Successful premises liability claims depend on detailed documentation of conditions and injuries, and we begin building that foundation from day one.
We conduct a thorough investigation of the property conditions, corporate policies, and circumstances surrounding your premises liability accident. Investigating accidents includes gathering surveillance footage and maintenance logs. We photograph the accident scene, secure eyewitness testimony, and preserve evidence before it disappears. Gathering eyewitness testimony can strengthen your premises liability case, and surveillance footage can be crucial evidence in these claims. Communication with experts is essential for proving how a hazard caused an injury, and we collaborate with medical specialists, building engineers, and safety compliance experts to establish every element of your claim.
Under Illinois law, negligence must be proven by showing the property owner knew or should have known about the hazard. You must show a dangerous condition existed on the property. We gather evidence to prove both actual and constructive notice - that the hazardous condition existed long enough that any reasonable property owner would have discovered and corrected it.
We negotiate with corporate defendants, insurance companies, and defense counsel from a position of strength. Attorneys typically negotiate with insurance companies to secure compensation for injured plaintiffs, but in catastrophic cases, the stakes are far higher - and so is the opposition. We prepare every Chicago premises liability case as if it's going to trial, because that preparation is what drives meaningful settlements. Our goal is maximum compensation for your medical bills, lost wages, lost income, future medical expenses, rehabilitation costs, pain and suffering, and non economic damages.
The most difficult personal injury cases in Chicago have come to CHH Law. For over four decades, we have secured substantial outcomes for clients suffering catastrophic premises liability injuries against corporate defendants, commercial property owners, and entities that believed their resources would outlast the injured party's resolve.
Legal representation in premises liability cases can lead to higher compensation than representing oneself. Our track record reflects what happens when medical expertise meets aggressive legal advocacy in the courtroom and at the negotiation table.
Contact our office to discuss specific case results relevant to your situation.
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CHH was absolutely awesome! The team came through for me and our family. They are professional, compassionate, informative, and thorough. They took the case, fought, and won. I highly recommend this firm if you want to win too.
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All of the CHH attorneys are exceptionally knowledgeable, and they confidently took our case, when many other big firms would not...and Dan Pylman won our case!
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A very different tone from the other legal firms. Dan Pylman fought and won for our family.
CHH Law represents clients injured on dangerous properties throughout the greater Chicago metropolitan area, including:
Downtown Chicago and the Loop - commercial high-rises, retail centers, restaurants, and public infrastructure
North Side neighborhoods - Lincoln Park, Lakeview, Wrigleyville, and surrounding commercial districts
South Side communities - residential, commercial, and industrial properties
West Side and Near West Side - including medical district facilities and mixed-use developments
Suburban Cook County - Evanston, Oak Park, Cicero, Skokie, and surrounding suburbs
Collar counties - DuPage, Lake, Will, Kane, and McHenry counties
Major commercial and industrial districts throughout the region, including O'Hare and Midway airport areas
Chicago's weather-related hazards - ice, snow, and environmental conditions like icy sidewalks - create seasonal premises liability risks. Inadequate safety measures create hazardous conditions for visitors year-round. Wherever in the Chicagoland area your injury occurred, our experienced premises liability attorneys can evaluate your case.
CHH Law's legal team includes a licensed physician and a certified respiratory therapist - both practicing attorneys. This means we evaluate your injuries with clinical precision, not just legal interpretation. We identify injuries that may not yet be symptomatic, challenge defense medical experts on their own terms, accurately calculate lifetime medical expenses, and build life care plans grounded in actual clinical outcomes. In catastrophic cases involving brain injuries, spinal cord damage, respiratory compromise, or complex surgical outcomes, this expertise can be the difference between adequate compensation and fair compensation that truly reflects what your recovery will cost.
A catastrophic premises liability case involves injuries that cause permanent disability, long-term or lifelong medical care, paralysis, severe organ damage, brain injuries, amputations, or injuries requiring ongoing therapy. Over 30% of non-fatal ER visits in Illinois are due to premises liability. Slip and fall incidents account for 1 million ER visits yearly. These cases differ from standard fall incidents because they involve extensive medical evidence, life care planning, multiple expert witnesses, and often corporate defendants with aggressive defense teams. They may also involve multiple parties - property owners, contractors, management companies - and contested issues of notice, control, and causation. Choosing a premises liability lawyer should involve assessing their specific experience with similar cases.
Under Illinois statute 735 ILCS 5/13-202, you have two years to file a premises liability claim in Illinois from the date of injury. Premises liability claims must be filed within two years in Illinois - missing this deadline almost always means your case is dismissed. But evidence degrades much faster than that. Surveillance footage can be overwritten within days. Maintenance records can be lost or altered. Witnesses relocate. In catastrophic cases, early evidence preservation is critical. Contact an experienced premises liability attorney as soon as possible after your injury.
Yes. The personal injury cases CHH Law handles typically involve corporations, businesses, and commercial defendants. We have the resources, medical expertise, and legal infrastructure to take on well-funded corporate defense teams. Illinois courts scrutinize corporate policies, maintenance logs, inspection routines, and prior incident histories when evaluating whether a property owner owed a duty of care and whether that duty was breached. We know how to investigate corporate structures, identify who had control over the premises, and hold negligent property owners accountable - whether they are individual landlords or national commercial enterprises.
Illinois law recognizes the "open and obvious" doctrine, which can limit a property owner's duty to warn about hazards that are plainly visible. However, this defense is not absolute. Illinois courts recognize important exceptions: the "distraction exception," where your attention was likely diverted from the hazard, and the "deliberate encounter" exception, where you were forced to confront the hazard because there was no reasonable alternative path. Poor maintenance can lead to falls and injuries even when a condition appears visible. Negligent security can lead to assaults on property regardless of perceived obviousness. An experienced premises liability lawyer can evaluate whether these exceptions apply to your case.
A premises liability lawyer represents individuals injured on someone else's property due to negligence. Compensation in Illinois premises liability claims may include medical bills and future medical expenses, lost wages and lost earning capacity, rehabilitation and long-term care costs, pain and suffering, emotional distress, and other non economic damages. Many personal injury lawyers handle premises liability claims on a contingency fee basis, meaning you pay nothing upfront. Illinois law requires evidence of negligence to prove liability - and when that evidence is established, property owners must be held accountable for the full scope of injuries caused by their negligence.
