Ellery Kowal has 41 lawyers, six practices and one floor on LaSalle Street. Our deal lawyers and trial lawyers work side by side, so every agreement we draft has already survived a cross-examination.
Margaret Ellery left the U.S. Attorney’s office and Tomasz Kowal left a 1,200-lawyer firm in 2011 with one idea: the people who write your contracts should sit down the hall from the people who would defend them.
Fifteen years later we act for founder-owned companies, family businesses and the general counsel of public ones, almost all of them introduced by another client.
41
Lawyers on one floor
34
Cases tried to verdict
15
Years on LaSalle Street
92%
Matters resolved within budget
Six practices, one floor.
Each practice is led by a partner who picks up the phone, with the fee model stated up front.
Know the cost, the partner
and the next step.
Schedule A · Fixed fees
The work
Company formation and operating agreement
$3,500
flat fee, delivered in 5 business days
Illinois LLC or corporation filing
Operating agreement or bylaws
Founder equity and vesting
One revision round
Agreed in writing before any work begins. Anything outside it is quoted first.
Monthly report
September 30, 2026
Dear Ms. Alvarez,
Discovery closes next month and the other side’s documents are in. We have used $148,200 of the $240,000 budget we agreed in March, which is where we expected to be.
62% of budget
Sep 9
Deposed the distributor’s CFO
Sep 17
Agreed protective order entered
Sep 26
Second document request served
Next: expert reports, due October 21. I will call you the week before.
Owen
Owen Pryce, Partner · Trials & Disputes
Master Services Agreement
Draft 4 · reviewed
Article 12. Liability
12.2 Except for a party’s indemnification obligations, in no event shall either party’s aggregate liability arising out of or related to arising out of¹ this Agreement exceed the fees paid paid or payable² in the twelve (12) months preceding the claim the first written notice of the claim³.
Drafted by people who try cases.
Most contract fights turn on a sentence nobody argued about at signing. Every major agreement we draft is read by a trial lawyer before you sign it.
Owen Pryce
Trial lawyer · note 1
“Related to” is read broadly. As drafted, this cap could also limit fraud and tort claims against the other side. Decide whether that is what you want.
Tomasz Kowal
Deal lawyer · note 2
“Paid” versus “payable”. If the customer stops paying, the cap shrinks toward zero exactly when you need it.
Margaret Ellery
Trial lawyer · note 3
Which date is “the claim”? Notice, demand and filing can be a year apart. Pin it to the first written notice.
Prepared for trial. That’s why most settle.
A few recent results, without the client names.
All
Disputes
Transactions
Investigations
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Client names withheld for confidentiality.
The partner you hire is the one you get.
A partner leads every matter and takes your calls. Associates do the work that should cost less, under that partner’s supervision.
Founding Partner ·
Trials & Disputes
Tried 34 cases to verdict, first as a federal prosecutor in Chicago and then for companies on both sides of the v.
In practice
24 years
Admitted
Illinois · N.D. Ill. · 7th Cir.
What clients tell us.
Shared with permission. Names withheld at clients’ request.
Notes from the floor.
Questions, answered.
Still unsure? Call (312) 555-0147 and a lawyer will talk it through.
Nothing. After the conflict check, the partner who would lead your matter spends up to 30 minutes with you on the phone or in person. If we can help, you get a written engagement letter with scope and a fee estimate before any billable work starts.
Illinois ethics rules forbid us from acting against a current client, or learning your confidential information if we can’t act for you. The check takes hours, not days, and protects you as much as us.
It depends on the work. Formations, standard agreements and most leases are fixed fees. Deals get a capped estimate. Litigation is hourly with a budget for each phase, and for strong plaintiff claims over $2 million we offer hybrid contingency arrangements.
A partner leads every matter and is your first call. Associates do the work that should cost less, under that partner’s supervision, and you will know who they are from the first week.
Yes. Our after-hours line reaches a trial partner, and we have filed for temporary restraining orders in Cook County and the Northern District of Illinois within 36 hours of the first call.
Start with a conflict check.
Before we hear the details, we confirm we can act for you. Tell us who is involved. Nothing confidential yet.
What happens next
Same business day
Conflict check
We confirm we can act for you before we hear anything confidential.
Within two days
Strategy call
Thirty minutes with the partner who would lead the matter. No charge.
Before any work
Engagement letter
Scope, staffing and a written fee estimate, signed before anything is billed.
Every month
Status report
Budget against estimate, next deadlines and a plain-English summary.
Ellery Kowal LLP
224 S. LaSalle Street, 31st Floor
Chicago, IL 60604
Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Central. After hours, for restraining orders: (312) 555-0163