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swidman@millershakman.com
Mr. Widman’s primary practice is in commercial dispute resolution. For 30 years he has handled complex litigation in a wide array of commercial areas such as partnerships, corporate and securities, sales and commercial code, employment, insurance, real estate and construction, trade secrets, environmental, and antitrust, including class actions. For 19 years he has also concentrated in arbitration and mediation, where he has acted as the arbitrator or mediator in claims totaling over $475 million, as well as acting as counsel to parties in those alternative dispute resolution venues. Mr. Widman was selected as a Leading Illinois Attorney and a Leading American Attorney for Alternative Dispute Resolution in Commercial Law by the American Research Corporation. He was also deemed one of ten Illinois “Super Lawyer” arbitrators/mediators for 2005 by the Leading Lawyers Network.
Education
- B.S., Wharton School of Finance, University of Pennsylvania, Finance, 1970
- J.D., Northwestern University School of Law, 1974
Experience
- Served as a Lecturer in Law at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria, 1974-1976
- Admitted to the Illinois Bar, 1977
- Admitted to the Wisconsin Bar, 1988.
- Faculty member of the National Institute of Trial Advocacy, Midwest Regional Program on Negotiation and Mediation, 1997
- Faculty member of the American Arbitration Association training program
of Commercial Arbitration Rules, 1998-2003 (Basic), 2000-2007 (Advanced).
- Faculty member of DePaul University College of Law as a teacher of Commercial Arbitration, 2003.
- Practiced both as an associate and partner at Much Shelist Freed Denenberg Ament & Rubenstein, P.C., Chicago, Illinois, 1977-2003.
- Became a partner with this firm, 2004.
Selected Engagements
- Represented President and Chief Executive Officer of listed company in litigation regarding his entitlement to stock options and severance compensation arising out of his constructive termination prior to the end of his contract term.
- Represented various employees in defenses of claims of theft of trade secrets and violations of restrictive covenants following employees’ departures from employment and commencements of competing businesses.
- Represented investors in and owners of multiple partnerships and real estate development ventures in six-month trial regarding claims and counterclaims for breach of fiduciary duty, breach of contract, and violation of partnership laws.
- Represented national factoring company in commercial code and other claims against national grain company for failing to make payments pursuant to factoring agreement.
- Represented real estate developer in claims and counterclaims regarding the environmental remediation of real estate in Chicago metropolitan area upon which 240 single-family residences were constructed.
- Represented class of investors in oil and gas drilling limited partnerships in parallel cases in Oklahoma and New York in claims under federal and state securities laws.
- Co-counsel in multiple antitrust class actions, most recently concerning compensation and other terms of employment of approximately 200,000 medical residents in the United States.
- Represented national book publisher in defense of copyright litigation.
- Represented home owners in week-long jury trial against insurance company on claim for unpaid loss and bad faith claims handling.
- Represented physicians in separate arbitrations regarding licensing and certification requirements.
- Sole arbitrator or panel member (usually chairperson) in multiple arbitrations with claims totaling in excess of $365 million in a wide array of industries and commercial issues, including class actions.
- Mediator in multiple cases with claims totaling in excess of $110 million in construction, employment, commercial code, health care, leasing, securities, copyright and other disputes.
Memberships
- American Bar Association- Business Law, Dispute Resolution, Litigation and Natural Resources, Energy and Environmental Law sections.
- Illinois State Bar Association
- Chicago Bar Association
- Arbitrator and Mediator for the American Arbitration Association (both as neutral and party-appointed)
- Arbitrator and Mediator for the CPR International Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution
- Arbitrator and Mediator for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority
(formerly NASD)
- Arbitrator for the National Arbitration Forum
- Arbitrator for the National Futures Association
- Arbitrator for the Chicago Mercantile Exchange - Business Conduct Committee
- Mediator for Circuit Court of Cook County, Law Division
- Chair of the American Arbitration Association’s Commercial Arbitration Advisory Committee for the Chicago Regional Office
- Member of the American Trial Lawyers Association
Selected Publications and Presentations
- “The Protections and Limits of Confidentiality in Mediation,” two-part article in Alternatives, CPR International Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution, November-December, 2006.
- “When It’s Over Before It’s Completed: The Finality of Interim Awards,” two-part article in Alternatives, CPR International Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution, June-July, 2006.
- “Courts or Arbitrators? Who Decides Arbitrability Issues,” Chicago Bar Association Record, January 2006.
- “Avoiding Mediation Impasse,” Alternative Dispute Resolution Supplement, Law Bulletin Publishing Company, January 2006.
- “Piecing Together Your Client’s Victory – Drafting the Right Arbitration Clause,” Business Law Today American Bar Association Section of Business Law, Sept./Oct. 2004.
- “What’s Certain is the Lack of Certainty About Who Decides the Existence of the Arbitration Agreement,” Dispute Resolution Journal, American Arbitration Association, May 2004.
- Commentary on Federal Arbitration Act, 9 USC § 1 et seq., National Institute for Trial Advocacy (2004).
- “Peeling The Onion: The Heart of Trial is The Heart of The Parties,” Commercial and Business Litigation Committee Journal, American Bar Association Section of Litigation, Winter 2002-2003.
- “Ethics and Conduct in ADR,” Chapter in two-volume publication Alternative Dispute Resolution, Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education, October 2001.
- “Mediating a Y2K Dispute,” Chicago Lawyer, August 1999.
- “ADR and Lawyer Ethics,” Illinois Bar Journal, March 1994, Vol. 82, No. 3, and republished in Facts & Findings, November 1994, Vol. XXI, Issue 3.
- “Attorneys’ Ethical Duties To Know and Advise Clients About ADR,” American Bar Association Center for Professional Responsibility, materials for 19th National Conference on Professional Responsibility, May 1993, and republished in 1993 Symposium Issue of The Professional Lawyer.
- “ADR- What You Don’t Know Can Hurt You,” Illinois State Bar Association, Committee on Alternative Dispute Resolution Newsletter, Vol. 1, No. 1, June 1992; also in Chicago Daily Law Bulletin, August 21, 1992 and June 15, 1995.
- Contributing author: “Arbitrator Reference Manual,” Illinois Supreme Court, 1992.
- Contributing author: “A Drafter’s Guide to Alternative Dispute Resolution,” American Bar Association, Committee on Dispute Resolution, 1991.
- Principal author: “A Concise Guide To Alternative Dispute Resolution in Illinois,” Illinois State Bar Association, Section on Alternative Dispute Resolution, 1996.
- Panelist, American Bar Association Section of Dispute Resolution, “Class Action Arbitration,” April 2007.
- Speaker, Chicago Bar Association, “When The FAA Meets The FRCP: Limits on Jury Trials and Discovery in Pre- and Post-Arbitration Matters in the Federal Courts,” March 2007.
- Speaker, Chicago Bar Association, “Arbitration: What You Need To Know As A Litigator,” October 2006.
- Speaker, National Association of Administrative Law Judges, “Confidentiality in Mediation,” November 2005.
- Speaker, Chicago Bar Association, “Strategic Use of Arbitration in Resolving Commercial Disputes,” October 2005.
- Speaker, Cook County Circuit Court, “Breaking Impasse: Moving From Stalemate to Settlement in Mediation,” September 2005.
- Panelist, CPR Institute for Dispute Resolution, “Ethics in Mediation,” June 2005.
- Panelist, American Bar Association, Arbitration Training Institute II, Chicago, May 2005.
- Speaker, American Arbitration Association, “Arbitrability and Arbitrator Jurisdiction,” Chicago Region, May 2005.
- Panelist, American Bar Association Section of Dispute Resolution, “Following Goldilocks Through Grizzly Choices: Update on Drafting Effective and Enforceable Arbitration Clauses,” April 2004.
- Panelist, American Bar Association Section of Dispute Resolution, “Goldilocks and Arbitration Clauses: Too Little, Too Much (Too Bad) ... Or Just Right!,” March 2003.
- Panelist, Northern Illinois University Symposium on Dispute Resolution, “Mediation Advocacy in Commercial Disputes,” March 2001
- Chair, American Bar Association Section of Litigation, “E-Commerce: Surfing the Substance,” April 2000.
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