masthead
Firm ProfilePractice AreasAttorneysNewsPublicationsContact Us
 

Firm Practice Areas

Bar Admissions

  • Illinois Supreme Court, 1971
  • U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois, 1971
  • U.S. District Court, Central District of Illinois, 1994
  • U.S. District Court, Southern District of Illinois, 1995
  • U.S. District Court, Northern District of Indiana, 1996
  • U.S. Court of Federal Claims, 1995
  • U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Wisconsin, 2009

Education

  • Loyola University, J.D. (cum laude), 1971
  • Northwestern University, B.S., 1968

 

 

 

 

  Search by keyword, attorney name,   or practice area.

 
John W. Bell
Vice President/Shareholder
Phone (312) 984-0241


Fax (312) 372-9818


E-Mail bellj@jbltd.com

Vcard

John W. Bell is co-founder and vice president of Johnson & Bell, Ltd., as well as one of the firm’s managing partners. He concentrates his practice in product liability and defense of complex/catastrophic litigation, with a focus on defense of personal injury litigation. Mr. Bell’s extensive experience includes numerous high-profile cases which have led him to be featured in many reputable law journals. Mr. Bell has been in The Best Lawyers in America each year since 1995.  He has also been named one of the Top 20 Tort Defense Lawyers in Chicago by Chicago Lawyer magazine.  In 2009, he was named one of the Top 10 Attorneys in Illinois in the Chicago Magazine Super Lawyers. Mr. Bell has also been featured in the National Law Journal for successful defense verdicts, most notably for one of the best defense verdicts of 2000. Mr. Bell was also featured as Member of the Month by DRI magazine highlighting defense lawyers and their impact on the public good. Mr. Bell is a frequent faculty speaker to various professional associations and has written articles on various aspects of trial practice.

Mr. Bell is a member of a number of legal associations, including the Illinois State Bar Association, the Chicago Bar Association, the Hellenic Bar Association of Illinois, and the American Bar Association. He is also a member of the Defense Research Institute, the Society of Trial Lawyers, the International Association of Insurance Defense Counsel, and the Federal Trial Bar, and he is a fellow of the International Academy of Trial Lawyers, and the American College of Trial Lawyers. Mr. Bell just completed his term as President of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA) Illinois Chapter, and was chosen as one of Chicago's Best Lawyers of 2012. Click here to see the full story.



For more information on Mr. Bell, please click here.

Publications

  1. John W. Bell and Robert R. McNamara, And The Defense Wins, DRI, February 29, 2012.
  2. Top 100 Super Lawyers 2011 Advertisment
  3. ABOTA President's Page
  4. John W. Bell Section of Litigation American Bar Association Trial Practice 2008 - A Defendant's Perspective on Settling Cases During Trial
  5. Chicago Lawyer, Top 20 Tort Defense Lawyers, January 2003
  6. John W. Bell and Kevin G. Owens National Law Journal, $94 Million Crane-Collapse Award Erased, October 2003
  7. John W. Bell For the Defense, Member of the Month, September 2002
  8. John W. Bell National Law Journal, Defense Wins in Brain Injury Case, September 2002
  9. John W. Bell and William G. Beatty National Law Journal, The Best Defense, March 2001
  10. Court Douses Fireman's Suit; City Wins the Same Case Twice, Chicago Lawyer, February 1998
  11. Chapter Writer:  IICLE Interrogatories, 2006 and 1998 Revisions, Averting a Crisis in Product Liability, Illinois Bar Journal, 1977
  12. Chapter Writer:  Illinois Civil Discovery Practice, IICLE, 1979; November and December, 1983, November, 1994
  13. Chicago Bar Record, Defense of Back Injury Cases, reprinted in July, August 1984 Case and Comment

Lecturer

Association of Equipment Manufacturers

  1. Lessons Learned in the Courtroom, Product Safety & Compliance and Product Liability Seminars, Westin O'Hare, Rosemont, IL, April 29, 2010


Chicago Bar Association:

  1. Cross-Examination for the Defendants, 1983
  2. Proving and Disproving Damages in Personal Injury and Wrongful Death Cases, Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, March, 1985
  3. Defense of Crane Contact Electrocution Cases, Continuing Legal Education Seminar, Proving/Disputing Plaintiff's Damages, September 29, 1988
  4. Continuing Legal Education Seminars, Proving/Disputing Pain, Suffering and Disability,October 30, 1990
  5. Summer Boot Camp for Aspiring Litigators, Closing Arguments, August 19, 1994
  6. Deposition Strategies, May 8, 1995
  7. Trends in Personal Injury Litigation/Wrongful Death, The CBA Young Lawyers Section's Trial Superstars on Presenting Your Case, October 16, 2009

City of Chicago - Department of Law:

  1. 10 Rules for Effective Depositions, Chicago, Illinois, November 15, 2005

Defense Research Institute:

  1. Fire & Casualty Seminar, Defending and Mitigation Damages in the Large Property Damages Case, Phoenix, Arizona, 2003
  2. Becoming A Preeminent Trial Lawyer, Handling of the Defense Economist or Life Care Expert; Plaintiff's Opening Statement; Chicago, Illinois, October 1, 2005
  3. Damages Seminar, Handling of the Defense Economist or Life Care Expert; Third Defendant’s Closing Argument, Las Vegas, Nevada, March 16-17, 2006
  4. Preeminent Lawyer - Superstars of Trial Seminar, Handling of the Defendant's Economist or Life Care Expert, September 28-30, 2006
  5. Damages Seminar, Empathy, Sympathy and Kindness from a Defense Perspective, Las Vegas, Nevada, March 17-19, 2010
                           

Edison Electric Institute:

  1. Denver, Colorado, October, 1985

Fireman’s Fund Insurance Company:

  1. Advanced Casualty Seminar, Handling of the Defendant's Economist or Life Care Expert, October 6, 2006

Illinois Defense Council:

  1. 22nd Annual Defense Tactics Seminar, Demonstrative Evidence in Product Liability Cases, March 8, 1986
  2. 2010 Claims & Defense Tactics Symposium, Trends in High Exposure & Complex Tort Litigation, March 25, 2010

Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education:

  1. Interrogatories, 1979
  2. Drafting Interrogatories, 1981
  3. Defense Preparation and Trial Procedures, 1982
  4. Preparation of a Products Liability Case-3d Party Actions, 1982

Illinois Trial Lawyers Association:

  1. Education Seminar, Products Liability/Wrongful Death, January 11, 1992
  2. Education Seminar, Defenses and Instructions - Defendant's Perspective", January 9, 1993
  3. Education Seminar, Product Liability Litigation - Examination of Experts at Trial, Defendant's Perspective", January 8, 1994
  4. Education Seminar, Defenses of Misuse, Assumption of Risk, Employer Liability, Statute of Repose, January 13, 1996

Mr. Bell was also a faculty member of the International Association of Defense Council Trial Academy at the University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado, 1994

National Electrical Manufacturers Association:

  1. Crisis Management – We’ve All Been There, Chicago, Illinois, September 13, 2005

SAE International:

  1. Product Liability Overview: Claims, Defenses and Damages, Downers Grove, Illinois, November 14, 2005