The law firm of Brodsky & Odeh, the legal practice behind several of Chicago's biggest cases, is splitting up, partners Reem Odeh and Joel A. Brodsky jointly announced today.

"We have grown in different directions and our expertise is now in very different areas of law," says Brodsky. "After some soul searching and discussion it became obvious to both of us that it simply makes more sense to be in separate law firms."

Odeh, who teamed with Brodsky six years ago, says she is looking forward to forging ahead with developing her own practice.

"I learned a lot from practicing criminal law with Joel over the last six years, and now it is time for me to develop my own identity as an attorney," says Odeh.

Brodsky and Odeh are probably best known for their representation of former Bolingbrook police officer Drew Peterson.

Reem says that despite the breakup of the firm, she will remain a part of Peterson's defense team.

A Law360 Litigation Almanac ranking of the top 10 busiest ERISA practices in the United States lists Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP in the number two spot. According to Law360, rankings were determined by number of cases for which the firms were retained as counsel over a recent a one-year period, as published in the 2009 Law360 Litigation Almanac.

Hinshaw’s employee benefits attorneys provide comprehensive counsel and advice to corporations, tax-exempt organizations, local governmental entities and individuals in a wide range of complex employee benefits matters. Among many other issues, the firm assists clients with: contested benefit claims; breaches of fiduciary responsibility; insolvent group health plans; service provider errors and omissions; plan termination liability to the U.S. Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation; and Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) continuation coverage liability.

As described by Law360, the Law360 Litigation Almanac is an authoritative source on litigation trends in the U.S., including market share for more than 360 firms in ten major practice areas. With data culled from over 500,000 federal cases and input from more than 200 participating law firms, the report provides unprecedented breadth and depth in its coverage of the state of the U.S. legal market.
Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP is a national law firm with 475 lawyers in 25 offices. The firm offers a full-service practice, with an emphasis in litigation, corporate and business law, environmental, labor and employment law, professional liability defense, and wealth preservation and taxation matters. The firm provides services to a range of for-profit and not-for-profit clients in industries that include construction, financial services, health care, insurance, legal, manufacturing, real estate, retail and transportation. Firm clients also include government agencies, municipalities and schools.