About Timothy R. Ocasek

Mr. Ocasek received his J.D. from DePaul University School of Law in 1979 and his B.A from the University of Illinois, Urbana, in 1976. Mr. Ocasek joined the firm in 1979 and represents clients at both the trial and appellate levels. Mr. Ocasek has won numerous personal injury verdicts and settlements for his clients throughout the state of Illinois in a variety of areas, including wrongful death, medical and professional malpractice, product liability, construction negligence, premises liability and transportation liability. He has also obtained settlement of many significant cases including a seven-figure settlement of the only personal injury lawsuit occurring as a result of the Chicago Flood. He is admitted to practice before the Illinois State Bar and the United States District Court and is a member of the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association, the American Association for Justice, the Illinois State Bar Association, and the Fenwick Bar Association.

He has provided service as a moot court appellate judge and as an independent and court-appointed arbitrator. He also serves as a Director on the Boards of community and regional organizations. He has also lectured at seminars of the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association. Mr. Ocasek has been rated AV preeminent since 1990 by Martindale-Hubble, their highest peer and judicial review rating for legal ability and ethical standards, and peer selected to Chicago Top Lawyers and Best Lawyers in America.

Proven verdicts and settlements at Cooney & Conway

These results are credited to Cooney & Conway. A result appears under an attorney's own name only when a published source names them as counsel on the case.

$34.1 millionVerdict

A Madison County jury awarded James Hutcheson $34.1 million after he developed mesothelioma from asbestos exposure during contract work at Shell Oil's Wood River, Illinois refinery in the 1950s and 1960s.

Madison County Circuit Court, Illinois · 2000Product LiabilityRead the full story →
$20 millionSettlement

Chicago agreed to pay $20 million to the families of Fausto Manzera and Andrew Cazares, two men killed in 2009 when off-duty detective Joseph Frugoli struck their disabled vehicle on the Dan Ryan Expressway with a blood-alcohol level more than four times the legal limit, after trial evidence exposed the department's years-long failure to discipline Frugoli for prior suspected drunk driving.

Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois / Chicago City Council approval · 2018Wrongful DeathRead the full story →
$9 millionVerdictTop 10 in Delaware · #6

A Delaware jury returned a unanimous $9 million verdict on July 23, 2025, in the first case ever tried over asbestos-contaminated shotgun shells, holding DuPont and Remington's successor liable for the mesothelioma death of Eugene Schoepke, an 84-year-old Illinois farmer and lifelong hunter.

Delaware Superior Court, New Castle County (asbestos docket); on appeal, Delaware Supreme Court · 2025Product LiabilityRead the full story →

Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Each case is unique and depends on its own facts.

Practice areas

Education

DePaul University School of Law
J.D., 1979

Bar admissions & credentials

State Bar of Illinois

Other attorneys at Cooney & Conway

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Proven verdicts and settlements from other Chicago firms

Corboy & Demetrio
Corboy & Demetrio
$80 Million Default Judgment Against Iran for Iraq Roadside Bomb That Killed a Soldier and Injured His Platoon Leader
Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard P.C.
Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard P.C.
$363 million · Sterigenics Verdict: $363 Million for a Willowbrook Cancer Survivor
Clifford Law Offices
Clifford Law Offices
$110 million · American Eagle Flight 4184: $110 Million Crash Settlement and a Courtroom Apology
Power Rogers LLP
Power Rogers LLP
$100 million · Willis Family Wrongful Death Settlement: $100 Million After Six Children Killed in I-94 Truck Crash
Romanucci & Blandin
Romanucci & Blandin
$98.65 Million Verdict for Family of Botham Jean, Shot in His Own Apartment by Off-Duty Dallas Officer

Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Each case is unique and depends on its own facts.