Pat Eckler builds superior client relationships to address their litigation needs and applies his wide range of skills to aid in resolving disputes. Pat handles a variety of civil disputes in state and federal courts across Illinois and Indiana. His practice has evolved from primarily representing insurers in coverage disputes to managing complex litigation in which he represents professionals, businesses and tort defendants. His record of success includes numerous summary judgments, several successful trial results, and multiple favorable appellate results.
In addition to representing lawyers, Pat represents design professionals, accountants, and insurance brokers. His commercial litigation experience involves complex contract disputes and defense of class-action lawsuits. Pat’s coverage practice for insurers and the insured involves commercial general liability and personal lines policies, issues involving the duties to defend and indemnify, bad faith and the application of exclusions. His tort defense work involves representing spans the representations of product manufacturers and distributors, trucking concerns and premises owners. Drawing on his experience as a college basketball coach, Pat has also represented a coach before the NCAA Committee on Infractions.
Pat is active in the organized defense bar both at the state and national level. He is a committee chair, columnist and board member with both the Illinois Association of Defense Trial Counsel and the Professional Liability Defense Federation. He focuses his recent work for the IDC on legislative activities, and he has spearheaded efforts to defeat or modify legislation that would harm civil defendants, insurers, and corporations and is working to defeat a proposed change to the Illinois Supreme Court Rules that would eliminate evidence depositions. He also advocates for legislation that would level the playing field in civil actions between plaintiffs and defendants.
Pat has published extensively in professional journals on a wide range of topics, including legal ethics, attorney-client privilege and Illinois and Federal civil procedure. He has also published on substantive areas of law ranging from products liability and toxic torts to premises liability and claims against accountants. Special attention in his writings has focused on issues related to completing settlements, including contending with Medicare Secondary Payer requirements and Illinois’ prompt payment statute, 735 ILCS 5/2-2301.
Pat studied ancient Egyptian language at the University of Chicago, where he earned his degree in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations. After completing his undergraduate studies, he taught history and coached high school and college basketball for three years before attending law school at the University of Florida. In his final semester of law school, Pat served as a certified legal intern with the Public Defenders’ Office of the 8th Judicial Circuit, where he represented defendants in misdemeanor criminal cases.
Education
- University of Florida, Fredric G. Levin College of Law, J.D. 2003
- University of Chicago, A.B. 1998
Bar Admissions
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Florida
- United States Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit
- United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois – Trial Bar
- United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
- United States District Court for the Central District of Illinois
- United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois
- United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois
- United States District Court for the Northern District of Indiana
- United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana
Related Practices