Joseph R. Curcio

Joseph R. Curcio devoted more than 70 years to the practice of law in Illinois, building a career defined by tireless advocacy, groundbreaking trial work, and an unwavering commitment to his clients and community. At the conclusion of 2025, Mr. Curcio formally retired from the practice of law, leaving a legacy that continues to shape the firm and the Illinois legal landscape. Raised in Chicago’s old Italian neighborhood along Grand and Damen Avenues on the city’s West Side, Mr. Curcio was the son of a shoemaker and learned early the value of hard work and perseverance. He paid his own way through DePaul University and The John Marshall Law School by working a series of night jobs, including repossessing cars, before graduating from law school in 1956. After a brief stint as a claims adjuster for an insurance company, he opened his own solo practice, marking the beginning of a remarkable legal career. From the outset, Mr. Curcio demonstrated a natural talent and passion for trial work. By the early 1960s, his practice focused almost exclusively on representing plaintiffs in personal injury litigation. Over the decades that followed, he earned a reputation as one of Illinois’s most formidable and respected trial lawyers, known for his fierce courtroom presence, meticulous preparation, and unwavering determination on behalf of those he represented. Many of the verdicts he obtained at trial, and later successfully defended on appeal, remain influential precedents in Illinois today. Among them is the landmark case Simpson v. General Motors, which helped establish that a plaintiff’s comparative fault serves as a damage-reducing factor rather than a complete bar to recovery. Throughout his career, Mr. Curcio was deeply engaged in advancing the legal profession. He was a proud and active member of the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association, serving on its Board of Managers beginning in 1983, and participating on both the Rules Committee and the Executive Committee. He lectured extensively and authored numerous articles for ITLA and IICLE. In 1998, he was appointed by the Supreme Court of Illinois to the Illinois Pattern Jury Instruction Committee, a distinguished body of lawyers and judges responsible for drafting the jury instructions used in every civil trial across the state. He was also a vocal and respected leader in the effort to protect consumers and oppose tort reform measures that threatened access to justice. Mr. Curcio’s contributions have been widely recognized by his peers. He received ITLA’s Leonard M. Ring Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009, earned the highest AV rating from Martindale-Hubbell, and was consistently named an Illinois Super Lawyer beginning in 2008. He was also selected as one of the Top 100 Trial Lawyers by the National Trial Lawyers organization and recognized as a Leading Lawyer by the Leading Lawyers Network in the area of plaintiffs’ personal injury law.