Overview
Jack works with businesses on all points of the construction spectrum - from small specialty contractors to large national general contractors, developers, owners, design teams, utility companies, insurers, and other professional service providers – to swiftly complete projects while mitigating risk and protecting their rights along the way.
A seasoned litigator, Jack began his career as a plaintiff’s attorney, handling hundreds of claims through trial and settlement. This background gives him valuable insight into the motivations, strategies, and goals of his typical opposition now. Since joining Amundsen Davis in 2018, Jack has used that perspective to aggressively and efficiently defend his clients against injury suits, business tort actions, lien and bond claims, employment-related claims, and contract disputes.
As a member of the firm’s Construction Service Group, Jack advises his clients on risk mitigation and dispute avoidance through smart contract drafting and negotiation, company policy formations, and regulatory compliance. He teaches OSHA certification classes at the Illinois Construction Safety Counsel, and frequently does presentations to industry groups such as the Underground Contractors Association of Illinois.
Outside of construction services, Jack advises physicians and medical professionals, other individual professional service providers, and independent contractors on contract negotiation and formation, restrictive covenants, and dispute avoidance.
Jack has worked with several founders of start-up litigation finance companies on issues of regulatory compliance and marketing, and writes and speaks on the topic of litigation finance frequently.
Jack is the creator and host of Litigation Nation, Amundsen Davis’s flagship podcast that breaks down important stories in the law, policy, legislation, and litigation. Litigation Nation is among the top 10% most listened to podcasts worldwide, with a growing national and international audience.
Experience
Membership & Involvement
- Member: Underground Contractors Association
- Chicago Bar Association: Current Member; Past Executive Board Member of the Young Lawyers’ Section
Honors
- Selected to the Illinois Super Lawyers "Rising Stars" list: 2022, 2023
Resources & Insights
Alerts
Speaking Engagements
Published Works
Blog Posts
Education on Demand
As more and more states create laws that presume an employee’s COVID-19 diagnosis is the result of their employment, employers need to be more diligent and focused on identifying and gathering key facts to shore up viable defenses.
Podcasts
The Litigation Nation Podcast, hosted by Jack Sanker, is a roundup of the most important and interesting legal developments happening right now, giving you an insider’s view to the legal system.
The Litigation Nation Podcast, hosted by Jack Sanker, is a roundup of the most important and interesting legal developments happening right now, giving you an insider’s view to the legal system.
The Litigation Nation Podcast, hosted by Jack Sanker, is a roundup of the most important and interesting legal developments happening right now, giving you an insider’s view to the legal system.
The Litigation Nation Podcast, hosted by Jack Sanker, is a roundup of the most important and interesting legal developments happening right now, giving you an insider’s view to the legal system.
American Bar Association panel votes to try to eliminate the LSAT requirement for law schools, bribery and corruption scandal in Ohio state government, Department of Justice sues to try and block the merger of JetBlue and Spirit Airlines
Third Party Litigation Financiers deployed $3.2 billion in U.S. investments last year, and an abuse victim who is utilizing artificial intelligence to help represent herself in court against her alleged abuser in about a dozen different lawsuits.
‘Rust’ Prosecutors Downgrade Alec Baldwin’s Manslaughter Charges, What to know about the Ohio train derailment in East Palestine, & DoNotPay's AI lawyer stunt cancelled after multiple state bar associations object.
Supreme Court agrees to hear Jack Daniel’s trademark case against dog toy company, Comedian Jeff Ross At Center Of Supreme Court Dearth Penalty Appeal, & Elon Musks text messages in the lead-up to his bid to buy Twitter.
NLRB opens door for union for college athletes and employee classification, the changing economic geography of legal markets, lawsuits claim Purdue Pharma’s consulting firm, McKinsey, helped fuel the opioid crisis, and the City of Baltimore Files a first of its kind lawsuit against tobacco companies for cigarette filter waste.
Alec Baldwin faces involuntary manslaughter charge over fatal "Rust" shooting, Supreme Court is unable to ID the leaker in Dobbs decision, FTC Proposes Ban on Employment-Related Non-Compete Agreements (with special guest Jeff Glass)
The Implications of the Dobbs Decision, Drivers’ Lawsuit Claims Uber and Lyft Violate Antitrust Laws, Texas Could Vote to Secede From U.S. in 2023 as GOP Pushes for Referendum, Frances Haugen wants to train lawyers to fight Facebook
Illinois Governor Signs Bills Expanding Contractors’ Liability for Unpaid Wages of Subcontractors’ Workers, Massachusetts high court allows AG’s Exxon Suit Claiming Climate Deception to proceed, & US Law Firm Serves First Ever Subpoena via NFT in Crypto Exchange Hacking Case.
New York state passes first-ever ‘right to repair’ law for electronics, U.S. court will soon rule if AI can legally be an ‘inventor’, Supreme Court leak investigation heats up as clerks are asked for phone records.
Uber Escapes Liability for Sexual Assaults by Impostor Drivers, New York Subway Shooting Survivor Sues Gun Manufacturer Glock, U.S. Chicken Producers Face a Class-Action Lawsuit for Alleged Price-Fixing Conspiracy to Reduce Chicken Meat Supply and Raise Prices dating back to 2008.
Tennessee to Make Homeless Camps on Public Land a Felony, Idaho legislator asks U.S. Congress to close Yellowstone’s ‘zone of death’ loophole, former president of Louvre museum charged in art trafficking case.
5th Circuit federal appeals court says the S.E.C.’s use of an in-house judge violates defendants’ rights, Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Allows Texas’ Social Media Censorship Ban to Take Effect, AG Paxton Sues Google for Deceptively Tracking Users’ Location Without Consent.
Congress considers increased security for Supreme Court justices, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy vows state won’t cooperate with out-of-state abortion investigations, Katrina survivors sued by Louisiana after using grant money to rebuild, Surfside Condo collapse victims reach $997 million settlement.
An entire episode on the Supreme Court Roe V. Wade leak.
Ohio lawyer unable to practice for 6 months after swearing at a judge outside of court, A bipartisan supported bill requiring that federal judges' financial disclosure reports be made publicly available online passes congress, and the contractual Impossibility of Florida dissolving Disney’s special district.
Lack of record keeping is allowing foreign entities to buy American farm land without oversight, California COVID-19 ruling that could open the door for additional tort litigation cases, Artificially intelligent prosecutor software is being used in China.
Former nurse, RaDonda Vaught, found guilty in accidental injection death of 75-year-old patient, Justice tech company Paladin partners with Ukraine’s Legal Development Network to launch European pro bono portal to assist with war relief, FBI officials say North Korean hackers stole more than $600 million in cryptocurrency in single hack.
The city of Los Angeles reached a historic $3 billion settlement to address homelessness, Louisiana court rules Protest leader's can be sued for police injury regardless of whether they attended the protest or not, many big U.S. law firms are still working with their Russian clients despite stating the contrary.
DraftKings sports gambler sues MLB over sign-stealing scandal, Mercedes-Benz says it will accept legal responsibility for crashes caused by its self-driving car tech in its latest luxury models, D.C. sues Grubhub for allegedly using deceptive trade practices.
Biden administration takes aim at breaking up monopolies in the domestic meat and poultry industries, federal court in Iowa strikes down proposed 'Ag-gag" law ruling it unconstitutional, lack of record keeping is allowing foreign entities to buy American farm land without oversight, and a Chapman University Business Professor is suing a student for copyright infringement after course exam is found posted online.
Department of Justice hires an art sleuth targeting Russian oligarch assets, U.S. actor Jussie Smollett has been sentenced after a jury found he lied about being a hate crime victim. Walmart, CVS, and Walgreens receive guilty verdicts for contributing to the opioid crisis in two Ohio counties.
U.S. law firms & companies respond to imposed Russian sanctions over Ukraine, N.Y. lawsuit raises important questions on non-human personhood, White House Department of Justice ramps up its White Collar Prosecution of individuals that may have defrauded the government in terms of COVID-19 financial assistance.
Sandy Hook families settle with Remington, marking 1st time gun-maker held liable for mass shooting, George Zimmerman lawsuit against Trayvon Martin's parents dismissed, U.S. judge blocks Biden measure for calculating climate risks.
Texas AG sues Facebook for allegedly collecting facial-recognition data without consent, U.S. court revives Philadelphia news anchors lawsuit against Facebook over misappropriation of her right of publicity, and San Francisco D.A. says, SF police used rape victims’ DNA to try to ‘incriminate’ them.
Trial set in climate change lawsuit brought by Montana youths, Inside Johnson & Johnson's secret plan to cap litigation payouts to cancer victims with "Project Plato", and California accuses Tesla of alleged discrimination in their San Francisco Bay Area factory.
Former NFL coach is suing the National Football league over racial discrimination in their hiring processes, young attorneys are burning out and many of them are seeking to leave the practice altogether, Growing frequency of climate disasters is forcing the insurance industries to adapt.
Wisconsin medical providers go to the courts to prevent their at-will employees from being allowed to quit and work elsewhere, San Jose is introducing a new liability insurance requirement for gun owners, the first of its kind in the country, Facebook is shutting down its facial recognition system after years of litigation stemming from privacy laws passed in Illinois and other states.
Prosecutors file first felony charges tied to Tesla Autopilot crashes, Uber slapped with ADA lawsuit from three wheelchair-using New Orleans residents, attorneys brought up on ethics charges for their online behavior.
Artificially intelligent prosecutor software is being used in China, litigation financing through cryptocurrency, legal developments from the Surfside Condo collapse in south Florida. Join Litigation Nation host Jack Sanker every Tuesday for the most interesting litigation cases of the week.
New Jersey Law firm buys office space in the Metaverse, regulatory overhaul across the country, legal technology companies are being consolidated and acquired by larger companies, a Chicago Criminal Defense Attorney takes on a civil case and wins a 25 million dollar verdict against Chicago Police Department, and the Ghislaine Maxwell Verdict in jeopardy after a juror admits he may not have been truthful on his questionnaire.
4th Amendment ruling in PA could rewrite what is considered acceptable probable cause, Colorado modifies previous runaway truck driver sentencing, Ghislaine Maxwell, Bankruptcy Lawyers, and New York State score a win against a pharmaceutical company for the opioid epidemic.
Market trends among law firms demonstrate a growing gap between the top firms and the best of the rest, Colorado criminal conviction sentence of 110 years spurs massive logistic-workers strike, and a California COVID-19 ruling that could open the door for additional tort litigation cases.
Join Litigation Nation Host Jack Sanker as he recaps the most interesting legal news of the week
Firm News
- 30 SmithAmundsen Attorneys Included on 2022 Illinois Super Lawyers and Rising Stars Lists30 SmithAmundsen Attorneys Included on 2022 Illinois Super Lawyers and Rising Stars Lists
Congratulations to all of our attorneys named to the 2022 Illinois Super Lawyers and 2022 Illinois Rising Stars lists!
- Amundsen Davis Attorneys Included in the 2023 Illinois Super Lawyers and Rising Stars ListAmundsen Davis Attorneys Included in the 2023 Illinois Super Lawyers and Rising Stars List
Amundsen Davis is pleased to announce the inclusion of 24 attorneys on the 2023 Illinois Super Lawyers® and 2022 Illinois Rising StarsSM lists!
- SmithAmundsen Promotes Five Attorneys to PartnerSmithAmundsen Promotes Five Attorneys to Partner
Congratulations to John Hayes, Matthew Kees, Elizabeth Lum, Paul Mackowski & Jack Sanker!
Education
Loyola University Chicago School of Law, J.D., 2014
University of Pittsburgh, B.A., 2011
Admissions
- Illinois