Roger A. Lewis

Roger Lewis is a principal in the firm’s Litigation Group. His practice focuses on complex commercial litigation in the state and federal courts and administrative agencies.  In addition to general commercial contract and tort matters, his cases have involved lending and financial institution litigation, consumer and property tax litigation, and partnership and shareholder issues. He has extensive experience in protecting the rights of secured creditors in bankruptcy and insolvency litigation in courts nationwide. Mr. Lewis aggressively pursues litigation objectives within the framework of the client's broader goals, counseling clients thoughtfully and rigorously through their most complex, high-stakes matters. His commercial litigation experience includes cases in Illinois, Ohio, New York, California, North Carolina, Michigan, Wisconsin, Texas, Missouri and Kansas.

Mr. Lewis is admitted to practice in Illinois, Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals; and in the U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois. He received his law degree, cum laude, from Harvard University in 1995 and his B.A., with honors, in political science and psychology from Stanford University in 1992.  He served as law clerk to the Honorable James B. Moran, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois, from 1995 to 1996. He is a member of the Chicago Bar Association and the Illinois State Bar Association. He proudly serves on the firm's Technology Committee, Recruiting Committee and Professional Responsibility Committee.

Representative Matters

• Prosecuting and successfully resolving complex intercreditor claims on behalf of a national bank against co-lenders in a multi-tranche, commercial real estate loan facility.  As troubled, multi-lender loans enter difficult work-out stages in today's markets, Mr. Lewis offers a breadth and depth of experience in managing litigation risk and securing positive litigation outcomes for the Firm's clients.
• Securing emergency injunctions against deposed board member after lender client exercised its stock pledge and proxy rights in defaulted borrowers, ultimately resulting in payment in full to the client.  As lenders increasingly use all of the tools in their toolbox to exercise their rights in collateral, Mr. Lewis' practice is on the cutting edge of validating and securing those rights in court.
• Defending numerous consumer class actions, including class actions asserting violations arising out of banking activities, to successful resolutions, including outright dismissal, summary judgment, and nominal, individual settlements.
• Prosecuting commercial foreclosure matters, including suits against guarantors, to judgment and sale.
• Procuring an early dismissal, and affirmance on appeal, of claims against a large oil company for allegedly contributing to a fire at a refinery previously owned by the company.  The case proceeded to trial without Goldberg Kohn's client, where the jury held that – had the company not been dismissed – GK's client would have been responsible for over $180 million in damages.
• Representing a national telecommunications company in various state tax disputes, including a class action brought by Missouri municipalities.
• Representing the owner of nuclear power plants in property tax hearings in the Illinois Property Tax Appeal Board and in several collar counties near Chicago.
• Defending a large commercial lending client against multi-million dollar lender liability claims, and achieving a substantial judgment against the guarantor plaintiff.
• Achieving judgment in various contested intercreditor disputes involving substantial borrower assets.
• Protecting successful trial court ruling in bank vs. bank litigation involving check fraud through argument and decision from the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals.