ROBERT L. BYMAN, Partner Publications · Professional Activities Chicago Office Office: (312) 923-2679 Fax: (312) 840-7679 Email: rbyman@jenner.com  Add to Outlook Contacts

Robert L. Byman is a partner in the Firm's Litigation Department.  He is a member of the Complex Commercial Litigation Practice.  Mr. Byman is AV Peer Review Rated, Martindale-Hubbell’s highest peer recognition for ethical standards and legal ability.

Mr. Byman has tried dozens of cases to jury or bench verdict in a gamut of substantive areas, including patents and intellectual property, commodities and securities, trade practices, environmental, employment, land use, professional liability, civil rights, and a wide variety of complex contractual disputes with issues such as insurance, construction, franchising, licensing, and corporate acquisitions and reorganizations.

Mr. Byman served as lead counsel to the Firm's Chairman, Anton. R. Valukas, in his capacity as Examiner in the Lehman Bankruptcy.

In 2000, Mr. Byman was lead counsel for General Electric Capital Corporation in a six week jury trial in a complex contractual dispute against General Motors Corp. and its subsidiary DirecTV, Inc., resulting in the largest jury verdict ever in the State of Connecticut – $133,000,000 (The award was later increased to $181,000,000 as a result of offer-of-judgment interest and attorneys’ fees.)

Mr. Byman earned his B.A. and J.D. degrees from the University of Illinois, where he was Student Body President and Notes and Comments Editor of the Illinois Law Forum.  Mr. Byman joined Jenner & Block in June 1970.  In January 1973, he became Assistant General Counsel of the A.C. Nielsen Company; he returned to Jenner & Block in June 1974, becoming a partner of the firm in January 1978.

Mr. Byman has extensive experience in alternative dispute resolution, as an advocate, as an arbitrator, and as a mediator.  Mr. Byman has been a member of the Commercial Arbitration Panel of the American Arbitration Association since 1978 and has served as an arbitrator in dozens of AAA cases.  Mr. Byman has also served as an arbitrator on numerous occasions for the National Futures Association, the Chicago Board Options Exchange, and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.  Mr. Byman has represented clients in dozens of arbitrations, many of which involved multimillion dollar awards.

Mr. Byman is a Regent of the American College of Trial Lawyers; he served as Chairman of its Committee on Federal Civil Procedure from 2002-2005 and served as Chair of two other Ad Hoc Committees, Judicial Independence and Judicial Compensation.  He is a member of the American, Illinois, and Chicago Bar Associations.  He has served as chair of the Chicago Bar Association Committee on Paralegals and has been a member of its committees on Judicial Evaluation and Futures Law.  In 2001, he was selected by the American Bar Association to be one of four Showcase Trial Lawyers, to retry the “Chicago Seven” case.

Mr. Byman was the member of the litigation team with principal responsibility for electronic discovery issues in Coleman (Parent) Holding v. Morgan Stanley, and is a frequent speaker and faculty member at seminars such as the Sedona Conference on e-discovery issues. Mr. Byman is a co-author of the West‘s “Illinois Civil Litigation Guide,” and has authored numerous articles and chapters on various trial practice subjects in publications such as the Practicing Law Institute, the Matthew Bender Federal Evidence Practice Guide, the Matthew Bender Federal Litigation Guide, the ABA Litigation Magazine, and the Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education (IICLE).  Mr. Byman is a regular columnist on Federal Civil Procedure issues for the National Law Journal. Please click here to view an online resource center with all of Mr. Byman's National Law Journal articles. Mr. Byman has been a frequent lecturer for the IICLE on various litigation subjects and was a Senior Instructor for the IICLE Trial Bar Skills Course for Practicing Attorneys.  Mr. Byman has participated as an instructor in a number of Trial Advocacy Programs, including Notre Dame University, Northwestern University, IIT-Kent, and Loyola University.

Mr. Byman is admitted to practice and has argued in the United States Supreme Court, in the United States Courts of Appeals for the 2d, 7th, 9th and DC Circuits, and in the Illinois Appellate Courts.

Mr. Byman devotes a substantial amount of his practice to pro bono work, and has represented clients in a number of cases which have attracted national media attention:  Mr. Byman defended David and Cynthia Dowaliby in the murder of their daughter; the case was the subject of a book and movie, Gone In The Night, starring Shannon Doherty.  Mr. Byman represented Dennis Williams, one of The “Ford Heights Four,” a case which is the subject of a book and a planned movie; Dennis was released after serving 18 years on death row as a result of a wrongful conviction. Mr. Byman represented the adoptive parents of the child known in the media as “Baby Richard,” a case featured in multiple national media.  Mr. Byman represented Patrick Sykes, the defendant in the infamous “Girl X” case.

Mr. Byman and his wife, Jane, live in Lake Forest, Illinois, where they have served as co-presidents of the community theater and on various other civic boards.  They have three adult sons, Jon, Kris, and Dave.