Richard D. Gaines

"Leading Lawyer", Illinois
"Super Lawyer", Illinois
Martindale-Hubbell "AV" Peer Review Rated
Fellow, American College of Trial Lawyers
With Holmstrom & Kennedy since 1971

800 N. Church St.
P.O. Box 589
Rockford, IL 61105
ph. 815.962.7071
fx. 815.962.7181
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Biography

Rich Gaines is the senior member of the firm with a civil litigation practice which has extended over 35 years, with a particular emphasis on professional malpractice defense and alternative dispute resolution.

While Rich’s litigation practice has focused on the defense of medical professionals and health care institutions, it has encompassed a wide variety of civil matters, from business disputes to product liability cases.  Rich was one of the original attorneys certified as a major case mediator in 1993 in the Illinois pilot project for Court-Annexed Mediation.  He has completed over 200 mediations, with a success rate in excess of 67%, including state and federal personal injury cases and business disputes.  He has also served as an arbitrator in numerous arbitration proceedings, typically as the third “independent” or sole arbitrator.

Professional & Civic Involvement

• Winnebago County Bar Association (President 1986-1987)
• Illinois State Bar Association (past member Board of Governors and Assembly)
• American Bar Association
• Rockford Area Committee for Merit Selection of Judges (Chairman)
• American Cancer Society (Board of Directors)
• Rockford Public Library (Board of Directors, President 1989-1992)
• Rockford Public Library Foundation Board
• American Bar Foundation (Life Fellow)
• Illinois Bar Foundation (Life Fellow)
• Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education (past member Board of Governors)
• ISBA/CBA Implementation Commission for Lawyer’s Trust Fund
• Illinois Association of Defense Trial Counsel

By Invitation Only

• Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers
• Association of Defense Trial Attorneys (Prime Member)

Recognition

• “Leading Lawyer”, Illinois
• “Super Lawyer”, Illinois (Top 5% of lawyers)
• Martindale-Hubbell “AV” rating

Employment

• Holmstrom & Kennedy, P.C. (1971-Present)

Publications and Teaching

• Chapter 9, “Court-Annexed Mediation" (Co-author with the Honorable Harris H. Agnew)  Alternative Dispute Resolution (Illinois Institute For Continuing Legal Education, 2001)
• Moderator and Lecturer at numerous CLE courses on civil litigation and alternative dispute resolution sponsored by the Illinois and Winnebago County Bar Associations, the Illinois Institute For Continuing Legal Education and other organizations.

Articles written about Mr. Gaines

• "Defending Med-Mal With a Heart", Leading Lawyer Network Magazine, Business Edition, September 2007.