Biography

Stephen I. Lane attended the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana, completing his undergraduate education in 1975. He attended the IIT/Chicago-Kent College of Law, earning his J.D. in 1978. Since 1978, Steve has been practicing law, exclusively handling matters involving all aspects of personal injury, medical malpractice and the sexual abuse of minors. In 1991, Steve, his father, Fred Lane, and brother, Scott D. Lane, founded the Chicago law firm of Lane & Lane, LLC, a prominent civil litigation firm, where Steve served as Managing Partner until he retired in 2022. Since he began practicing law, Steve has held true to the family business motto of “doing the right thing” to help protect the rights of those who couldn’t fight for themselves. 2023 marks Steve’s 45th anniversary practicing law, pouring his efforts into mostly catastrophic personal injury cases. Throughout those years, Steve has been fiercely protective of his clients’ interests. It has always been important to him to work hard to make the adversarial management of his cases a friendly and collaborative process, always seeking to work with his opposing counsel to bring about a resolution of his cases in a manner that preserved professionalism and the dignity of all parties. Steve brings the same collaborative style and respect for differing perspectives in cases to his mediation practice.

As a child, Steve worked from the age of 13. The enormous breadth of jobs he’s had, and the diverse character of the people he’s worked for and with, have given Steve a healthy exposure to people of every socio-economic, geographic, racial, religious and political background. This exposure, along with the tremendous opportunities that have presented themselves to Steve over his life, have given Steve the gift of relatability to all people in all walks of life. While Steve’s practice has been entirely within the injury realm, over the course of his professional career, Steve has held leadership positions and served on numerous Illinois State Bar Association and Illinois Trial Lawyers’ Association committees and boards and other organized bar groups, and has also served as a member of the Board of Directors of the International Society of Primerus Law Firms, an organization made up of more than 3,500 highly vetted attorneys from nearly 50 countries around the world, whose members’ law practices  cover virtually the entire spectrum of law practice worldwide. These activities and resources have given Steve a great perspective of a broad range of legal and other dispute-related issues.

Steve has enjoyed the privilege of authoring legislation and testifying before the Illinois state legislature. He has also taught other lawyers over the years, instructing them in areas of medical matters and litigation, trial practice and trial strategy. His hope is that more people are being helped every day because he has been able to help other lawyers become better advocates for their clients. Each year, when Steve has been assessed, he has been recognized by Martindale-Hubbell with its “AV” rating, the highest rating available for legal ability and integrity, and has earned its “Preeminent Attorney” designation for many years. Most recently, he was named a 2023 “Illinois Super Lawyer”, an honor that he has consistently earned each year since the award was established, and has been included in their Top 100 list every year since 2015.