Illinois Securities Arbitration and Litigation Attorneys

Higgins & Burke, P.C.

2560 Foxfield Road
Suite 200
St. Charles, Illinois 60174
USA

(630) 762-9081

(630) 762-9084

www.higginsandburke.com/

Contact John Burke

Law Firm Overview Free Consultation

At Higgins & Burke, P.C., located in St. Charles, Illinois, our experienced, aggressive and results-driven legal representation leads to successful outcome for our clients. Many clients return as new legal challenges arise for themselves or for their family and friends, citing our responsive service and commitment to keeping our clients updated and informed as reasons for returning to our firm.

The law firm of Higgins & Burke, P.C. achieves high-value settlements and verdicts for many clients through a commitment to thorough legal representation, our accumulation of knowledge and skills in our practice areas and a varied background that includes years of experience in law, the financial and insurance industries, the state's attorney's office and the media industry.

Our backgrounds and skills enable us to resolve complex securities and insurance disputes involving fraud, misrepresentation, and inappropriate sales and policy turnovers. We can work to resolve your commercial or real estate dispute through mediation, arbitration or litigation. We can also work with investigators, medical professionals and accident reconstructionists to pursue your maximum compensation for pain and suffering, medical bills, and other effects and expenses resulting from car accident and premises liability accidents and injuries.

If you seek legal counsel regarding business or real estate transactions or seek to resolve a securities, insurance, business, financial or other dispute through litigation, mediation or arbitration, we can help. Our attorney team can meet with you to discuss your legal matter, and our attorneys and staff can provide personalized service throughout your legal proceedings.

Year this Office was Established: 1996

Languages: English

Practice Areas

Additional Practice Areas: Financial Fraud

Practice Areas Description

Our legal practice areas include:

- Securities Arbitration and Litigation

At the law firm of Higgins & Burke, P.C., we have provided legal assistance to the individual and institutional victims of financial and securities fraud for more than 15 years. Our lawyer team includes a former stockbroker and a former assistant state's attorney. Our firm understands securities law, investment firm practices and complex investment transactions, and is skilled at developing legal strategies that recover assets. We have resolved almost all types of securities legal issues for thousands of clients, including:

• Stockbroker churning, excessive account activity and the sale of unsuitable financial and insurance investments
• Unauthorized trading
• Failure to execute
• Sale of unsuitable or unregistered annuities
• Failure to supervise
• Mail fraud, wire fraud, margin account, variable annuity and mutual fund fraud
• Theft, negligence and conversion
• Professional malpractice by investment advisors, accountants, attorneys, insurance agents, and other financial and fiduciary professionals; breach of fiduciary duty
• Subprime mortgage and bond fund issues
• Auction rate securities
• Collateralized Mortgage Obligations (CMO's)
• Municipal Bonds
• Limited Partnerships

- Business and Commercial Litigation

At the law firm of Higgins & Burke, P.C., we have successfully resolved business and commercial disputes for our clients. Commercial and business litigation can involve complex contracts, securities, and corporate and finance law. We are experienced and skilled business attorneys, and can handle both simple and complex business-related disputes and issues, including:

• Partnership, corporate and joint venture dissolutions
• Shareholder rights, including shareholder rights during dissolution
• Breach of contract
• Breach of restrictive covenants
• Commercial evictions
• Collections
• Contract disputes
• Warranty litigation and breach of warranty
• Directors' and officers' liabilities

- Insurance Fraud

Insurance fraud can take many different forms. We have represented clients who have been victims to many different types of insurance frauds, including:

• Clients whose insurance agents have stolen their premium payments
• Clients who have been victims of schemes of insurance policy "twisting," where their agent unnecessarily replaces their existing insurance policies with new policies in order to generate commissions
• Senior-citizens who were sold high commission index annuities by an insurance agent and attorney as part of a purported financial plan and trust for the client
• Clients who were told that their policy premiums were being paid through other investments, despite the fact that the policies were being allowed to lapse
• Clients who were sold policies and insurance products by unlicensed agents
• Clients who were sold unregistered policies that will not be honored

- Financial Fraud

If you suspect that you are the victim of financial or investment fraud, insurance fraud or securities fraud, contact the law firm of Higgins & Burke, P.C. We have helped countless individual and institutional investors recover their funds and damages. Attorney John Burke has worked in securities and investments for over 25 years, both as a stockbroker, insurance agent and as a securities fraud lawyer. Our firm understands 1) investment firm practices, 2) complex investment transactions and 3) securities law. We are skilled at developing winning legal strategies to recover assets.

- Motor Vehicle Accidents

Higgins & Burke, P.C. offers experienced car and truck accident legal representation. We have a combined 40 years of experience and have handled thousands of motor vehicle accident cases, including cases involving 18-wheelers, motorcycles, boats, snowmobiles and ATVs. We know how insurers process claims, dispute coverage and attempt to minimize payment for damages. We are experienced in proving negligence, carelessness and liability in truck and car accident disputes. We always prepared to fight for maximum awards and compensation for uninsured and underinsured motorist claims. We can work to achieve a settlement or verdict that will compensate you for pain and suffering, medical bills, lost income and expenses related to mobility and other issues.

- Premises Liability

If you have been injured in a premises liability accident, we can help. The law firm of Higgins & Burke, P.C. has handled numerous premises liability claims resulting from injuries occurring on commercial, residential and public property. We can effectively fight to recover damages for your injuries. Recent cases we have handled include:

• Our client stepped out of her car into a pothole in a commercial parking lot. We successfully recovered financial compensation for our client from the parking lot owner for negligence in maintaining the lot.
• A leaky ceiling created a slippery floor in the entrance of a store. Our client slipped, fell and broke her ankle. We proved liability and recovered substantial damages for our client's slip-and-fall accident.
• A municipality failed to maintain its easements, resulting in a tree that fell across a road. Our client's vehicle hit the tree and she was injured. We achieved a significant settlement for our client.

- Alternative Dispute Resolution

The law firm of Higgins & Burke, P.C. offers experienced alternative dispute resolution (ADR) legal services. Our firm is at the forefront of this growing area:

• All members of our attorney team offer experienced ADR services, including dispute resolution services, mediation, mini-trials and private judging;
• We have extensive expertise in determining when a form of ADR will best serve the needs of our clients;
• We have substantial experience and training in ADR, and our attorney team includes members of professional organizations devoted to representing investors and arbitrators with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), formerly known as NASD, Inc. (National Association of Securities Dealers).

- Real Estate Law and Litigation

At the law firm of Higgins & Burke, P.C., we can work to resolve your real estate legal issues. We are experienced in handling matters such as purchases, sales, construction, mortgages, foreclosures, zoning, title examinations, quiet title actions, closings and management, as well as a broad range of real estate litigation.

- Appellate Law

The appellate lawyers of Higgins & Burke, P.C. have handled numerous appeals, both for plaintiffs and defendants. We can handle your appeal if you have received an adverse judgment while working with another attorney or law firm, and we can defend a judgment or verdict if a case you have won is being appealed by the opposing side. Recent appellate cases handled by our firm include:

• A case involving the Residential Real Property Disclosure Act, and the failure to make certain disclosures pursuant to that Act. The appeal examined the amount of knowledge required in making such disclosures and whether the seller had "actual knowledge" as required by the Act.
• A personal injury matter involving a motor vehicle accident with a pizza delivery driver, which focused on issues involving agency and independent contractors. The appeal focused on whether the delivery driver was an employee or independent contractor of the pizza business, despite having an independent contractor agreement.
• A breach of contract and warranty claim involving a customer's refusal to pay the remaining balance for home cabinets that he received and installed. The appeal focused on whether a customer can make a warranty claim without fulfilling his obligations under the original contract.
• A case involving a slip and fall on snow and ice in a commercial parking lot that had been allegedly negligently plowed by a snow plow operator and negligently maintained by the property owner.