Philip A. Bareck

A managing partner at Katz Friedman, Eisenstein, Johnson Bareck & Bertuca and Adjunct Professor at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law teaching the Workers' Compensation Law, Philip A. Bareck was inducted in the College of Workers Compensation in New Orleans, LA in 2022.  He focuses his practice primarily on assisting people throughout Illinois who have been injured on the job or have developed occupational illnesses to obtain their deserved benefits under their employer's workers' compensation insurance coverage. Based in Chicago, he has appeared on behalf of clients at administrative hearings before the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission and at all state court levels. He has successfully represented workers in proceedings against Caterpillar Inc., Fiat Chrysler Automobiles N.V., the state of Illinois, the city of Chicago, UTC Aerospace Systems, and other large private and public employers. In a 2016 landmark decision, the state's highest court found that his client's self-treatment for a workplace injury that worsened the condition did nonetheless and end up in a loss of coverage under the Illinois Workers' Compensation Act.

Mr. Bareck pursued his undergraduate studies at the University of Illinois and received a Bachelor of Science in political science and government in 1988. He then went on to attend Chicago-Kent College of Law, part of the Illinois Institute of Technology, and was awarded his Juris Doctor with high honors in 1991. Admitted to practice before all Illinois state courts, Mr. Bareck has been with his present firm for his entire career.

Mr. Bareck is a regular speaker on a variety of workers' compensation topics at Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education seminars, and he has written materials for IICLE presentations on wage loss cases, advanced workers' compensation, and permanent and total disability. Admired by his colleagues for his ethics and track record, Mr. Bareck has been inducted into the College of Workers' Compensation (2022),  selected as a Leading Lawyer and included in The Best Lawyers in America.