HeplerBroom is proud to announce that Jim DuChateau has been selected for membership in the Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel (FDCC). This premier, nearly 90-year-old international defense counsel bar association is unique in that its members are in-house corporate counsel, insurance industry executives, and outside counsel. FDCC membership is capped at 1500 worldwide.

FDCC members are recognized leaders in the legal community who have achieved professional distinction. Those criteria, however, are only the baseline for consideration. After being nominated by two current members, prospective members undergo a rigorous vetting process that seeks information from colleagues, opponents, and the judiciary about the nominee’s professional abilities and personal character. One of FDCC’s highest priorities is that its members be trustworthy people.

DuChateau, a partner in the firm’s Chicago office, concentrates his practice exclusively on insurance coverage, with an emphasis on first-party property for both commercial and personal lines. For the last 15 years, he has counseled carriers throughout the country on high exposure claims and coverage issues. He also devotes a large portion of his practice to litigating both established and emerging insurance coverage issues in state and federal courts throughout the Midwest and Mountain West. He represents insurers in both declaratory matters for non-coverage as well as the defense of contractual and extracontractual liability matters. Clients regularly turn to him to conduct examinations under oath of their policyholders, generate coverage opinions, and provide legal counsel on both good faith claims handling and the resolution of complex coverage issues.

DuChateau is on the Board of Directors of the Illinois Association of Defense Counsel (IDC). He’s been named an Illinois Super Lawyer by Thomson Reuters. He was previously honored as the Legal Assistance Foundation’s Pro Bono Volunteer of the Year and as IDC’s Volunteer of the Year. DuChateau earned his J.D. from the University of Illinois Chicago School of Law. He also holds a B.S. in History and a B.S. in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin. He is licensed to practice in Illinois and is admitted to the bars of the Supreme Court of Illinois; the U.S. District Courts for the District of Colorado, Eastern District of Wisconsin, Southern and Northern Districts of Indiana, Eastern District of Missouri, and Northern, Central, and Southern Districts of Illinois; and the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois.