Michael D. Sanders
Partner
Michael D. Sanders is a partner with Purcell & Wardrope, Chtd. His practice currently is concentrated on insurance coverage matters, including commercial general liability policies, professional liability policies, automobile policies, and excess policies, defense of construction defect cases, defense of professional liability claims, and general insurance defense matters. He also supervises the firm’s appellate matters.
Representative maters handled by Mr. Sanders include:
- Hurlbert v. Brewer, 386 Ill.App.3d 1096 (4th Dist. 2008) (holding that an insurance carrier has standing to intervene in a lawsuit to challenge agreement by plaintiff and defendant to increase judgment that was to be collected solely from the insurance carrier);
- New Hampshire Ins. Co. v. Hanover Ins. Co., 296 Ill.App.3d 701 (1st Dist. 1998) (establishes priority of coverage by holding that an excess insurer cannot be forced to respond to claim prior to exhaustion of primary insurer);
- QBE Ins. Corp. v. Gemini Constr. Corp., et al., 1-07-2854 (1st Dist. 2009) (holding that letters from general contractor to subcontractor qualify as an agreement by subcontractor to procure insurance for the general contractor) (unpublished);
- Kerrie Khan v. Jeffrey Bressman, et al., 01-08-3174 (1st Dist. 2009) (affirming dismissal of a lawsuit against an attorney claiming defamation and tortious interference with prospective economic advantage for alleged statements made to news media) (unpublished);
- Country Mutual Ins. Co. v. Gregg Smith, et. al., 07 MR 456 (McHenry County 2008) (obtained summary judgment in favor of an insurance carrier that insurer had no obligation to defend or indemnify insured for contamination of neighbor’s wells by runoff from insured’s piles of road salt);
- Lantana Ins. Co. v. Manning, et al., 06 CH 08032 (Cook County 2006) (obtained summary judgment in favor of insurance carrier that insurer had no obligation to defend or indemnify insured for catastrophic injury to insured’s student);
- Representation of insurance carrier covering manufacturer that had been sued by hundreds of plaintiffs alleging bodily injury from exposure of dioxin when burning insured’s product over dozens of policy periods;
- Representation of insurance carrier covering manufacturer of sirens that had been sued by hundreds of plaintiffs alleging hearing loss over dozens of policy periods;
- Representation of insurance carrier covering manufacturer of polybutylene plumbing systems that had been sued by thousands of homeowners because system allegedly leaked over dozens of policy periods.
Practice Areas
- Insurance Coverage
- Professional Liability
- Construction
- Premises Liability
- Appellate
Education
- IIT/Chicago Kent College of Law, 1995
- Northeast Missouri State University, 1991
Court Admissions
- Eastern District of Wisconsin, 2011
- Illinois Supreme Court, 1995
- United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, 1995
- United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, trial bar, 2005
- United States District Court for the Central District of Illinois, 2005
- United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, 2002
News
Michael Sanders and James Downer obtained dismissal of their client, a property manager, of a lawsuit alleging that their client failed to protect a minor girl from the criminal acts of a third party.
Michael Sanders obtained another appellate victory in Hurlbert v. Brewer, 386 Ill.App.3d 1096 (4th Dist. 2008), when the Illinois Appellate Court held that an insurance carrier had standing to intervene in a lawsuit in order to prevent a plaintiff and insured from agreeing to increase the judgment against the insured that was o be collected solely from the insurance carrier. On remand, Mr. Sanders convinced the trial court to vacate the order increasing the judgment against the insured. Also, in a related matter, Mr. Sanders obtained summary judgment on behalf of the insurance carrier to void an insurance policy issued to its insured on the grounds of material misrepresentation.
