This week Steve is joined by Margaret Battersby Black and Seth Cardeli of Levin & Perconti Attorneys at Law
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Guest Bios:
Margaret Battersby Black
Margaret Battersby Black is an award-winning attorney who has played a key role in a number of nursing home and medical malpractice matters at Levin & Perconti. Her commitment to her practice has achieved noteworthy results for clients in all types of personal injury, nursing home and malpractice matters. Margaret is also committed to the advancement of women in the legal profession and serves as a mentor to law students and younger lawyers. In 2023 she was bestowed the “Carole K. Bellows Women of Influence” award which honors those who are advocates for action addressing women’s issues and promote involvement by women in the legal community at all levels.
Margaret grew up in Beverly Hills, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit, in a large Irish Catholic family full of lawyers and judges. She watched her father, a Plaintiff’s lawyer, spend his career helping the underdogs and the good guys, and this made a lasting impression. From a young age, Margaret embraced leadership roles in school, sports, and within her own family as the oldest child. Later, her ambition and vision helped earn her an undergraduate degree from the Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, build a successful career as a financial analyst at JP Morgan Chase in Chicago, and go on to earn her law degree from Chicago-Kent Law School. Family has remained central to her life, and she lives in Elmhurst with her husband, Jeff, and children, Evelyn and William. Margaret joined Levin & Perconti as a law clerk in 2006, was promoted to associate attorney in 2008 and was named Partner in 2014.
With years of experience and an exceptional grasp of the intricate nuances inherent in medical malpractice litigation, Margaret has emerged as an undeniable force in the field. Throughout her career, she has passionately advocated for families who have been affected by the devastating consequences of medical negligence during childbirth. Margaret’s track record of successful outcomes speaks for itself, as she has consistently secured substantial compensation for her clients, including a recent $20 million birth injury verdict.
However, Margaret’s commitment to her client’s case did not stop there. She successfully advocated to the appellate court for the addition of legal fees and costs, amounting to approximately one-third of the verdict. As a result, the final case award reached an extraordinary $6 million. With each case she takes on, Margaret prioritizes her clients above all else. She believes that under the Nursing Home Care Act, vulnerable older adults deserve access to justice, and separating fees and awards is necessary to ensure they receive the full compensation they deserve.
Margaret is well regarded by her clients and peers alike, and was honored by the Law Bulletin Publishing Company as one of the 2011 “40 Illinois Attorneys Under Forty to Watch.” This award is given to 40 outstanding attorneys throughout the state for their achievements on behalf of their clients, their communities and the legal profession. In 2015 Margaret was honored by Chicago-Kent Law School as Outstanding Young Alumna of the year. This award recognizes alumni who have made significant contributions to the law school and the legal community.
Margaret was a founding member and is the inaugural chair of the Illinois Trial Lawyers Women’s Caucus for the term that runs through 2018. She is active in the Women’s Bar Association of Illinois, the American Constitution Society, the American Association for Justice, the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association and the Illinois State Bar Association, and previously served as the ACS Chicago Chapter’s Law Firm Outreach Coordinator. She regularly judges law school moot court competitions and hosts students in externships.
Seth Cardeli
With more than a decade of experience, Seth L. Cardeli is a skilled trial attorney representing families across the country who have suffered as a result of medical negligence and malpractice, including children who have been injured during labor and delivery.
Seth is well-versed in the many complex legal and medical issues surrounding birth injury claims. He regularly conducts educational seminars for other attorneys on important aspects of litigation, such as taking depositions and dealing with obstacles to the discovery process. Seth recently gave a lecture on Basic Fetal Heart Rate Patterns, Nomenclature, and Etiology, in which he taught lawyers how to interpret electronic fetal heart rate tracings used to gain valuable information about babies during labor. Seth has also authored multiple articles for legal journals focused on trial work, writing on topics such as how negligence can occur during the resuscitation of a newborn baby.
After law school, Seth began practicing at a well-known personal injury firm in New York City, where he handled a range of personal injury matters, representing victims of defective products, construction accidents, and motor vehicle accidents, as well as medical malpractice. After three years practicing in the New York area, Seth relocated to Maryland to join a law firm that enabled him to represent victims of medical malpractice all over the country, having been admitted pro hac vice in numerous jurisdictions including, Arizona, Missouri, Minnesota, Ohio, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, and Wisconsin.
This wealth of knowledge informs Seth’s advocacy and has helped him secure millions of dollars for families all over the country whose loved ones have been seriously or fatally injured in preventable tragedies. Noted as an emerging leader in this area of practice, Seth was recently recognized by The Best Lawyers in America – Medical Malpractice and has been honored multiple times as a Super Lawyers Rising Star.
Living in Maryland with his family, Seth spends his free time playing baseball with his son and having dance parties with his daughter.
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