Our Firm – Clayborne & Wagner LLP

After decades of representing businesses, insurance companies and local governments for a large firm, the lawyers of Clayborne & Wagner LLP started the firm with the mission of providing the same premium quality legal services of a large firm, but with the cost efficiency and responsiveness of a small firm. Clayborne & Wagner LLP’s attorneys have a diverse range of legal experience and coordinate their more than 100 years of combined legal expertise in those areas to provide legal services addressing virtually every legal need of their business, insurance and local governmental clients. Our practice is divided into commercial litigationgeneral liability defense and commercial services.

We Are A Certified Minority-Owned Law Firm

The National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC) provides a nationally-acclaimed minority ownership verification program to ensure that corporate America has a credible source for minority suppliers, consultants and contractors. NMSDC brings together the minority-owned businesses certified by its affiliates such as the Chicago Minority Supplier Development Council (CMSDC) with its network of corporate members. Clayborne & Wagner LLP has been certified by the CMSDC as a minority-owned law firm. Clayborne & Wagner LLP is one of the few such Illinois firms located outside of Chicago. Clayborne & Wagner LLP is proud to be a part of CMSDC and NMSDC.

The National Association of Minority & Women Owned Law Firms (NAMWOLF) is a nonprofit trade association comprised of minority and women-owned law firms and corporate partners throughout the United States. Many corporations and public entities interested in diversifying their outside law firm ranks have focused almost exclusively on the utilization of minority and female attorneys at majority firms. Yet the available data strongly suggests that these efforts have not resulted in greater diversity in the legal profession. It is NAMWOLF’s view that the most effective way for corporations to increase diversity in the legal profession is to increase their retention of minority and women-owned law firms. NAMWOLF’s Law Firm Membership is comprised of certified minority and women-owned law firms that have demonstrated high quality legal knowledge and skills who represent major corporate clients such as Fortune 500 companies. Clayborne & Wagner LLP is a member of NAMWOLF.

We Are Recognized For The High Quality Of Our Work

In creating the class of Emerging Lawyers, Law Bulletin Publishing Company, through its Leading Lawyers division, asked its highly selective group of the state’s top attorneys to recommend the people who most likely will lead the profession in the coming years. The Emerging Lawyers designation is reserved for lawyers who have not surpassed age 40 or who have practiced law for no more than 10 years. Emerging Lawyers account for less than 2 percent of a state’s registered attorneys. The following partners have been selected for inclusion as an Emerging Lawyer:

Corinne E. Mitchell
Personal Injury
Animal Law

The Leading Lawyers Network was started by the Law Bulletin Publishing Company, publishers of the Chicago Law Bulletin, to help lawyers and legal consumers identify experienced, reputable lawyers in 84 different areas of law throughout the state of Illinois. Lawyers selected for the Network are those most often recommended by their peers in statewide surveys who are then further reviewed by an Advisory Panel. Less than 5% of Illinois’ more than 65,000 attorneys are admitted to the Network. Each member of the Network must qualify annually. The following partners have been selected for inclusion in the Leading Lawyers Network in the areas listed:

James F. Clayborne, Jr.
Class Action Litigation
Insurance Defense
Products Liability Litigation
Commercial Litigation
Utility Regulation
Governmental Consulting
Diversity Consulting

Michael L. Wagner
Municipal Law
Environmental Law
Products Liability Litigation
School Law
General Liability Litigation
Real Estate
Commercial Transactions
Commercial Litigation
Land Use Litigation
Utility Regulation

Corinne Mitchell
Personal Injury Litigation
Animal Law
Equine Law

Leading Lawyers AVPREEMINENT NAMWOLF NMSDC CMS Energy Bar Association