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Brendan Kevenides

Attorney

Brendan Kevenides has been a personal injury attorney for 23 years. Immediately following law school he became an associate attorney with Patrick J. Kenneally, Ltd., a well-regarded trial law firm representing only injured people.  During his many years with the Kenneally firm Brendan was in charge of litigating numerous complex personal injury cases of all kinds.  A substantial portion of his practice involved representing victims of medical negligence.  But he also represented people injured in construction accidents, motor vehicle collisions, boating accidents, by dangerous products, dangerous premises, malicious animals and, of course, bicycle crashes.

Mr. Kevenides is an everyday Chicago bicyclist whose focus is representing others that ride.  Whether on his rack outfitted Surly Long Haul Trucker, his self-built fixie or his carbon racer, the 44 year old resident of Logan Square spends a lot of time in the saddle.  Turning the focus of his practice to bicycle law happened serendipitously. Several years ago he was asked to represent the family of an 80 year old man who was killed while riding his bike. For years the octogenarian chose to get around his small downstate Illinois town on his bike.  On a sunny afternoon, while riding his bright orange bike, he was killed by a minivan driver who claimed she did not see him at an intersection crossing. Thanks to Brendan’s advocacy the case resolved successfully, but not easily. The defense hired an accident reconstruction expert to cook up a theory that suggested the cyclist was at fault. However, diligent investigative work uncovered a witness who would testify against the minivan driver. The defense was forced to settle the case, the family being spared a difficult and emotional trial.

That case motivated Brendan, a life long cyclist himself, to represent other bicyclists often treated unfairly on both the road and in the courtroom. He started writing about bicycling and the law and created The Chicago Bicycle Advocate, a blog that has garnered a large readership in Chicago and around the United States.  At the start of 2012 he left the law firm where he practiced for 15 years and started his own firm, Law Office Of Brendan H. Kevenides, dedicated to the practice of bicycle law. In 2013 he teamed up with “Lawyer Jim” Freeman to form the Freeman Kevenides Law Firm. Strongly connected to Chicago’s vibrant cycling community, Brendan consistently offers time and resources to local bicycle clubs and organizations. He is a certified bicycle instructor by the League of American Bicyclists (LCI #3732) and a member of the Chicago Cycling Club’s steering committee.  In addition to writing for his own bicycle law blog, he is author of the bike law column Cycling Legalese which appears bimonthly on the popular Urban Velo website.  He has worked the security detail for Chicago’s huge edition of the World Naked Bike Ride (clothed) and was a sponsor of the 2012 Cycle Messenger World Championships held in Chicago.  He is a regular rider during Critical Mass, The Chicago Ride of Silence and other popular cycling events.

Mr. Kevenides is a magna cum laude graduate of the University of Pittsburgh and received his law degree from DePaul University.  
In law school he was awarded for demonstrated excellence in trial advocacy. He has been licensed to practice in Illinois since 1996.  He serves as an arbitrator in the Cook County Mandatory Arbitration Program.

Jim Freeman

Attorney

James (“Jim”) Freeman graduated from the University of Illinois in 1996 with a Bachelor of Science in Liberal Arts and Sciences. In 2000 he received his Juris Doctor from the DePaul University College of Law in Chicago, Illinois.

Mr. Freeman has over a decade of experience working for and against insurance companies.  He has experience working for both plaintiffs and defendants, so he knows how the insurance industry works, giving him a tactical advantage over both the insurance companies and their defense attorneys.

In 2006 Mr. Freeman founded The Law Offices of James M. Freeman, P.C. Early on it was clear that the firm’s focus would be advocating on behalf of the vulnerable users.  Because of his prior involvement with the bicycling community, Jim naturally started to take bike and pedestrian cases.  Since then he has handled a wide variety of injury cases ranging from broken bones to wrongful death.

An icon in the cycling community, Mr. Freeman is known by many simply as “Lawyer Jim.” For many years he has volunteered and worked with local pedestrian, bicycle and mass transit advocacy organizations educating people about their rights and responsibilities with regard to their modes of travel. He gives regular “legal cycling” presentations to bike clubs in an effort to educate cyclists about their rights, and responsibilities, safety issues and how to handle collisions, assaults and accidents.

Mr. Freeman has been an avid bicyclist, runner and martial artist for many years.  He commutes to work by bicycle year ’round.  He is also an experienced road and track racer.  When taking time off from his practice, Jim enjoys bike touring, hiking and mixed martial arts.

Mr. Freeman also has many years of experience as a bicycle mechanic. He has been known to comment about his love for his years working in the bike shop, “No one is a bike mechanic for the money. They enjoy it.” True to his passion, Jim still enjoys “turning a wrench.” He has taught wheel building classes, and has volunteered as a mechanics instructor for youth programs.

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Anne Alt

Paralegal

Anne Alt joined the Law Offices of James Freeman, now the Freeman Kevenides Law Firm, in June of 2012 as a paralegal. Her previous law firm experience includes insurance defense, corporate, real estate and other practice areas.

Anne has been a cyclist for most of her life. Years of bike commuting, club riding, and transportation riding all over the city have given her a unique perspective on the pleasures and pitfalls of riding a bicycle. She understands first hand the challenges of recovering from injury following a crash.

Anne is a longtime ride leader for Chicago Cycling Club, and is the group’s current president. A South Side resident, she also leads rides for the Friends of the Major Taylor Trail. She also volunteers for Active Transportation Alliance as part of the volunteer manager team, working on event planning, route design and other logistical details for  Four Star Bike & Chow.

She is a volunteer for Openlands’s TreeKeepers program, organizing some workdays and volunteering at others.

Anne received a Bachelor of Arts in Russian Language and Literature from Northwestern University in 1984. She received a certificate in Fine Art Photography from the New Hampshire Institute of Art in 1993. She completed a certificate program in Nonprofit Management at University of Illinois, Chicago in 2011.

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Bob Matter

Paralegal

Mr. Matter joined the Law Offices of James M. Freeman, now the Freeman Kevenides Law Firm, in August of 2008. He is an indispensable asset to the firm. Bob is chiefly an investigator and paralegal, but he brings a world of experience advocating on behalf of vulnerable road users to the firm. Bob has been an avid bicycle commuter for years.  Among other things, Bob was the 2003 chairperson for Chicago Bike Winter, and  in 2005 he founded the Chicagoland Folding Bike Society.

Bob received his Bachelor of Science in Industrial Supervision in 1982 from Purdue University.  In 1987 he received a Post Baccalaureate certificate in Computer Programming from Purdue.  He is also a graduate of the Political Economy program from Henry George School of Social Science.

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