Nicholas A. Sandowski

Nicholas A. Sandowski concentrates his practice on business litigation and premises liability defense. He also handles matters in various other practice areas, including general liability, professional liability, construction litigation, employment law, and transportation.

Mr. Sandowski represents various types of property owners, including one of the world’s largest full-service restaurants companies, from claims of negligence related to slip and falls, third-party attacks, and other premises related claims. With the business litigation team, Mr. Sandowski has handled cases involving contract disputes, trade secret disputes, IP infringement claims, RICO actions, and fraud claims. In the transportation realm, he has a wealth of experience defending freight brokers clients, including fortune 500 companies, from negligent hiring and vicarious liability actions.

Mr. Sandowski recently served as trial counsel in a jury trial in Cook County, where he successfully defended his home healthcare manager clients against claims of negligence, failure to warn, and negligent infliction of emotional distress. After deliberating for less than 50 minutes, the jury rendered a not guilty verdict in favor of his clients.  Mr. Sandowski has also recently tried two complex employment matters, both of which resulted to favorable outcomes for his clients.

In another recent case, Mr. Sandowski secured summary judgment in Cook County Circuit Court for a restaurant client in a premises liability matter where the plaintiff alleged the restaurant was liable for injuries he sustained after being battered by a third-party on the premises. The plaintiff claimed the restaurant had a duty to protect him from the criminal act. Mr. Sandowski argued that no such duty existed because the attack was unforeseeable. There had been no prior similar incidents, and the restaurant had not facilitated the crime by permitting the congregation of violent individuals on the premises. The court agreed, granting summary judgment, and dismissing Mr. Sandowski’s restaurant client with prejudice.

Mr. Sandowski began at Johnson & Bell as a law clerk, a role he held for more than two years before he was admitted to the bar in November 2021. During his time as a clerk, he was exposed to many of the firm’s diverse service areas, which he credits for his current broad and varied practice.

Mr. Sandowski is active in several bar associations. He was recently reappointed to the Illinois State Bar Association’s Young Lawyer Division Council for the second straight year and was recently appointed to the ISBA Assembly, the supreme policy making body of the Association. He is also an active member of the Justinian Society of Lawyers and graduated cum laude from UIC John Marshall Law School, where he was a Dean’s Scholarship Recipient. He received his undergraduate degree from Indiana University in 2017.