Michael I. Leonard

Michael Leonard has a well-earned reputation as one of Chicago's best criminal defense and trial lawyers. Michael is known for obtaining not guilty jury verdicts for his clients in State and Federal criminal prosecutions. He and his Firm, Leonard Trial Lawyers, regularly represent clients facing serious felony charges in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, Winnebago, LaSalle, and McLean counties. They have obtained successful outcomes for their clients in virtually every type of State criminal charge, ranging from murder and attempted murder, to UUW and gun crimes, to drug crimes, to car jacking, assault and battery and sex crimes, to "White Collar" offenses. With regard to Federal criminal cases, Michael is believed to be the only presently practicing attorney to have attained 7 or more not guilty jury verdicts in Federal criminal prosecutions brought by the United States Attorneys' Office in Chicago. Michael and the Firm have successfully handled virtually every type of Federal criminal charge, including health care fraud, Medicare fraud, bank fraud, tax fraud, mortgage fraud, securities fraud, Ponzi schemes, embezzlement, mail fraud, wire fraud, conspiracies of all kinds, all types of federal drug charges and gun charges, bank robbery, car jacking, sex crimes, pornography, theft of government services/property, assault upon federal officers, illegal lobbying/serving as an agent of a foreign government. Michael has appeared in State and Federal courts throughout the country, including in Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, Kansas, South Dakota, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, California, Virginia, Oregon, and Texas. Michael is known for his aggressive cross-examinations, his ability to relate to juries, and his captivating and compelling closing arguments. He has been called upon to provide the defense in numerous high-profile and media cases, and his cases have been the subject of extensive coverage locally and nationally.