Schuyler, Roche & Crisham, P.C. Large enough to to the job right, small enough to listen
 

James L. Komie
Shareholder

A litigator and counselor, James Komie specializes in securities law and in commercial and employment matters. During his nearly 15 years at Schuyler, Roche & Crisham, Jim has built a solid reputation for his careful and sophisticated handling of litigation. He prides himself on being responsive to clients and results oriented when pursuing their goals. Clients and colleagues agree he is easy to work with and say they admire his practical nature and creative approach to problem solving.

Jim is a Chicago native whose family has lived in the area for more than a century. He is a third-generation attorney—his father and cousin are well-known members of the Chicago Bar.

Jim’s practice began at a midsize firm in Washington, D.C. While there, he worked on a variety of matters unique to attorneys practicing law in the nation’s capital, including rulemaking proceedings before federal agencies and litigation challenging actions of the federal government. In 1991 Jim returned to Chicago to join Schuyler, Roche & Crisham as an associate, attracted by our national reputation for securities and commodities litigation.

Areas of Practice
In addition to representing securities firms and brokers, Jim serves a wide variety of business entities, large and small, regarding employment-related issues. His representation includes, but is not limited to:

  • appearing in federal and state court on a wide variety of litigation matters, including at bench and jury trials
  • appearing before arbitration panels of the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD) and the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in cases regarding employment and sales practices
  • meeting with state agencies on employment discrimination matters
  • advising corporations about various employment matters, particularly restrictive covenant agreements and other steps necessary to protect proprietary business information
  • helping to draft employment agreements, including restrictive covenant provisions.

Achievements
For many years, Jim has worked closely with the law department of a major securities brokerage firm, helping to plan and implement its nationwide strategy regarding restrictive covenant and trade secret litigation. In addition to counseling this brokerage firm, he has appeared in court and in arbitration representing its interests in numerous matters involving brokers. Jim also has:

  • successfully defended employers in a variety of employment discrimination cases involving discrimination against age, sex and mental handicap
  • successfully defended a startup company in an arbitration brought by its former vice president of sales, defeating his claims for unpaid compensation and obtaining an order nullifying his stock rights—later successfully opposing the former employee's attempt to vacate the arbitration award in federal court
  • obtained a valuable settlement on a claim filed at the NASD and in New York State court for unpaid bonus money on behalf of a discharged institutional securities professional, notwithstanding the fact that the bonus plan stated the bonus was discretionary
  • obtained summary judgment on behalf of a corporate trustee, defeating the trust beneficiary's attempt to dissolve the trust and gain access to the trust's assets—a victory later affirmed by the Illinois appellate court
  • successfully defended an individual trustee at a bench trial lasting several weeks in the Circuit Court of Cook County against an accounting claim brought by one of the trust's beneficiaries
  • probated the will of a doctor who had disappeared and was presumed dead and successfully defended the subsequent will contest brought by the doctor's brother in the Circuit Court of Cook County
  • obtained a highly satisfactory settlement in a court-appointed case in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois for a prisoner who had been sexually assaulted by his cellmate.

Jim—who has helped maintain our loyal clientele through his substantial experience in serving securities brokerage firms and various other businesses—welcomes your call.

Publications
Co-author, "The Protocol After Five Years." Practising Law Institute's August 2009 coursebook for its annual Securities Arbitration program.

Co-author, "Vacating an Award Based on Arbitrator Misclassification: What Are the Pitfalls and Hurdles?" (Bloomberg Law Reports, Volume 2, Number 6, July 2006).

"Defending Your Business from Ex-Employees: An Employer's Guide" (Schuyler, Roche & Crisham Views, Volume 1, Issue 1, Summer 2006).

Securities Litigation Commentator, Contributing Legal Editor, 2005.