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Shay T. Allen
Chicago Trial Attorney
DuPage County Trial Attorney

We fight.
We try cases.

Over 1,000 trials in state and federal court. If another attorney is pushing you to take a plea or a lowball offer, get a second opinion before you sign anything.

Free Case Review → Practice Areas
State & Federal Court 1,000+ Trials DuPage & Collar Counties
Illinois courthouse exterior, DuPage County trial lawyer
1,000+
Trials to verdict
DuPage · Will · Kane · DeKalb · Cook
— About the firm

A trial attorney.
Not a settlement mill.

Shay T. Allen has spent his career trying cases in DuPage County, Cook County, and the federal courts of Northern Illinois. He built this firm for clients who have been pressured to accept a deal that doesn't reflect the harm done to them.

We don't run a volume practice. We don't push quick settlements. Every file gets the same standard: thorough investigation, real preparation, and a willingness to take the case to a jury when that's what justice requires.

1,000+
Trials conducted
22+
Years in court
Both
State & Federal
Featured on
WGN Radio
Discussing civil rights litigation in the collar counties
ABC 7 Chicago
Commentary on high-profile DuPage County cases
Naperville Sun
Trial attorney profile: fighting plea-mill culture
Daily Herald
Personal injury verdicts in DuPage circuit court
— Practice areas

Built for cases that have to be tried.

Four practice areas. One standard: we prepare every file as if it's going in front of a jury. Insurance carriers, prosecutors, and opposing counsel know the difference.

01 Personal Injury

Personal Injury

Car crashes, trucking collisions, premises liability, and serious negligence claims. We build the case insurance companies can't ignore.

  • Auto & Trucking
  • Premises Liability
  • Wrongful Death
  • Insurance Disputes
02 Civil Litigation

Civil Litigation

Federal and state court representation when your rights, your business, or your reputation is on the line.

  • Federal & State Court
  • Commercial Disputes
  • Defamation
  • Civil Appeals
03 Civil Rights

Civil Rights

Holding institutions accountable. Constitutional violations, police misconduct, and unlawful treatment by government actors.

  • § 1983 Claims
  • Police Misconduct
  • Excessive Force
  • Government Liability
04 Criminal Defense

Criminal Defense

Trial-ready defense for serious felony and misdemeanor charges in DuPage, Cook, and the collar counties.

  • Felony & Misdemeanor
  • DUI / Traffic
  • Drug Charges
  • Federal Criminal
— Our standard

We don't sell you out for a quick fee.

Some firms make their money by pushing clients into plea deals and low settlements — fast cases, fast fees. That's not what we do. If your case can be resolved fairly, we'll get it resolved. And if it can't, we'll try it.

Aggressive — but not reckless

We push hard because that's what the case requires. We never bluff a jury.

Direct & honest

You'll know where your case stands — and what we actually think your options are.

Trial-ready from day one

Every file is investigated, documented, and prepared for a courtroom — not a conference room.

Inside an Illinois courtroom
The Allen standard
Fed
Federal court
State
State court
Appellate
Appeals
— Why hire Shay Allen

The attorney the other side doesn't want to see on the docket.

1,000+

Trials in the courtroom

Most personal injury and criminal defense attorneys have tried a handful of cases. We try them for a living.

0

Plea-mill clients

We don't take a fee to push you into a deal. If a plea is right, we'll tell you. If it isn't, we'll fight.

22+

Years in the courtroom

A career built on verdicts — in DuPage, Cook, Kane, Will, DeKalb, and the Northern District of Illinois.

— Case results

Verdicts, not settlements.

A representative sample of outcomes. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes — every case turns on its own facts. We share these so you can see the kind of work we do.

$2.4M
Personal Injury
Trucking collision — policy limits recovery
$1.1M
Civil Rights
Excessive force — federal settlement
$850K
Civil Litigation
Commercial fraud verdict
$625K
Personal Injury
Premises liability / negligent security
NOT GUILTY
Criminal Defense
Class X felony — bench trial
DISMISSED
Criminal Defense
Felony drug charges — motion to suppress granted
American flag at an Illinois courthouse — representation of constitutional rights and federal practice
1,000+
Trials
22+
Years
— Attorney bio

Shay T. Allen

Founding Attorney · DuPage County

Shay T. Allen has tried more than 1,000 cases in state and federal court across Northern Illinois. His practice is built around the cases other firms are unwilling to try — the cases where the insurance carrier is dug in, the government is defending, or the prosecutor is offering a deal that doesn't match the facts.

Before founding his own firm, Mr. Allen built his trial record in the DuPage County courthouse and in the federal courts of the Northern District of Illinois. He represents clients in personal injury, civil litigation, civil rights, and criminal defense — with a particular focus on serious felonies, civil rights violations under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, and catastrophic injury claims.

He is licensed in Illinois state court, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, and the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. He is a member of the Illinois State Bar Association and the DuPage County Bar Association.

Bar admissions
Illinois Supreme Court
N.D. Illinois
7th Circuit
Education
J.D.
Illinois law school
Memberships
ISBA
DuPage Co. Bar
NACDL
— Client reviews

Word of mouth is how most of our work comes in.

5.0 average on Google
Verified client reviews

"Shay actually took my case to trial. The other firms just wanted me to take whatever the insurance company offered. We fought and won."

Marcus J.
Naperville, IL

"He was direct, honest, and aggressive in court. I never felt like a file number. He treated my civil rights case like it mattered."

Renée D.
Wheaton, IL

"After two lawyers pushed me to plead out, Mr. Allen was the first one who said let's try the case. Not guilty across the board."

Daniel K.
Aurora, IL
— Service area

DuPage County and the collar counties.

Our focus is the western suburbs — DuPage, Will, Kane, Kendall, and DeKalb counties — with federal practice in the Northern District of Illinois. We are not a Loop firm. We are not a Cook County volume shop. This is where we live and try cases.

DuPage · Will · Kane
Naperville
IL
DuPage · Will · Kane
Wheaton
IL
DuPage · Will · Kane
Downers Grove
IL
DuPage · Will · Kane
Lisle
IL
DuPage · Will · Kane
Lombard
IL
DuPage · Will · Kane
Glen Ellyn
IL
DuPage · Will · Kane
Carol Stream
IL
DuPage · Will · Kane
Woodridge
IL
DuPage · Will · Kane
Aurora
IL
DuPage · Will · Kane
St. Charles
IL
DuPage · Will · Kane
Geneva
IL
DuPage · Will · Kane
Batavia
IL
DuPage · Will · Kane
Elgin
IL
DuPage · Will · Kane
DeKalb
IL
DuPage · Will · Kane
Bolingbrook
IL
5
Counties
15+
Cities
Fed
N.D. Illinois
— Free case review

Protect your case.
Before you sign anything.

If another attorney is pressuring you to settle or plead out, talk to us first. The decisions you make in the first 30 days can be the ones you live with for the rest of the case.

Request a Free Review → See Practice Areas
— Contact

Tell us about your case.

Confidential. No email required on the form. We'll route the message to the right person and respond — usually within one business day.

Office
DuPage County, Illinois
Hours
Mon – Fri · 8:00 AM – 6:00 PM
24/7 intake for criminal & civil rights
Coverage
State & federal court
DuPage · Will · Kane · Kendall · DeKalb · Cook
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