Corboy & Demetrio's Blog

The Masters of Trial Law: Corboy & Demetrio’s Video Podcast

Corboy & Demetrio launched its first-ever video podcast, The Masters of Trial Law, in February 2025, streaming it on the firm’s YouTube channel, amassing tens of thousands of views in its first year and becoming a must-see for consumers who want to educate themselves. Also, we recommend Episode 5 for anyone who has experienced or is currently experiencing a devastating loss.

Hosted by Corboy & Demetrio Managing Partner Ken Lumb and Partner Bill Gibbs, The Masters of Trial Law explores topics of safety, negligence, and liability with insight from the firm’s veteran trial lawyers. The show also spotlights the firm’s experience in catastrophic injury and wrongful death cases, with a particular emphasis on aviation accidents, mass disasters, and complex negligence lawsuits. The firm has obtained more than $5 billion in jury verdicts and settlements for its clients.

Here’s a breakdown of the Episodes:

Episode One: Masters of Trial Law: Ep. 1 - Aviation Disasters, Lawsuits, and Crash of American Airlines #5342

Host: Bill Gibbs

Panelists: Thomas Demetrio, Ken Lumb, and Francis Patrick Murphy

Summary: Episode One focuses on aviation catastrophes and litigation, including a discussion of the crash of American Airlines Flight 5342 collision with a Black Hawk helicopter. The firm’s aviation team explores all aspects of plane crash litigation, from pilot and airline negligence to manufacturer and government liability.  

The episode is hosted by Partner Bill Gibbs and joined by three panelists: prominent aviation attorney and Corboy & Demetrio Co-founder, Thomas A. Demetrio, who has represented families affected by nearly every major aviation disaster over the past 50 years. Thomas has secured several record-setting settlements, including the two largest compensatory awards for an airline passenger’s death at $25.2 million. 

The second panelist: Military and Aviation Attorney Ken Lumb, Managing Partner of Corboy & Demetrio.  Ken is a U.S. Veteran who obtained the rank of Major in the US Army’s Judge Advocate General’s Corps. His military career spanned 20 years of active and reserve duty. He has a unique combination of both aviation and military law experience. 

The third panelist is Partner Francis Patrick Murphy, a longtime aviation attorney who has represented plane crash victims and their families, including several in the crash of United Airlines #232. 

Together, the panel provides insight into the complexities of aviation disaster cases highlights Corboy & Demetrio’s extraordinary success in aviation law. The firm has served as lead counsel in a number of major U.S. and international airline crash cases.

Episode 2: Medical Malpractice

Hosts: Bill Gibbs and Ken Lumb

Panelists: Mike Ditore and Chad Kasdin

Summary: The second episode of the Masters of Trial Law podcast delivers an illuminating examination of medical malpractice, premised on the alarming fact that medical errors are the third leading cause of death in the United States. 

Hosted by Corboy & Demetrio Managing Partner Ken Lumb and Partner Bill Gibbs, the episode features an expert panel that includes Partners Mike Ditore and Chad Kasdin, who are key members of the firm’s four-partner medical malpractice team led by Thomas Demetrio.

The discussion highlights the landmark 2022 medical negligence case in which Thomas Demetrio and Mike Ditore obtained a record-setting $42.4 million verdict, which grew to $50 million with interest for the firm’s clients due to an unsuccessful appeal by the defendant. Chad Kasdin, who spent 24 years defending physicians before joining the firm, offers a rare dual perspective and explains that malpractice often arises when doctors fail to consider the most catastrophic potential outcome first—what he describes as the critical “worst-first” principle.

The attorneys outline the essential components of medical malpractice, which occurs when a healthcare provider deviates from the accepted standard of care by acting carelessly or failing to take necessary action. They explore common forms of negligence, including surgical mistakes, birth injuries, failure to diagnose, and institutional breakdowns. 

The episode offers practical advice for consumers, including urging them to insist that healthcare providers “chart” care recommendations, thoroughly research providers, and seek outside opinions. 

The panel also emphasized the importance of choosing attorneys with extensive trial and appellate experience, noting that malpractice cases frequently go before juries and later end up on appeal, as demonstrated when Corboy & Demetrio lawyers tried and later successfully defended the appeal of its recent $42.2 million verdict.  

Episode 3:  Finding Fault in Truck and Train Crashes

Hosts: Bill Gibbs and Ken Lumb

Panelists: Philip Corboy, Jr. and Conrad C. Nowak

Summary:

Episode 3 of The Masters of Trial Law podcast, co-hosted by Corboy & Demetrio Managing Partner Ken Lumb and Partner Bill Gibbs, examines the complex issue of liability in truck and train crashes. Titled Finding Fault in Truck and Train Crashes, the episode features Partners Philip Corboy, Jr. and Conrad Nowak, who join the hosts to discuss the causes of major transportation disasters, types of negligence, and the firm’s extensive experience representing victims and their families.

The panel explores the leading causes of train derailments, including human error, track failures, mechanical issues, speeding, and severe weather. Philip “Flip” Corboy discusses one of his successful settlements, the Rockford, Illinois, train derailment, where 18 ethanol-filled train cars derailed and exploded, killing a mother attempting to flee her vehicle, along with her husband and daughter, both of whom survived. Philip Corboy represented the woman’s estate, her husband, and her daughter. 

During the podcast, Philip explains the concept of “washout,” rainwater eroding the ballast beneath tracks, which played a central role in the disaster. 

Corboy & Demetrio secured a $22 million settlement for the woman’s estate and millions more for the husband and daughter.

Bill Gibbs discusses another catastrophic train crash case: the 2005 Metra commuter train derailment in Chicago. He and firm Co-founder Thomas Demetrio represented a passenger who suffered a severe brain injury, obtaining a record-setting $29.6 million Cook Co. jury verdict.

The episode also delves into truck crash litigation, including common causes of crashes such as driver fatigue, distraction, inadequate insurance, and the negligence of brokers and shippers. Conrad Nowak emphasizes the need for victims to hire legal counsel quickly because trucking companies and insurers begin building their cases immediately. The panel underscores the importance of early investigation and evidence preservation.

Finally, the hosts discuss how transportation lawsuits drive safety reforms, including the adoption of positive train control to prevent speed-related derailments

Episode 4: A Fireside Chat with Thomas A. Demetrio 

Host: Bill Gibbs
Guest: Thomas A. Demetrio

Summary:

Episode 4 of the Masters of Trial Law video podcast features an in-depth conversation with Corboy & Demetrio Co-founder Thomas A. Demetrio, who reflects on his five decades in the legal profession. Despite earning more than $5 billion in verdicts and settlements for clients, Tom shares that the work that has meant the most to him was his pro bono representation of victims of the September 11th terrorist attacks. That experience, he says, gave him profound pride in both his country and his profession.

Interviewed by Partner Bill Gibbs, a lawyer Tom has mentored for years, the episode highlights the firm’s strong culture of mentorship and cements Tom’s status as one of the country’s most prolific trial lawyers. 

Gibbs describes Tom’s guidance as “invaluable,” crediting it with shaping his legal career and reinforcing the firm’s longstanding commitment to excellence. Tom also announces that Gibbs and Managing Partner Ken Lumb were recently added as shareholders as the firm continues to grow.

Tom expresses optimism about the future of the legal profession, emphasizing the ongoing need to protect constitutional rights and the importance of well-trained attorneys prepared to meet new challenges. 

During the episode, Bill Gibbs reads a long list of Tom’s career achievements, including securing Illinois’s first eight-figure compensatory verdict, being ranked the state’s top lawyer for six consecutive years by Super Lawyers, and maintaining an unparalleled record of never having a jury verdict overturned on appeal.

Tom recounts notable cases from his career, including litigation stemming from the 1979 DC-10 crash at O’Hare, the 1973 plane crash that killed musician Jim Croce, and the NFL concussion litigation, where he objected to the $1 billion settlement for inadequately addressing future CTE-related injuries and deaths.

He also reflects on his own mentors, including Philip Corboy and Johnnie Cochran, sharing humorous and heartfelt stories that shaped his career and the firm’s legacy.

Episode 5: Journeys of Parents Navigating Life after the Death of a Child

Hosts: Bill Gibbs and Ken Lumb

Guests: Kelly and Miguel Cervantes, Anna Berlingerio, and Malgorzata Palka

Episode 5 of Corboy & Demetrio’s Masters of Trial Law Video Podcast, "Courageous Journeys of Parents Navigating Life after the Death of a Child," features the stories of three families who experienced losing a child and their inspiring journeys through the grief process. 

This special 90-minute episode of the law firm’s video podcast is hosted by Corboy & Demetrio Managing Partner Ken Lumb and Partner William T. Gibbs and features best-selling author Kelly Cervantes, who has published her new memoir, The Luckiest, and her husband, Actor Miguel Cervantes, best known for playing Alexander Hamilton in Hamilton in Chicago and on Broadway, as well as two Corboy & Demetrio clients, Malgorzata Palka, the author of, She Simply Disappeared: Unsent Letters to My Daughter, the second book she wrote after the death of her daughter, Justyna Palka, and Anna Berlingerio, the founder and owner of Luca Garden, a floral shop that she started while grieving the death of her son, Luca, who loved nature. The episode was recorded at Corboy & Demetrio’s podcast at their law firm at 33 N. Dearborn Street, Chicago, IL, on Nov. 10, 2025. 

The podcast conversations explore how these brave parents rediscovered their purpose as they evolved through their losses. Attorney Ken Lumb interviews his client, Anna Berlingerio, and Attorney Bill Gibbs interviews his client, Malgorzata Palka. In both cases, lawsuits were successfully settled, but the attorneys’ relationships with their clients are steadfast. 

Ken and Bill wanted to share the families’ stories in the hope that it may help parents who experience the loss of a child, in part, by exploring the larger topic of how loss reshapes identity, relationships, and priorities, and how the firm's clients become their heroes. The podcast conversations also highlight how creative outlets and projects, including writing books, hosting memorial events, and starting businesses, can help parents honor their children’s memory and rediscover meaning in life. 

Our first guest, Kelly Cervantes, is an author and member of the board of CURE Epilepsy, an organization dedicated to finding cures for epilepsy. Kelly and Miguel Cervantes’ daughter, Adelaide, had epilepsy and passed away just before her fourth birthday. Kelly became a best-selling author with the publication of her first book, Normal Broken, and published her second book and memoir, The Luckiest, in November 2025, which explores grief, resilience, and personal growth and transformation. For more information about Kelly’s books, visit her blog, Inchstones: https://www.kellycervantes.com/blog. For more info about CURE Epilepsy, visit: www.cureepilepsy.org 

Our client, Malgorzata Palka, is the author of two books: She Simply Disappeared, her first book, and later, a second book, She Simply Disappeared: Unsent Letters to My Daughter, which was also released in English as an audiobook in October 2025, and is being adapted into a play in April 2026. The Justyna Palka Memorial Scholarship is an award for a junior in the Visual Communication Design (VCD) department at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC). It was established by the VCD department and Ogilvy & Mather in memory of SAIC alumna Justyna Palka and includes a monetary award for tuition and a paid summer internship at Ogilvy & Mather. For book and other information, visit www.justynapalkadesigns.com or email hello@justynapalkadesgings.com 

Our client, Anna Berlingerio, is the founder and owner of Luca Garden in Glenview, Illinois. For the one-year anniversary of Luca Berlingerio’s death, on what would have been his 5th birthday, Anna, with the support of Corboy & Demetrio, created Luca’s Green Walk, an annual memorial event that combines a nature walk with charity fundraising, benefiting organizations including Chicago Lighthouse for the Blind. Anna and her family have hosted Luca’s Green Walks annually since his death.