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Lauren Waxler

Lauren concentrates her practice on commercial litigation with an emphasis on the transportation industry. She especially enjoys diving into the technical aspects of clients’ businesses and relevant laws. Clients have commented that, among attorneys they work with, she is among the most prepared. She knew litigation inside and out before moving on to a position with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), where she managed enforcement cases and defended the agency in employment suits.

The First District recently held that the district court had personal jurisdiction over a Texas-based company because of that company’s national advertising scheme and small repeat customer base in Illinois. In Schaefer v. Synergy Flight Center, et al., No. 1-18-1779, Plaintiffs alleged that Defendant RAM Aircraft, L.P., negligently overhauled, repaired, and tested an aircraft’s left engine and other parts, and that the negligent repair caused the aircraft to crash in Illinois, killing its seven passengers. RAM was a Texas-based limited partnership that predominately made its income by overhauling aircraft engines. RAM performed its work in Texas and had no office or property in Illinois. RAM did, however, advertise in a nationally distributed magazine and Illinois customers historically accounted for 1-2.5% of its revenues.  The particular engine in question was overhauled by RAM in Texas, who shipped it to a company in Indiana, who then shipped it to an Illinois flight center for installation.