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Phillip J. Zisook
zisook@dlec.com

Attorney Phillip Zisook, Chicago Lawyer for Commercial Litigation, Defamation,Libel, Slander, First Amendment and Privacy LawProfessional Bio
A Chicago defamation, libel, slander, privacy, speech and First Amendment attorney for more than 30 years, Phillip Zisook joined Deutsch, Levy & Engel in 1992. Mr. Zisook’s practice also includes trials and appeals involving commercial, employment, copyright and trademark litigation and cases involving contracts, fraud, false advertising, restrictive employment contracts, covenants not to compete and business torts.

In media law, First Amendment and constitutional cases, Mr. Zisook was selected as an Illinois Super Lawyer in 2005 and 2006.

Mr. Zisook has represented television networks in Chicago copyright and trademark infringement cases involving the piracy of their programming on the internet and has secured temporary, preliminary and permanent injunctions in these cases.

In representing a television programmer in a breach of contract case against EchoStar Satellite Company, Mr. Zisook and fellow DLE partners Brian Saucier and Paul Levy won a jury award of more than $2.1 million in damages and attorneys fees. In the same case, we successfully defended EchoStar’s $22 million defamation counterclaim.

In a recent Chicago defamation jury trial, Mr. Zisook successfully defended a client charged with slander for allegedly making statements accusing an IRS official of extorting kickbacks from Chicago Korean business people.

In another Chicago defamation case, Mr. Zisook and partners Paul Levy and Brian Saucier represented Chicago Bear Keith Van Horne against radio personality Mancow Muller for libel, resulting in a settlement of $1.6 million based upon on-air defamatory statements Muller broadcast throughout Chicago.

Mr. Zisook has also represented media clients in a First Amendment challenge to a Chicago Ordinance banning alcohol and tobacco billboards, represented media entities in libel and slander cases and has represented physicians, professionals, businesses and labor organizations in Chicago libel, slander and privacy cases.

In addition, Mr. Zisook has served as a Special Assistant Attorney General for the State of Illinois in environmental issues. He was an Adjunct Professor of Appellate Advocacy at the John Marshall Law School in Chicago.. Mr. Zisook has also published several articles regarding defamation and First Amendment Law.

Education
IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law: J.D., with Honors, 1978

  • Member of the Law Review
  • Teaching assistant in the Legal Writing Program

University of Illinois: B.A., Political Science, 1975

Admissions

  • Illinois
  • United States District Court, N.D. Illinois
  • United States Court of Appeals, 11th Circuit
  • United States Court of Appeals, 7th Circuit
  • United States Supreme Court

Associations

  • American Bar Association
  • ABA - Section on Litigation
  • ABA - Communications Law Forum
  • Appellate Lawyers Association
  • Chicago Bar Association
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related practice areas
Litigation
  Defamation, Privacy & First Amendment
  Trademark and Copyright
  Employment Law
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