Robert D. Hawk, Jr. has spent his career cultivating a diverse civil litigation practice, representing corporate clients, insurers, excess carriers, third-party administrators, and individuals in a variety of matters. He focuses his practice on transportation and workers’ compensation matters, as well as handling complex commercial and coverage disputes, premises liability, catastrophic loss, bad faith litigation, wrongful death, employment issues, and any form of personal injury defense. He has tried more than 20 cases to verdict in a variety of matters including catastrophic injury, negligence, and professional liability.
Before joining Kopka Pinkus Dolin, Bob managed the Worker’s Compensation Litigation Department at a prominent Indiana defense firm, where he successfully defended numerous employers and workers’ compensation insurance carriers. In 2005, he completed the Indiana Civil Mediation training and is available to serve as a mediator in litigated cases across the state.
In multiple cases, Bob has successfully represented developmentally disabled individuals in civil matters, as well as in the defense of criminal charges. Bob had the further privilege of successfully representing the interests of two developmentally disabled, non-verbal, young men in a molestation case involving a residential institution.
Bob was selected by his peers for inclusion in Best Lawyers™ in Chicago 2018 in the field of Personal Injury Defense. Currently residing in Northwest Indiana, he and his family play an active role in the special education and autism communities of Lake County.
- Indiana State Bar Association
- Bob obtained a defense verdict in Federal Court on behalf of a national trucking client. In three lanes of traffic on I-80/I-94, the plaintiff blamed a trucker for merging into his lane, the impact causing the plaintiff to crash into a barrier, his vehicle then overturning. As a result of the accident, the plaintiff underwent several surgeries to repair a severe shoulder injury. The defense determined that it was the action of the plaintiff, attempting to speed up and pull his vehicle in front of the tractor-trailer, which caused the collision. After a four-day trial, a verdict was found in favor of the defense.
- In a particularly unique workers’ compensation claim, Bob achieved a fully favorable defense decision against a claim involving a purely psychological injury. Ultimately, while on appeal, the matter was resolved for a significantly reduced figure.