About Dennis
Dennis VanDerGinst earned his J.D. from DePaul College of Law in 1989. He began working in legal settings while still a student, serving as a law clerk in 1987 and as a student lawyer with the DePaul Legal Clinic in 1988. Those early roles gave him hands-on courtroom and client experience that shaped his approach to civil litigation.
After law school, VanDerGinst joined Elliot Samuels, Ltd. as an associate in 1989 and returned there as a law clerk earlier in his career. He moved to Wylie, Mulherin, Rehfeldt and Varchetto in 1990 and rose to senior associate at Braud/Warner, Ltd. by 1992. He took on teaching responsibilities in 1993 as an adjunct professor at Black Hawk College, splitting time between the classroom and the courtroom.
By 1995 he became a partner at Braud/Westensee, Ltd. The next decade saw rapid transitions in leadership. He served as managing partner of Braud, Westenssee and VanDerGinst in 1999 and later as managing partner of VanDerGinst, Roche and Westensee in 2001. In 2004 he became President and CEO of VanDerGinst Law, a firm that traces its practice to those earlier partnerships.
VanDerGinst is admitted to practice in Illinois, Iowa and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. He is a certified arbitrator in the State of Illinois Fourteenth Judicial Circuit. Those credentials reflect both trial work and alternate dispute resolution handled through his firm.
His professional affiliations are extensive and long-standing. He has served on the National Board of Directors of the National Crime Victim Bar Association and held roles with the Pound Civil Justice Institute. He has been active in state trial lawyer groups in both Illinois and Iowa, including service as an Iowa State Delegate to the American Association for Justice and a member of the Iowa Association for Justice Board of Governors. He has also maintained memberships in organizations focused on brain injury law at both the Illinois and national levels since 1996.
Colleagues describe VanDerGinst as a lawyer who built practice infrastructure steadily over decades. He has combined teaching, court work and case management into a practice centered on personal injury matters. He runs VanDerGinst Law, P.C., where he continues to handle litigation, arbitration and client counseling. His current practice focuses on injury law matters handled through VanDerGinst Law, P.C.
