Eric L. Samore

Partner
Eric Samore, Amundsen Davis LLC Photo

Overview

Eric’s mission is to prevent the class action procedure from abuse and misuse. The class action procedure was never intended to alter or enlarge substantive legal rights. He has defended more than 200 class action claims in more than 25 different states. He is a founding partner of Amundsen Davis and chair of the Class Action Service Group. Eric defends putative class claims alleging a range of legal theories, including Illinois Biometric information Act (BIPA), data breach, Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and employment.

Eric secured a significant victory in an opinion authored by Judge Posner in the Seventh Circuit, raising the bar that plaintiffs’ counsel must clear in order to satisfy the adequacy requirement for class certification (Creative Montessori Learning Centers v. Ashford Gear, 662 F.3d 913 (7th Cir. 2011)). He is entrusted by global companies to defend them from their class action exposure, which on occasion exceeds $1 billion. He is currently representing more than 25 Universities in the NCAA football MDL. His experience includes representing a broad range of public companies, closely held entities, nonprofits, financial institutions, board members, fiduciaries, and officers and directors in complex commercial litigation.

Despite his commitment to the law, Eric’s greatest passion and pride springs from his wife Betsy and their four sons: Bill, a patent lawyer with a degree in electrical engineering; Wes, a neuropathologist who completed his residency at Massachusetts General Hospital; Ted, a coding engineer for Snapchat; and Ricky, an engineer specializing in artificial intelligence.

View Case List here.

Experience

Membership & Involvement

  • Member: Illinois State Bar; Defense Research Institute (DRI), DRI Class Action SLG Committee, DRI Directors & Officers Subcommittee; ACA International
  • Previous: Member, University of Wisconsin Law Review; Clerk, Honorable Allen Hartman of the Illinois Appellate Court, First District

Court Admissions: United States Supreme Court; U.S. Court of Appeals Second Circuit; U.S. Court of Appeals Third Circuit; U.S. Court of Appeals Sixth Circuit; U.S. Court of Appeals Seventh Circuit; U.S. Court of Appeals Eighth Circuit; U.S. Court of Appeals Ninth Circuit; U.S. Court of Appeals Eleventh Circuit; U.S. Court of Appeals, D.C. Circuit; U.S. District Court, Northern District of Indiana; U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois; U.S. District Court, Central District of Illinois; U.S. District Court, Southern District of Illinois; U.S. District Court, Western District of Michigan; U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Michigan; U.S District Court, Eastern District of Missouri; U.S. District Court, Western District of Wisconsin; and, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Wisconsin.

Pro Hac Vice Admissions: Arizona, Maricopa County; U.S. District Court, Northern District of Alabama; U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Arkansas; U.S. District Court, Central District of California; U.S. District Court, District of Colorado; U.S. District Court, District of Connecticut; U.S. District Court, Delaware; U.S. District Court, Southern and Middle Districts of Florida; Florida: Lee County, Lake County; Florida Fifth District Court of Appeals; Cherokee County, Georgia; U.S. District Court, Northern District of Indiana; Indiana: Marion County, Lake County; U.S. District Court, District of Massachusetts; Missouri, St. Louis County; U.S District Court, Western District of North Carolina; U.S. District Court, District of Nebraska; U.S. District Court, District of New Mexico; U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York; U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania; U.S District Court, Southern and Northern Districts of Ohio;  U.S. District Court, Northern District West Virginia; Wisconsin: Milwaukee County, Portage County; Washington DC; and US District Court, Eastern District of Washington.

Honors

  • Martindale-Hubbell AV® Preeminent™ rated
  • Selected to The Best Lawyers in America® in Commercial Litigation: 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025
  • Selected to The Best Lawyers in America® in Mass Tort/Class Action Litigation: 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023
  • Selected to the Illinois Super Lawyers list: 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024
  • Selected by the Leading Lawyers Network as a "Leading Lawyer" in class action/mass tort defense law

Resources & Insights

In the Media

Alerts

Speaking Engagements

  • Class Action Defense
    Chicago, IL; Client Presentation,
  • Class Action Forecast
    Oakbrook, IL; Better Business Bureau of Chicago and Northern Illinois,
  • Top Ten Strategies for Reducing Defense Fees & Defeating Class Actions
    Bethesda, MD; Client Presentation,

Published Works

Blog Posts

Firm News

Education

University of Wisconsin Law School, J.D., Order of the Coif

University of Wisconsin, B.S., high honors

Admissions

  • Illinois
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