Charles E. Hervas

Charles E. Hervas graduated from the DePaul University College of Law in 1983.  While in law school, Chuck served on the Moot Court Board and represented DePaul on two national moot court teams.  After graduation, Chuck has a long history in local government. His government service is highlighted by his appointment and election as an Alderman on the City Council in Des Plaines, Illinois from 1986 through 1989 and election as a school board member for Itasca School District 10 from 1997 through 2005.  He also serves as counsel to a variety of governmental bodies, including service as Village Attorney for the Village of Itasca since 1990.  Chuck also serves as legal counsel to Northeast Multi-Regional Training, one of the largest police training organizations in the United States.

Chuck is an experienced trial lawyer who concentrates his practice in the defense of government officials and governmental entities in civil rights, employment and personal injury cases. He has handled a multitude of complex litigation matters in both the federal and state courts.  He has argued many important cases in the Appellate Courts and he has assisted in the preparation and briefing of two arguments before the United States Supreme Court. He also has substantial experience in the area of fire and police discipline and he has represented numerous fire and police commissions in complex hearings and the subsequent administrative review process. On the rare occasion in which Chuck has accepted a case on the plaintiff side, he successfully argued a First Amendment retaliation case to a jury which awarded his client 12.5 million dollars. Chuck also is experienced in administrative process and has handled a multitude of cases involving the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Illinois Department of Human Rights.

Michael D. Bersani

Michael D. Bersani is a 1988 graduate of The John Marshall Law School.  Following law school, Mike served two years as an appellate court judicial clerk.  Upon entering private practice in 1990, he has concentrated in local governmental representation and litigation. Mike is admitted to practice law in Illinois and Florida, as well as the U.S. Supreme Court and Illinois federal appellate and district courts.

Mike's legal experience runs the gamut of local governmental issues, including village and park district attorney positions, employment law, and zoning litigation.  Mike also practices regularly before local police and fire commissions in disciplinary cases. A large part of Mike's practice is concentrated in the area of federal civil rights defense litigation where Mike has defended scores of police officers against allegations of excessive use of force and false arrest.

In his career, Mike has tried dozens of federal and state jury trials.  In one highly publicized case, Mike and his firm represented the former chief and deputy chief of police for the Town of Cicero in a successful suit for wrongful termination resulting in a $1.7 million jury verdict for his clients.  In another large case, Mike and his firm also represented a police lieutenant in a retaliation suit resulting in a $12.5 million verdict in his client's favor. 

Mike is a regular contributor to Municipal Lawyer magazine for which he has written about police misconduct litigation and First Amendment issues. Mike also authored a chapter on enacting municipal ordinances for Illinois Jurisprudence.  He has been a guest speaker at the Annual Conference on Section 1983 Civil Rights Litigation sponsored by the Chicago-Kent College of Law.  Mike regularly provides training on legal topics and recently completed a month-long training program for the City of Aurora Police Department on the issue of racial profiling.

On a personal note, Mike is a resident of the Village of Bartlett, Illinois. He is married and a proud father of four children. Mike served several terms as a Bartlett Village Trustee, and he is active in local little league and high school hockey organizations.

Zrinka Rukavina

Zrinka Rukavina graduated from DePaul University College of Law in 2005. While attending law school, Zrinka served as an extern for the Honorable Ronald A. Guzman of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. Zrinka also acted as the Editor-in-Chief of the DePaul-LCA Journal of Art and Entertainment Law, which published her 2003 article suggesting constitutional guidelines for “non-traditional” journalists. Before joining HC&B, Zrinka spent two years with the City of Chicago Department of Law Municipal Prosecutions Division working closely with Chicago Police in the Drug and Gang House Enforcement Section.

Yordana Sawyer

Yordana Sawyer received her J.D. degree from Chicago-Kent College of Law in May 2006 and her bachelor degree from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. While at Chicago-Kent, she worked as an extern with Cook County Circuit Court Judge James Henry and was an extern at the Office of the Cook County Public Guardian. She was the recipient of various awards, including the Chicago-Kent Merit Scholarship and Kent Justice Foundation Fellowship.

Before joining Hervas, Condon & Bersani, P.C., Yordana was a Research Staff Attorney at the Illinois Supreme Court in Springfield. She has been an active member of the Illinois Government Bar Association, serving as their Corresponding Secretary and Newsletter Editor while in Springfield.

Michael W. Condon

Michael W. Condon is a 1986 graduate of the John Marshall Law School, where he was the Executive Lead Articles Editor of the Law Review.  He was published in the John Marshall Law Review and also participated in the school's Moot Court program.  During law school, Michael served as a judicial clerk to the Honorable Donald P. O'Connell, the former Chief Judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County.  During his college days at Marquette University, Michael worked a summer internship in the White House during President Carter's Administration in the Office of Political Affairs. 

For the past twenty years, Michael has represented public officials and various units of local government across the State of Illinois at both the trial and appellate levels.  He has served as lead counsel for a myriad of public and private clients in discrimination suits brought under Title VII, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Fair Housing Act.  Michael has successfully tried numerous jury cases in federal court on behalf of public officials and their employers.  In one well publicized case, Michael and his partners obtained a $1.7 million jury verdict against the Town of Cicero in a whistleblower suit brought on behalf of the town's former Police Chief and Deputy Chief.  Over the years, Michael also has had the privilege of arguing numerous cases before the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals which have resulted in published opinions.

In addition to his federal trial practice, Michael also has substantial experience in litigating administrative matters involving units of local government.  He has successfully represented police chiefs and other officers in disciplinary proceedings before local fire and police commissions. 

Michael frequently lectures on the topics of civil rights and tort liability for both public and private employers.  He has been retained by many local villages and police departments to provide training to their employees on such topics as use of force, racial profiling, police pursuits and sexual harassment in the workplace.  Michael has also conducted numerous training seminars sponsored by different police organizations, including the Northeast Multi-Regional Training, Inc., the Illinois Tactical Officers Association, the Illinois Association of Police Planners, and the Illinois Association of Police Chiefs.

Michael lives in the City of Elmhurst with his wonderful wife and five children. He is a sports enthusiast who enjoys running and participating in his children's many activities.

Jason W. Rose

Jason W. Rose is a 1991 graduate of the DePaul University College of Law, where he was an associate editor of the Law Review. Prior to law school, Jason graduated with honors from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, where he majored in finance.

After graduation, Jason worked for three years as litigation counsel for a Chicago-based insurance company. During that time, Jason successfully defended hundreds of clients in tort cases and tried numerous cases to verdict.  He also arbitrated over 150 cases.  Jason is currently a certified arbitrator for Cook County’s arbitration program.

Before joining HC&B in 1996, Jason worked as litigation counsel at the Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission (ARDC), where he investigated and prosecuted allegations of misconduct against lawyers.  Since leaving the ARDC, Jason has successfully represented lawyers facing ARDC investigations.

For the last nine years, Jason has handled a wide variety of cases at HC&B but has concentrated in representing police officers in false arrest, malicious prosecution and excessive force cases.  Jason has also represented private and municipal clients in tort, employment, discrimination and adult use ordinance cases.  Jason has successfully tried numerous cases on both the state and federal level and has also prevailed in appellate cases before the Seventh Circuit and Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.  In July 2001, Jason was made a partner at HC&B.  

Matthew J. Hafeli

Matthew J. Hafeli graduated from Northern Illinois University College of Law in 2010.  While attending law school, Matthew served as an extern for the Honorable Frederick J. Kapala of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois and was an assistant editor of the Law Review, having an article published in the Kane County Bar Briefs.  In addition to spending a summer as a law clerk at HC&B, he also worked for the in-house counsel of System Parking Corporation in Chicago.  During his college days at Liberty University, Matthew worked a summer internship in Washington D.C. for United States Congressman Don Manzullo.