Carla Colaianni, a trial attorney at Smith LaCien LLP, has 15 years of practicing law as a plaintiff’s medical malpractice lawyer in Chicago, as well as a personal injury combined with a probate and appellate practice. As a Chicago injury lawyer, she has represented numerous plaintiffs at the appellate level in both the appellate courts of Illinois and the Illinois Supreme Court.
The Chicago accident lawyers at Smith LaCien have secured more than $2.5 billion in settlements and verdicts, and have more than 100 settlements and verdicts that exceed $1 million.
Carla began her professional career as a vocational training instructor at Refugee One, working closely with refugees and asylum seekers to help them gain employment. From that experience, she recognized the need for people to receive legal protection and left the organization to pursue a law degree.
After graduating from law school, she began working full-time for a Chicago personal injury law firm where she clerked as a law student. In 2014, she returned to her native New York to spend more time with her family. She started her own law firm, using her civil litigation experience to continue representing people who had suffered catastrophic injuries.
In June 2019, Carla joined a plaintiffs personal injury law firm in Yonkers, NY where she specialized in representing families whose children had experienced catastrophic birth injuries or who were childhood victims of sexual abuse. She returned to Chicago in early 2022 to join Smith LaCien. She was recently named co-chair of the firm’s Medical Negligence practice area.
For a free consultation, call Carla Colaianni or others on the Smith LaCien legal team at (312) 509-8900 or send an email to: info@smithlacien.com. Smith LaCien LLP is located at 70 W. Madison, Suite 2250, Chicago, IL 60602.
Education
DePaul University College of Law, Chicago, IL
Juris Doctor, May 2007, Graduated Cum Laude
- Member of DePaul Law Review
- Participated in DePaul’s Asylum & Immigration Clinic
- CALI Award for Excellence in Trial Advocacy and Torts
S.U.N.Y. New Paltz, New Paltz, NY
- Bachelor of Arts, May 1995, Graduated Magna Cum Laude
Professional Associations
- Illinois State Bar Association
- Illinois Trial Lawyers Association
- American Association of Justice
- Chicago Bar Association
- Women’s Bar Association of Illinois
Awards
- 2024 Best Lawyers in America
- Law Bulletin Publishing Company 2024 “Women in Law Awards.”
Bar Admissions
- Illinois, 2007
- New York, 2019