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With a broad-based legal background, Jonathan “Jon” Vegosen concentrates in labor and employment matters, estate and tax planning, trademark and service mark matters, testimonial endorsement and sponsorship agreements, and media law matters.

Jon firmly believes in the importance of helping people solve their problems and earning their trust. He is widely known as the consummate, caring, and responsive lawyer that clients value. Jon has a unique skill set and experience in analyzing and addressing challenging legal and business issues. His excellent judgment and broad perspective have been formed through (1) service as legal counsel and a trusted advisor to numerous companies, entrepreneurs, executives, professionals, and wealthy families; (2) writing and speaking; (3) long-term membership in a peer leadership group; and (4) extensive board service, including as Chairman of the Board, President, and CEO of a national nonprofit organization. Jon is a strong advocate for clients, and he also has a knack for finding common ground and achieving creative, win-win solutions in difficult situations, negotiations, litigation, and the boardroom.

Education

J.D., cum laude, Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law, Chicago, Illinois
B.A., Phi Beta Kappa, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois

Recognitions

AV Rating, Martindale-Hubbell, for several years

Named a Leading Lawyer in Chicago by Leading Lawyers℠ (2023-2024)

Named Illinois Super Lawyer by Thomson Reuters (2016 – 2024)

Chairman of the Board of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association, 2015 – Present

Chairman of the Board, President, and CEO of the United States Tennis Association and Chairman of the US Open, 2011-2012

Director for Life of JCYS, a Chicago social service agency

Additional board service: the Grand Slam Board, the International Tennis Federation, the International Tennis Hall of Fame, and the USTA Foundation

  • Awards:
    • 2023 Recipient of the International Tennis Federation Award for Service to the Game
    • 2022 Vistage Lifetime Achievement Award for the Chicago Region
    • Samuel Hardy Award from the International Tennis Hall of Fame for long and outstanding service to the sport of tennis and devotion to the game that has inspired others
    • Inaugural recipient of the USTA Foundation’s Outstanding Service Award
    • JCYS “Man of the Year” for supporting services to children and leadership development
    • Ralph A. Westcott USTA Family of the Year 2004
    • Induction into the following athletic halls of fame: Northwestern University Sports; ITA; USTA/Midwest Section; and Chicago Tennis

Member of the Northwestern University varsity tennis team. Captain Junior and Senior years.  Selected to the All-Big Ten Conference Tennis Team in 1973

Ranked #1 in the USTA/Midwest Men’s 45 Singles in 1994

Memberships

Member, Vistage International since 2002

Member of Media Law Resource Center Employment Committee

Member, Chicago Bar Association Judicial Evaluation Committee for five years

Member, American Bar Association

Member, Chicago Bar Association

State Bar Licenses

Illinois

Court Admissions

U.S. District Ct., N.D. of Illinois

Labor and Employment

  • Counseling and proactive training on matters, such as:
    • Preventing and investigating sexual and other harassment;
    • Diversity, inclusion, and belonging;
    • Effective interviewing;
    • Hiring and firing;
    • Being an effective manager: coordination and documentation
    • Compliance with various laws such as Title VII, ADA, FMLA, and ADEA;
    • Preventing workplace violence; and
    • Fraud and theft investigations.
  • Preparation of employment-related documents, such as:
    • Employment applications;
    • Employment agreements, offer letter agreements, and agreements with confidentiality, non-solicitation, non-competition, invention assignment, and work for hire clauses;
    • Phantom stock agreements;
    • Stay-on bonus agreements;
    • Separation agreements;
    • Employee handbooks;
    • Managers’ manuals; and
    • Consulting / independent contractor agreements.
  • Defending against charges of employment discrimination and unfair labor practices (including preparation of position statements, mediations, proceedings, and negotiation of settlements).

Estate and Tax Planning

  • Advice concerning and preparation of wills, living trusts, testamentary trusts, irrevocable life insurance trusts, spousal lifetime access trusts (SLATs), charitable trusts, gift trusts, minors’ trusts, health care and property powers of attorney, last wishes memoranda, and succession planning memoranda.
  • Negotiation and preparation of premarital and post-marital agreements.

Trademarks and Service Marks

  • Advice regarding appropriate selection and use of trademarks and service marks.
  • Preparation of trademark licensing and assignment agreements.
  • Preparation of cease and desist letters and responses to demands to cease and desist.
  • Trademark infringement litigation.
  • Training executives, managers, and sales forces regarding proper trademark and service mark usage.

Testimonial Endorsement and Sponsorship Agreements

  • Preparation and review of testimonial endorsement and sponsorship agreements for corporations, athletes, and celebrities.

Media Law

  • Prepublication review.
  • Protection of reporters’ news sources.
  • Successful motion to keep trial open to the public and news media in the Dowaliby case.

Presentations

  • Preventing and Investigating Sexual and Other Harassment in a #MeToo and COVID-19 World
  • The Importance of Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging
  • Helping You Be A Better Manager: The Importance of Coordination and Documentation
  • To Vaccinate or Not to Vaccinate: That Is the Question
  • The Art of Effective Interviewing: The Quest for the One
  • The Frightening Problem of Workplace Violence
  • The Ten Common Mistakes Executives Make: A Legal Perspective
  • Maximizing Your Effectiveness as a Board Member
  • Reinventing Your Business: A Case Study from an Unexpected Arena
  • The Ten Commandments of Trademark and Service Mark Selection and Usage
  • Leaving a Lasting Legacy: Heaven Can Wait, But You Can’t Plan from Heaven
  • The ABC’s of Prenuptial Agreements

Other Experience

  • Law Clerk to the Honorable Edwin A. Robson, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, 1976-1978
  • Service on several boards of directors, 1977 – present
  • Training boards how to operate strategically and maximize their effectiveness – 2015 – present