Attorney

Job Description

Job Description

Attorney: Driver's License Reinstatement & Secretary of State Hearings

Give someone their life back. Then do it again, 97 times out of 100.

At Driver Defense Team, you don't chase clients, build a book of business, or grind through intake. We feed you the cases. A dedicated Case Manager helps run them and keeps them moving.

We're hiring one attorney to lead our Secretary of State practice: driver's license reinstatement hearings for people who lost their license due to a DUI, have changed their life around, and need it back.

Understand who your clients are. They made a serious mistake. Then they did the hard part. They got sober, they did the treatment, they rebuilt. And they still can't legally drive to the job that's holding everything together. Some have been waiting years. Some have already been denied twice by lawyers who didn't know what they were doing. When you win, they drive their kids to school the next week. There is not much law where the before and after is that clear.

We win 97% of these hearings. That isn't luck, and it isn't because we skip the hard files. It's a system, built over years, for how these cases get investigated, documented, and prepared. We will teach it to you completely. Then it becomes yours to protect.

You don't need to have done this work before. We will teach you.

We've made the Inc. 5000 List of America's Fastest-Growing Companies for four years running, and clients have left us 3,000+ five-star reviews. We're growing fast, and we're hiring to match.

$100,000 - $120,000 yearly

The Role

You will run a full caseload of formal and informal hearings before the Illinois Secretary of State, representing drivers seeking a permit or full reinstatement after a DUI revocation.

What the work actually looks like:

• Build the file. Alcohol and drug evaluations, risk classification, treatment and continuing care documentation, abstinence letters, BAIID and SR-22 compliance. These cases are won on paper before anyone speaks.

• Prepare the client. Petitioner testimony decides the outcome. You'll run mock hearings until your client can tell their story clearly, honestly, and without contradicting a single document in the file.

• Present the hearing. You'll appear before Secretary of State hearing officers and opposite Secretary of State staff attorneys. You and your client will present your case on the record.

• Handle the aftermath. Read every written decision. Diagnose every denial. Rebuild and re-petition. The clients who need us most are usually on their second or third try.

• Carry roughly 100 active matters.

And when your calendar allows, you'll be in criminal court.

You'll cover court calls for our defense team across Cook, DuPage, Lake, Will, and Kane. Traffic, DUI, and traffic misdemeanors. It's the fastest way in Illinois to build real courtroom reps without carrying a criminal defense caseload of your own.

You'll Lead, and You Won't Be on an Island

• You'll be trained on our actual playbook, not a policy manual. Firm leadership and our senior attorneys will walk you through how we work these files up, what hearing officers are really looking for, where the denials come from, and every hard-won detail behind the 97%. You will learn how to review and research driving abstracts, manage informal and formal hearings, and handle out-of-state hearings.

• You run the Secretary of State team. You have a dedicated Case Manager who advances cases, preps files, and handles the day-to-day client communication. You set the standard and direct the work.

• Attorneys across the firm huddle on strategy and cover each other when calendars collide.

• Training multiple times a month, with senior attorneys on call to back you up.

• No rainmaking. No intake. No origination pressure. Ever.

What We're Looking For

• Licensed Illinois attorney. New admits are genuinely welcome. So are attorneys looking to move out of a practice area that isn't working for them.

• You want this kind of client. Your clients will have made real mistakes and then done real work to come back from them. If you can't sit across from that person without judging them, this is the wrong seat.

• Obsessive preparation. These cases are won in the file, not in the room. If you cut corners on documents, you'll lose, and your client waits another year.

• Someone who can lead a small team from day one and grow with the practice area.

• Empathy with a spine. You need to be someone your client trusts and someone who will hold them to the standard the hearing demands.

• A genuine team player. Collaboration is non-negotiable here.

• Nice to have, not required: experience with Secretary of State hearings, DUI defense, administrative law, or substance use treatment. Bilingual in Spanish.

Why This Is a Rare Seat

• You inherit a proven playbook. Most attorneys spend a decade figuring out what actually works. You'll be handed it in your first month, and then you'll be the one responsible for keeping the win rate where it is.

• The work matters, and you'll know it does. This is some of the most rewarding work we do. You'll watch people get their lives back, and you'll be the reason.

• You own a practice area, not a corner of one. Your clients, your hearing officers, your win rate, your team.

• You learn something very few lawyers in Illinois know how to do. It's a genuine niche with a real, permanent market.

• You get reps without a criminal caseload. In front of a hearing officer every week. Cover criminal court calls when you want them. Go home when the docket is done.

• A schedule you can plan around. Hearings are scheduled in advance. This is not a rolling emergency call.

• Covered. Health insurance, 401(k), PTO, plus we pay your malpractice, bar dues, and CLE.

• Stable and growing. Inc. 5000 four years running, 3,000+ five-star reviews, and a real path into senior and lead roles as we grow.

• More than one practice area. We also run a busy criminal defense practice and a thriving personal injury practice, so there's a real opportunity to broaden your career as the firm scales.

Compensation

$80,000 to $100,000 base depending on experience, plus performance bonus. Newer attorneys start at the bottom of that range with a clear, written path up as you take on the full caseload and hit your marks. We tell you the number up front, and we tell you exactly how the bonus works, because we intend to keep you for the long haul.

Driver Defense Team is a Chicago law firm that helps people who were ticketed, arrested, or injured while driving. We have offices in Chicago and Park Ridge, IL. Our team consists of 10 lawyers and about 30 non-attorney staff.

Our firm values teamwork and providing an amazing client experience. That's our secret! We have about 3,000 five-star reviews online, and we have been named to the Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing companies in America for the past 4 years in a row!