also known as Tenants Rights Group LLC
Melvin L. Sims III, Esq. is a highly experienced Chicago landlord-tenant attorney and real estate lawyer with nearly 20 years of experience representing commercial tenants, residential tenants, and landlords in eviction and lease-related disputes throughout Northern Illinois.
Mr. Sims focuses on the prosecution and defense of commercial evictions, residential eviction defense, lease disputes, and real estate litigation. He regularly represents business owners facing commercial eviction and lease default claims, tenants asserting their rights under the Chicago Residential Landlord and Tenant Ordinance (RLTO), and landlords seeking to recover possession of their property, enforce lease agreements, and collect unpaid rent.
As the Founder and Managing Partner of Tenants Rights Group, LLC, Attorney Sims leads a law firm dedicated to landlord-tenant law, eviction defense, and real estate disputes in Cook County, DuPage County, Lake County, Will County, Kane County, Kendall County, McHenry County, DeKalb County, and Winnebago County. The firm is known for handling complex eviction cases, commercial lease disputes, wrongful eviction claims, lockout violations, and landlord-tenant litigation with a strategic, results-driven approach.
Tenants Rights Group represents clients on all sides of the landlord-tenant relationship, including commercial tenants facing eviction or lease default, residential tenants dealing with eviction, lockouts, or unsafe living conditions, and landlords pursuing eviction actions, unpaid rent, and lease enforcement. The firm has extensive experience achieving favorable outcomes, including negotiating court-approved payment plans, removing eviction records where legally permissible, structuring lease terminations to avoid future liability, and prosecuting and defending counterclaims in high-stakes landlord-tenant disputes.
Attorney Sims also advises landlords on efficient, legally compliant strategies to regain possession of their properties while minimizing delay and exposure under Illinois law and local ordinances, including the Chicago RLTO and Cook County Residential Tenant Landlord Ordinance.
To date, the firm has helped clients eliminate over $1 million in claimed back rent and has recovered hundreds of thousands of dollars through tenant rights claims, commercial lease litigation, and landlord-tenant counterclaims.
If you are searching for a Chicago eviction lawyer, landlord attorney, tenant rights lawyer, commercial eviction defense attorney, or real estate litigation attorney in Northern Illinois, Tenants Rights Group, LLC provides experienced, strategic representation tailored to your situation.
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Chat withState: Illinois
Acquired: 2005
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203 N. LaSalle St., Suite 2100, Chicago, IL, 60601
38 Client Reviews
Showing 1 - 5 of 5 reviews | General Knowledge
Posted by Patricia | February 26, 2026 | Hired Attorney | Contracts & Agreements
Exceptional Representation in a Complex Lease Matter
Mr. Sims represented me in a complex lease termination matter and truly exceeded my expectations. He was responsive, detail-oriented, and proactive in making sure I was fully protected. Beyond his legal skill, he took the time to explain my options in a way that was easy to understand, which brou...
Posted by KAYLA | May 09, 2024 | Hired Attorney | Real Estate
Knowledgeable, professional, and personable!
I was referred to Melvin by a truly great friend. Within hours of hearing only a paragraph about our situation, Melvin called me, already having done his research on our property, and offering to take my case. There is no question Melvin knows the law inside and out. He left me confident through the ...
Posted by anonymous | March 01, 2022 | Hired Attorney | Landlord & Tenant
SuperSims Rescues! Assuring, reliable, kept me covered!
Whew! I felt like I was in a nightmare… my landlords are 2 seniors (70-80 yrs old in age) with a extremely heavy speech accents, and they have absolutely NO patience with today’s technologies. (Texting, Zelle, etc…) I call it (old people blues). Because of my parents are the same way. Anyway, out of ...
Posted by Daniel Byrne | November 27, 2021 | Business
Professional Lawyer!!
We have several restaurants in the South and West Suburbs. When Covid hit he helped us to renegotiate 2 of our leases with success. Knows the business.
Thank you for this great review! I truly appreciate it and can't wait to eat at one of your restaurants again in the future!
Posted by Peter Burton | November 18, 2021 | Landlord & Tenant
Awesome Lawyer!!
I've had 3 evictions for different reasons in the last 10 years. I used three different lawyers each time. Sims I used last. Wish I had used him for the first two. None of the other lawyers had his computer system that I could put on my phone, none of the other lawyers ever talked to me the way Sims ...
Very glad to be of help and glad that you enjoyed our case management system! Thank you so much for this review!
"I know Melvin to be an aggressive, top-tier attorney who has a reputation for working tirelessly to obtain the most favorable outcomes for his clients. He has my highest endorsement."
"I endorse this lawyer. He is one of the nicest people I've ever met and is so knowledgeable on landlord/tenant matters. He fights hard for his clients and is great to work with. I would definitely recommend Mr. Sims to anyone with landlord/tenant and real estate issues."
"I endorse this lawyer. Melvin is amongst the few eviction lawyers in the Daley Center that knows what he's doing. We battle often in eviction cases. He represents his clients well."
Military law lawyer
Landlord or tenant lawyer
Landlord or tenant lawyer
2009
Community Service Award, Cook County Bar Association
2012 - Present
Founder & Managing Partner, Tenants Rights Group LLC
Member
Member
Member
Member
2009 - 2010
National Bar AssociationDirector
2009 - 2010
Cook County Bar AssociationBoard Member
2009 - 2009
National Bar AssociationBoard of Governors
2007 - 2008
Cook County Bar AssociationTreasurer
2006 - 2007
Cook County Bar Association, Young Lawyers DivisionChair
2002
JD - Juris Doctor
1997
BA - Bachelor of Arts
N/A
InterStudy
2014
Landlord Tenant Law
English
Spanish