Joan Marie Fenstermaker

Joan walks on water! Words fail to describe what a pleasure it was to work with Joan on an extremely distressing tenant/landlord case. Not only is Joan very attentive and responsive, but she’s also assertive and eager to keep the case moving forward. Once you speak with her, you’ll know that she is... someone who knows the law inside and out. She thoroughly explained our options to us, took our very challenging case and successfully fought for our rights. Joan took personal interest in our case and situation and helped us with all aspects of our case. If you need an excellent landlord/tenant/RLTO, or real estate attorney, don’t waste your time by looking any further

Attorney Joan Fenstermaker and her associate attorney, Nicholas Bailey, did a phenomenal job on a difficult situation for me, involving a rented Chicago house which did not meet the city’s heating code, due to, as we found out, zero insulation, and complicated by a landlord who was, to put it mildly,... reluctant and slow to remedy the situation (not least because he wasn’t the one paying the heating and cooling bills, so what’s the rush?) , and who tried via various angles to later install the needed insulation without consideration for the tenant’s continued habitation inconvenience. Despite owning multiple income properties, the landlord was clueless on the RLTO rules and regs (including even the most basic ones around security deposit protocol), and summarily presumed that all rights ran to him as landlord and all obligations ran to me as tenant. Joan brought action against him on multiple violation charges, including on a subsequent retaliatory eviction effort on his part, and we eventually received a solid, fair settlement and averted a courtroom trial. For the uninitiated, note that the process is long and winding and, in this case, took over two years from start to finish – pack your patience, and be able to document your claims via photos and records; you are entering into an active partnership with the attorney on your case. Joan was excellent throughout the process – she defended my rights when I didn’t even fully comprehend “the game” that the other side was playing to get a release from the landlord’s RLTO violations and ongoing obligations, and she brought long years of industry-specific legal experience, negotiating savvy, and a calm, professional demeanor to the conflict. Nicholas was excellent as her second-in-command, and great at keeping me informed and involved. I’m confident that I could not have had a better outcome. This should be your go-to team for tenants’ rights.

Joan Fenstermaker was a huge help in my landlord dispute case. She assisted in getting me back my security deposit in a quick and timely manner, and was very communicative (which was perfect for me, considering how anxious I was over needing a lawyer for the first time in my life). She was regularly ...available by phone, text, or email for any issues or questions I had, and the whole process ran smoothly with her at the helm. I am eternally grateful to her for her assistance!