Attorneys & Staff

Mr. Whitted makes every effort to respond to e-mails. However, he cannot download or review attachments immediately. For this to occur, we ask that you send all e-mails with attachments to rmoreno@wct-law.com

Mr. Whitted is a partner in the law firm of Whitted, Cleary + Takiff, LLC. Prior to joining WCT, he was a partner at the Chicago litigation firm of Foran & Schultz for six years and, from 1980 to 1995, majority partner in his own firm. 

Mr. Whitted currently chairs the Board of Directors for the Harold and Rose Marie Marx Memorial Fund, Inc., which has been helping Cook County Juvenile Court wards for almost 20 years. Mr. Whitted is a former member of the board of directors of the National Runaway Switchboard, Heartspring, Glenview Youth Services and Shelter, Inc. He is a current faculty member of the UIC Medical School Department of Psychiatry and a member of the Illinois Affiliation of Private Schools for Exceptional Children.   He is the Private Provider appointee to the Illinois Community and Residential Services Authority which helps Illinois children with complex emotional challenges who are in need of services.

Mr. Whitted has represented child, family, mental health and educational agencies in the Chicago metropolitan area, such as the National Runaway Switchboard and Jewish Child and Family Services, also including scores of fin nonpublic schools for disabled children.  He has also represented many out of state residential schools serving Illinois students. Mr. Whitted also represents related professional associations including the Illinois Psychological Association and the Child Care Association of Illinois.  His clients include the Francis Parker School, the Chicago City Day School , and other fine private schools.

Mr. Whitted and his firm regularly represents licensed mental health and other professionals when they receive disciplinary complaints from the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation , and the firm is on the qualified attorney list of the APA Insurance Trust.  Whitted, Cleary & Takiff LLC is increasingly representing disabled individuals, especially persons with autism, who have been charged with crimes in adult or juvenile court.  As a former Cook County Juvenile Court probation officer, Mr. Whitted and his firm are exceptionally at home when representing families who find themselves involved with the juvenile court system of any Northern Illinois county.

Mr. Whitted and his firm also represents a number of fine public schools and school organizations, including Township High School District No. 211 in Palatine, the Four Rivers Special Education District in Jacksonville; the O'Fallon Elementary School District No. 90  In O'Fallon, Illinois and a few other fine public educational entities. As a former probation officer and current representative of families and disabled children, Mr. Whitted and his team bring a unique perspective to public districts, and an unparalleled ability to communicate with families and parents. For example, during the twelve years the Firm represented a large North Shore elementary school district, the vast majority of conflicts were satisfactorily resolved without adversarial proceedings; scores of potential hearings were avoided.

This reflects the unusual and practical approach of Whitted, Cleary & Takiff: formal hearings, while sometimes unavoidable, are burdensome and unpleasant to all concerned (except the lawyers), and every effort is made to solve the problem rather than generate conflict. We feel it is in our clients' best interests to view formal court and administrative proceedings as a last resort.

We also have the same view with all of our professional and private school clients: our policy is to keep them out of court wherever possible -- to resolve the dispute with the least amount of cost and disruption possible.