Debbie S. Cohen - Northbrook, IL
Attorney at Cohen Law LLC
Family Law Lawyers in Northbrook, IL
1363 Shermer Road Suite 228 Northbrook, IL 60062
- 1 Super Lawyers®
-
26
Years
Experience
Northbrook Family Law Lawyer
Updated: 10/30/2026
Areas of Practice
- Family Law
- Divorce
Attorney Information
Overview
Debbie Cohen is a highly regarded Illinois family law attorney, seasoned litigator, former prosecutor, and founder of Cohen Law LLC. With more than 25 years of legal experience, Debbie brings a unique combination of courtroom experience, strategic thinking, compassion, and practical judgment to clients navigating divorce and complex family law matters.
Recognized for her work in the legal profession, Debbie has been repeatedly selected to the Illinois Super Lawyers list, an honor reserved for no more than 5% of attorneys in the state each year. The distinction recognizes attorneys who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement.
Debbie’s approach is straightforward: provide exceptional client communication while appreciating the emotional weight and personal challenges clients often carry throughout the legal process, master the details of every case, communicate honestly, negotiate intelligently, and fight when fighting is necessary. Debbie connects with her clients on a human level, offering empathy, understanding, and straightforward guidance rather than simply speaking to them through the lens of a lawyer.
A native Chicagoan who grew up in the northern suburbs, Debbie earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and her law degree from Chicago-Kent College of Law. While at Chicago-Kent, she was selected to compete on the school’s trial advocacy team, representing the law school in trial competitions throughout the country. Her advocacy skills earned her the distinction of being named “Best Trial Advocate” at a national competition in Atlanta, Georgia.
Debbie began her legal career with the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office, where she prosecuted hundreds of criminal cases ranging from misdemeanors and DUIs to serious felony matters, including murder cases. That experience gave her something that cannot be learned from a textbook: how to think on her feet, assess credibility, examine witnesses, analyze evidence, negotiate effectively, and remain composed in a courtroom when the stakes are high.
Her career has also included serving as an Investigator for the Cook County Independent Inspector General’s Office where Debbie developed extensive experience analyzing financial records, tracing funds, identifying inconsistencies, and uncovering hidden financial information. Debbie also practiced as a criminal defense attorney, an experience that allowed her to see the law from both sides of the courtroom and strengthened her ability to anticipate opposing arguments, identify weaknesses, and approach every case from multiple perspectives.
Today, Debbie focuses on family law where she and her team represent clients in divorce and family law matters involving complex financial issues, parenting disputes, allocation of parental responsibilities, parenting time, maintenance, child support, relocation, orders of protection, and other highly contested family law matters. She is equally committed to resolving cases efficiently and amicably when possible and to litigating aggressively when necessary.
As the founder of Cohen Law LLC, Debbie has built a boutique family law firm around a simple philosophy: clients should receive sophisticated legal representation without feeling like they are just another case number. She believes exceptional representation requires more than knowing the law. It requires understanding the client, knowing the facts better than anyone else in the room, anticipating problems before they arise, and developing a strategy tailored to the client’s goals and circumstances.
Debbie is known for being exceptionally prepared and detail oriented. Her background as a prosecutor taught her that cases can turn on facts that initially appear insignificant, and she brings that same investigative mindset to her family law practice. She is a strong negotiator and experienced trial attorney who is not afraid of the courtroom, but she also recognizes that unnecessary litigation can be financially and emotionally devastating to families.
For Debbie, family law is personal. She understands that divorce and parenting disputes affect far more than a client’s legal rights; they can affect their children, finances, home, relationships, physical and mental health, and future. She genuinely cares about the people she represents and believes clients deserve an attorney who will keep them informed, tell them the truth, protect their interests, pursue practical resolutions whenever possible, stand beside them throughout the process and advocate fiercely in the courtroom when necessary.
Outside of the office, Debbie enjoys traveling to warm destinations, dining out, and spending quality time with family, friends, and her pets.
Awards and Honors
Awards
Honors
- Super Lawyer, Super Lawyers, 2025 - 2027
- Peer Review Rated, Martindale-Hubbell, 2026
- Best Trial Advocate, William Daniel’s Competition, 1999
Other Sources of Feedback About Debbie S. Cohen
Included on the 2027 Illinois Super Lawyers list
Past Lists
- 2026 Illinois Super Lawyers list
- 2025 Illinois Super Lawyers list
Education
Legal Education
-
Chicago-Kent College of Law, Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago, Illinois, 2000
Juris Doctorate
Non Legal Education
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University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1996
B.A.
Major: Communications
Current Employment Position(s)
-
Founder
Past Positions
- Investigator for the Cook County Independent Inspector General’s Office, 2013 - 2018
- Assistant Special Prosecutor, Cook County Special Prosecutor, 2009 - 2013
- President, Cohen Law, 2007 - 2013
- Litigation Associate, Schain Burney Ross and Citron, 2006 - 2007
- Assistant State's Attorney, Cook County State's Attorney's Office, 2000 - 2004
Bar Admissions
- U.S. District Court Northern District of Illinois, 2000
- Illinois, 2000
Other Affiliations
- Chicago Bar Association
- Board Member, Chicago Bar Association, Domestic Relations, 2020 - 2021
- Board Member, Northwest Suburban Bar Association, 2012 - 2013
- Board Member, Forrest Powell Foundation, 2012 - 2020
- Board Member, Illinois Association of Criminal Defense, 2011 - 2013
- Decalogue Society of Lawyers, 2010 - 2013
- Illinois State Bar Association, 2008 - 2013
- Member, Women's Criminal Defense Bar Association, 2007 - 2013
Photo
Contact
1363 Shermer Road
Suite 228
Northbrook, IL 60062
Phone Number: 312-801-9407
Email: Send a message
Hours: Monday to Friday, 9 AM to 5 PM
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