ASSOCIATE
Naperville, IL
mgalka@collinslaw.com
Margaret is a trial attorney and dedicated advocate for environmental justice and survivors of sexual assault in Illinois and across the country. She focuses her practice on environmental mass tort, civil rights, sexual assault and other complex litigation. Margaret is proud to spend the majority of her time fighting for justice for her clients. Margaret has significant experience handling litigation in the following areas:
For example, Margaret served as co-counsel in a case resulting in a record-breaking $363 million jury verdict for a woman who contracted breast cancer after decades of inhalation exposure to the defendants’ ethylene oxide—a known human carcinogen. The verdict was the largest single plaintiff verdict in Illinois history at the time and the 2nd highest personal injury verdict in the entire country in 2022. Margaret also helped secure a $408 million settlement for over 800 plaintiffs who contracted cancer after being exposed for years to ethylene oxide air pollution in their community—which was the largest settlement in the country in 2023. She also recently obtained a large settlement on behalf of a courageous survivor of sexual assault and discrimination on her college campus. Margaret was also integral to CLF’s successful resolution of property damage claims brought on behalf of more than 100 families whose properties and health were threatened by volatile carcinogenic chemicals in their groundwater and indoor air.
Margaret has provided pro bono assistance to families struggling to remove carcinogens and other toxic chemicals from their homes. She recently helped a family get their municipality to agree to remove lead drinking water infrastructure that had contributed to high lead levels in the family’s drinking water in their home. She also assisted a family with the installation of a proper radon mitigation system in their home after their homeowners’ association initially refused to give permission for this important equipment designed to reduce radon gas—a known human carcinogen—in their home.
Margaret’s litigation work has earned her numerous honors, including:
Margaret is also a founding board member of Environmental Justice Community Action Network (“EJCAN”), a North Carolina nonprofit organization. EJCAN is a community-based organization that informs, educates, and empowers communities to confront environmental injustice by advocating for positive change. EJCAN’s vision is to ensure clean and safe air, soil, and water for rural communities in support of achieving equity and dignity. EJCAN has assisted rural communities with testing drinking water for harmful contaminants, addressing pollution from a regional landfill accepting toxic waste and gaining access to clean water.
Education
Jurisdictions Admitted to Practice
Past Employment Positions
"*" indicates required fields
"*" indicates required fields
