Member Spotlight

Apr 172 min read

Lauren Schwartz

Lauren Schwartz is from Pontiac, a small town in central Illinois. Her journey to IP law took a non-traditional route, shaped by a...

Feb 82 min read

Maria Maras

Maria Maras, Associate Director at Accenture, earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Chicago and then...

Jun 1, 20232 min read

Alexis Lavko

Alexis Lavko, Director at Epsilon Economics, graduated from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business with an MBA in 2008. The...

Apr 7, 20232 min read

Hillary Maynard

Hillary Maynard’s early exposure to art inspired her to become an intellectual property lawyer. Hillary spent much of her childhood...

Jan 19, 20232 min read

Stephanie Nelson

Stephanie Nelson is the newest Corporate Counsel at SquareTrade. Prior to her role as in-house counsel, Stephanie spent seven years...

Nov 16, 20223 min read

Calista Mitchell

Calista Mitchell’s biggest piece of advice to young attorneys? Create the career that’s best for you and be flexible while doing it....

Sep 22, 20222 min read

Candice Cornelius

Candice Cornelius, a Director in the Disputes, Compliance, & Investigations group of Stout's intellectual property practice has had a...

Jun 1, 20222 min read

Kristine Bergman

Kristine Bergman became a member of ChiWIP after its inaugural event and served on the Marketing Committee ever since. Kristine is Senior...

Apr 20, 20222 min read

Katie Becker

Katie Becker is a lifelong Packers fan, and she even braved the third coldest game in NFL history to see Brett Favre’s last game at...

Feb 18, 20222 min read

Emily Kappers

Emily Kappers, Counsel at Crowell and Moring LLP, sits in Crowell’s intellectual property practice group and focuses her practice on all...

Nov 18, 20213 min read

Shyla Jones-Ali

Shyla Jones-Ali, Director of Legal Counsel, Advertising, Marketing & Brand Protection at Charles Schwab, has pursued each step of her...

Oct 21, 20212 min read

Michelle Zimmermann

Michelle Zimmermann is one of ChiWIP’s original Directors and is currently also serving as its Secretary. When she heard about the first...

Sep 17, 20213 min read

Rebecca Rokos

This month we celebrate ChiWIP’s newly-appointed Chair, Rebecca Rokos. She has been an active member of ChiWIP since its inception,...

Jun 16, 20213 min read

Kimberly Schenk

“The biggest insight I‘ve gained over the years is that if you want to step out of growing linearly and begin to grow exponentially, you...

Apr 21, 20213 min read

Susan Hallen

Susan (“Sue”) Hallen is a Sales and Delivery Associate Partner in the AI Workflows team at IBM. Sue is an engineer by trade and thought...

Mar 19, 20213 min read

Carolyn Blessing, Mentoring Circles Chair

Carolyn Blessing, a partner in the Chicago office of Locke Lord, stumbled upon the field of intellectual property law by chance. While in...

Feb 23, 20212 min read

Lizzy Diaz-Ortiz

Lizzy Diaz-Ortiz’ exceptional ability for creative problem-solving serves her well both inside and outside the workplace. Lizzy’s...

Jan 28, 20212 min read

Julie Langdon, ChiWIP Board of Directors

Julie Langdon, a member of ChiWIP’s Board of Directors, is a patent attorney at Dunlap Codding. Julie’s practice spans all areas of...

Dec 14, 20203 min read

Laura DeMoor, ChiWIP In-House Advisory Committee Member

Laura DeMoor, a member of ChiWIP’s In-House Advisory Committee, is Associate General Counsel, Intellectual Property, at Baxter Healthcare...

Oct 26, 20203 min read

Helen Ji, ChiWIP Special Events Chair

With a background in biomedical engineering, Helen Ji has been practicing law for six years. Sharp and quick-witted, Helen began her...

Sep 17, 20202 min read

Jennifer Mikulina, ChiWIP Foundation Exploration Member

Jennifer Mikulina is a Partner at McDermott Will & Emery LLP in the firm’s Intellectual Property group. Jennifer began her legal career...

Aug 24, 20202 min read

Christine Filarski, ChiWIP Social Events Co-Chair

Christine is an associate at Michael Best & Friedrich LLP, where she focuses on all things trademark and copyright. Her practice also...

Jul 23, 20202 min read

Mary Schnurr, ChiWIP In-House Advisory Committee Member

Mary Schnurr, Associate General Counsel at Ardagh Group, is a name very familiar around ChiWIP, both as an active In-House Advisory...

May 14, 20203 min read

Emma Bienias, ChiWIP Founding Member

Emma Bienias is a Managing Director in the Disputes, Compliance & Investigations group at Stout. Her firm focuses on intellectual...

Apr 15, 20203 min read

Caroline Teichner, ChiWIP In-House Advisory Committee Member

Caroline Teichner is an experienced litigation attorney who serves as in-house counsel to The Kraft Heinz Company, handling a broad range...

Feb 26, 20203 min read

Catherine Klima, Board Vice Chair; Committee Development Co-Chair, In-House Advisory Member

Catherine Klima is Intellectual Property Counsel at Continental Automotive Systems, Inc., which develops technologies for mobility,...

Jan 23, 20203 min read

Catherine Smith, ChiWIP In-House Advisory Committee Member

Catherine Smith, Senior Counsel at Wolters Kluwer, is legal counsel for the Tax & Accounting Division of Wolters Kluwer, meaning that she...

Nov 21, 20193 min read

Francesca Cardillo, ChiWIP Secretary & Committee Co-Chair

Francesca Cardillo's energy and ability to connect with those around her enliven the ChiWIP community and her practice at K&L Gates LLP....

Oct 18, 20193 min read

Anthoula Pomrening, ChiWIP In-House Advisory Committee Member

Anthoula Pomrening's career showcases the values that are important to her: helping those around her, giving back to her communities, and...

Sep 18, 20193 min read

Amy Adler, ChiWIP In-House Advisory Committee Member

Amy Adler, Counsel at Shure Incorporated, had an "aha!" moment while studying arts management in undergrad that led her to where she is...

Aug 21, 20192 min read

Jaclyn Kaczmarek, ChiWIP In-House Advisory Committee Member

Jaclyn Kaczmarek, Counsel at Ulta Beauty, has worked her way up through the company and will never forget where she started: as a cashier...

Jul 26, 20192 min read

Nikki Little, ChiWIP Chair and Co-founder

This month we celebrate ChiWIP's newly-appointed Chair and co-founder, Nikki Little. Nikki’s dedication to helping others in the legal...

Jun 11, 20194 min read

Nicole Janovick, ChiWIP In-House Advisory Committee Member

Scientist-turned-attorney Nicole Janovick is a success story for those wishing to forge a path for themselves at the intersection of...

Jun 11, 20194 min read

Aimee Nolan, ChiWIP In-House Advisory Committee Member

The first word that comes to mind when describing ChiWIP member Aimee Nolan is inspiration. Currently Vice President, Associate General...

Jun 11, 20193 min read

Kiran Advani, ChiWIP In-House Advisory Committee Member

In-House Committee Member Kiran Advani makes being a success sound like a breeze and, ever modest, she insists that any woman with...

Jun 11, 20193 min read

Laurel Palluzi, ChiWIP In-House Advisory Committee Member

In-House Advisory Committee Member Laurel Palluzi recently joined search company Elastic as its Corporate Counsel. In this role Laurel is...

Jun 11, 20193 min read

Erin Fox, ChiWIP In-House Advisory Committee Member

Erin Fox's story shows how flexibility and adaptability are key components in a successful legal career. Erin graduated with a degree in...

Jun 11, 20193 min read

Chloe Hecht, ChiWIP In-House Advisory Committee Member

Chloe Hecht is living proof that passion, flexibility, and relationship management are some of the most important aspects of a successful...

Jun 11, 20192 min read

Molly Keelan, ChiWIP Chair

As both Founding Member and current Chair of ChiWIP, Molly Keelan is aptly our first Member Spotlight profile. Ms. Keelan’s naming as...