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Golden Gavel Spotlight
Spotlight on WBAI’s Sarah Greene
Sarah Greene reigns from Grand Rapids, Michigan and attended the University of Michigan for her undergraduate studies. It is there that she met her dear friend, Allison Ginsberg. As freshman roommates, their common interests and backgrounds made them fast friends. Both grew up in Michigan. Both love the outdoors, enjoy skiing, value family and friends, and most importantly, bring on life’s changes with acceptance and dignity.
The pair graduated from the University of Michigan in 2000 and 2001 and settled in Chicago. Sarah attended DePaul University School of Law. Allison worked on a local political campaign and later became the Midwest Region Pharmaceutical Manager for Shearing Plough.
After taking the bar exam in 2004, Sarah’s future looked bright: she graduated from DePaul with two CALI awards and made the Dean’s list four semesters. Life took an unexpected turn on the night of August 7, 2004. Though averse to motorcycles, Sarah accepted a ride home on one that night. Sarah was thrown from the motorcycle after the driver lost control. Sarah sustained a traumatic brain injury, broken bones, neck, back and shoulder injuries, and road rash from head to toe. The doctors told Sarah’s parents that she would not be able to walk the same way and the severity of her brain injury would prevent her from practicing law.
Sarah was in the hospital for a month and underwent countless injections, hundreds of speech and physical therapy appointments, and two surgeries. Defying her devastating prognosis, Sarah practices law today for the Chicago Park District. She notes that, as a lawyer, your power of persuasion comes from your words. When you lose your words, or your ability to form your words into expression and logic, you lose your argument. Lawyers, especially impatient ones, will quickly interrupt and complete her thought when her words do not come fast enough. Sarah states her brain injury pushes her to work harder at her job, particularly because it takes more time to complete tasks including preparing arguments, writing briefs, and researching.
Throughout her strenuous journey, her friend Allison stood by her side. Six years after Sarah’s accident, Allison spoke before a crowd of 500 people at her national sales meeting for Shearing Plough stating, “You may not be able to change the way things are, but you can change the way you think about things.” This saying has now become the company’s mantra. Through an unexpected turn of events in Allison’s life, the phrase would become a philosophical lifeline for the two friends.
In December, 2008, Allison told Sarah she felt a weakness in her right hand. Her symptoms progressed to twitching in her arms, weakness in her leg, and frequent falling. In January 2010, Allison fell and fractured her skull in two places. Like Sarah, Allison suffered a brain injury. After countless tests were taken, Allison was diagnosed with ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) also known as “Lou Gehrig’s Disease.”
Drawing strength from her own injury and road to recovery, Sarah spurred into action. In May, 2010, Sarah formed Team Allison, a.k.a. Allison’s Artillery, to raise funds for the Les Turner Foundation and the ALS Walk4Life. As Team Captain of Allison’s Artillery, they raised nearly $6,000 for the Les Turner Foundation. The Allison Ginsberg Fund was officially established and through a website created for Allison, one could donate through paypal to help pay for medical expenses. By September, 2010, Sarah helped raise $50,000 for Allison’s treatment.
Neither Sarah nor Allison could have foreseen that each would face life threatening brain injuries by the age of 30. Both have found a new commitment and meaning in their 15 year friendship, and a new purpose as advocates for ALS treatment. For Sarah, giving back to the community is giving back to Allison while raising awareness of ALS. To help her friend and those who suffer with ALS, Sarah draws from her own experiences in overcoming debilitating injuries. For Sarah, giving back to the community is not just a habit, but an altruistic quality that comes from the inside.
Spotlight on WBAI’s Jessica Arong O’Brien
The WBAI is proud to shine its spotlight on Jessica Arong O’Brien. O’Brien has consistently exhibited strong leadership in all she has set out to do, and has made a positive impact upon the profession and the community.
O’Brien was born and raised in Cebu City, Philippines. After graduating from high school, she emigrated to the United States. O’Brien received her Bachelor of Science degree in Hotel and Food Administration and a minor in Financial Management from Boston University. She furthered her culinary arts education at Ecòle Hotêliêre de Laûsanne, Switzerland, and also received her Intensive Diploma from the Cordon Bleu Cookery School in London. Thereafter, O’Brien spent a decade at Caesar’s Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City as Acting Food and Beverage Comptroller, training over 1,000 employees.
Although law is O’Brien’s second career, she has quickly distinguished herself as a leader in the profession and the community. She is currently a special assistant attorney general with the Illinois Department of Revenue, litigating cases involving corporate, partnership and individual taxation, as well as property and sales taxation.
O’Brien has generously volunteered her time and talents to a number of bar associations and charitable endeavors, exhibiting visionary leadership in the process. In 2003, she served as president of the Filipino American Bar Association. O’Brien serves as president of the Diversity Scholarship Foundation, which was created to increase minority representation in law schools and to encourage high school students to pursue law as a career. She also serves as the recording secretary for the Women’s Bar Association of Illinois, board member of the Filipino American Bar Association, executive board member of The John Marshall Law School Alumni Association and a leader-mentor for the Abraham Lincoln Marovitz Lend-A-Hand program. O’Brien is also the immediate past president of the Asian American Bar Association of the Greater Chicago Area and immediate past chair of the Executive Committee of the Alliance of Bar Associations for Judicial Screening.
O’Brien’s outstanding accomplishments have been recognized by the leaders in the legal community, resulting in her appointment by the Illinois Supreme Court in 2006 to serve as a hearing officer for the Attorney Registration Disciplinary Commission, and in 2008, as a member of the Court’s Character and Fitness Committee. Most recently, O’Brien has been appointed to serve as a member of the 2009 Magistrate Judge Selection Committee for the Northern District Court of Illinois.
O’Brien’s invaluable contributions to the profession have been recognized by numerous organizations. Most recently, she received the Outstanding Leadership Award from the Asian American Bar Association, was named one of the two “Most Valuable Members” by the Women’s Bar Association of Illinois, and was honored with the Outstanding Service Award for Judicial Evaluation by Cook County Chief Judge Timothy C. Evans. In addition, O’Brien received the 2008 Cook County State’s Attorney Asian Pacific American Community Service Award, and was a 2007 recipient of the Distinguished Service Award from The John Marshall Law School Alumni Association. She has been named a Super Lawyer and a Rising Star, and has been inducted into the Chicago Filipino American Hall of Fame.
O’Brien has been a WBAI member since 1999. She has served as a WBAI board member for three years and currently serves on the Executive Committee as Recording Secretary. Additionally, she serves as the Co-Chair of the newly formed Diversity Committee. During her involvement with the WBAI, O’Brien has chaired numerous standing committees, such as the Judicial Evaluation Committee and the Programs Committee. She has also chaired all of the WBAI’s major dinner/reception events: the Joint Professional Dinner, the Judicial Reception and the Annual Dinner.
In serving as the first Co-Chair of the Diversity Committee, she intends to implement the mission of the Committee to involve more women of color in the WBAI and have an open forum of communication and networking for minority women in law and business. O’Brien was appointed to start the Diversity Committee based on her experience as a strong advocate for unity through diversity not only with gender, religious beliefs, political affiliations and race, but also for efforts in bringing together women in business and in law.
O’Brien is married to Brendan A. O’Brien, a partner at Hinshaw & Culbertson PC. They are the proud parents of three daughters: Samantha, twelve years old; Judy Rose, six years old; and Vanessa Kate, three years old.
Spotlight on WBAI's Jennifer P. Irmen
Jennifer Irmen is a trial attorney at the Chicago law firm of Bruce Farrel Dorn & Associates, In House Counsel for State Farm Automobile Insurance Company. Jennifer joined Bruce Farrel Dorn & Associates in 2004 and practices in all areas of insurance defense law. Jennifer has acted as the lead attorney at countless jury trials, bench trials, arbitration and ADR proceedings involving auto, premise liability, negligent hiring, dog bite, construction and fire cases, all of which resulted in thirty not guilty verdicts in her favor. Moreover, Jennifer was recently appointed as an Adjunct Law Professor for the nationally acclaimed legal writing program at John Marshall Law School.
Before joining the law firm of Bruce Farrel Dorn & Associates, Jennifer clerked for Beermann Swerdlove, where she drafted legal memorandum regarding complex legal issues concerning child support, property division, maintenance, and attorney’s fees. Prior to clerking there, Jennifer clerked in the Employment Litigation Division of the Corporation Counsel for the City of Chicago. The summer and fall after Jennifer’s first year of law school, Jennifer served as a judicial extern to the Honorable Judge Guzman of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois where she drafted legal opinions concerning employment and racial discrimination as well as deportation and removal proceedings. Throughout law school, Jennifer competed in numerous trial and appellate competitions; specifically, the Gabrielli National Family Law Moot Court Competition, the Lonestar National Mock Trial Tournament, and the Chicago Bar Association’s Moot Court Competition.
Upon graduation from John Marshall Law School, after being the President of John Marshall’s Student Bar Association, Jennifer was appointed a member of the John Marshall Alumni Association’s Board of Directors; she has served as a member of that board for the past five years. In 2004, she was named as the Outstanding Women Law Graduate from John Marshall Law School by the National Association of Women Lawyers. In 2000, Jennifer was given a Presidential Award for Leadership by Elmhurst College. While at John Marshall, Jennifer received the Edith and Philip Baim Scholarship Award, the Marion Scholarship Award, the John Marshall Alumni Association Merit Scholarship, and the Dean’s Scholarship for Academic Achievement.
For the past year, Jennifer has served as a member of the Board of Directors for the Women’s Bar Association. In her capacity as a director, Jennifer has facilitated the implementation of bi-monthly New Member’s receptions thereby giving young attorneys the opportunity to network with judges and influential Chicago attorneys as well as meet new lawyers. She has also developed a new and fresh marketing concept for the WBAI’s website, publications, and other marketing pieces. Jennifer is currently serving as the Chair of the WBAI Website Committee, a Co-chair of the WBAI’s Marketing/Public Relations Committee as well as a Co-chair for the WBAI’s Installation Dinner, the WBAI’s largest annual event. Jennifer’s time coordinating communications projects and social events as an intern in the Social Office of the White House under the Clinton administration in 1999 gives her a unique perspective which she will undoubtedly apply to her new role!
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