CBA Record November-December 2024

complex business disputes, employ ment, cybersecurity, and privacy law. He is also a columnist for the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin and author of the book The Chief Justices . A long-time CBA member, he has served as president, chair of the Young Lawyers Section, and editorial board member of the CBA Record .

Counsel to a private family trust with assets in the United States and Europe. Fain shares her knowledge as an adjunct professor at DePaul University’s Gradu ate School of Public Policy and Roosevelt University, and via her work on nonprofit boards of directors including the Field Museum and the Francis W. Parker School Alumni Association. A past CBA Treasurer, Fain currently serves as a CBA Record edi torial board member, where she originated its “History Will Judge” column.

to improving the community overall. A long-term CBA member, Jiganti served as president of the association. A frequent lecturer and author on tax litigation and tax controversy matters, he has is a past president of the Lawyers Trust Fund of Illinois. He is a life trustee at Saint Igna tius College Prep and a former trustee of Christ the King Jesuit College Prep, where he continues to be involved in the group that provides college prep experi ence for young people in the underserved community of Austin on Chicago’s far West Side.

David A. Decker A pioneer in per sonal injury law, Decker successfully argued before the Illinois Supreme Court in a land

E. Lynn Grayson A nationally rec ognized leader in energy and environ mental law, Gray son is a partner at Nijman Franzetti

Justice Margaret Stanton McBride McBride has spent most of her career in public service. After practicing with a civil prac

mark case that changed state negligence law to allow for comparative negligence. His legal acumen and ability to bring about positive change shape his legacy. For instance, Decker successfully navi gated two transformative legislative bat tles: the 1985 medical malpractice crises and the 1986 Tort Reform Act nego tiations. Outside the courtroom, he has served as past president of the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association and the Illinois State Bar Association. In his acknowledg ments, Decker stressed the importance of cultivating your own community: a com munity of people who will support you as you uplift others.

LLP. She supports corporate law depart ments with environmental compliance challenges, cleanup obligations, and enforcement regulatory and litigation matters. She has used her platform as an author, adjunct faculty member, member of the ABA Standing Committee on Bar Leadership and past president of the CBA to raise awareness of environmental law and policy matters. Grayson has been rec ognized for her significant contributions to the field by organizations including WBAI, the ISBA, and the National Law Journal . Outside the legal arena, she con tinues to share her passion and knowledge serving on the board of directors for the Geneva Lake Museum and the Environ mental Education Foundation.

tice firm, she served as an assistant state’s attorney until she joined the judiciary as an associate judge in 1987. She was later elected as a Circuit Court Judge and then to the Illinois Appellate Court, where she currently presides. She has served as presiding judge of each of the Appellate Court’s six divisions. Throughout her judiciary journey, she has seized oppor tunities not only to educate others but improve the administration of justice in Illinois. McBride has taught a variety of legal subjects, including trial advocacy, professionalism, and criminal and civil law. She is also deeply involved in judicial education and training. She emphasizes to all students the need to continually see how the administration of justice can be improved. In McBride’s remarks, she referenced Stevens’ comment about learning on the job; she praised him for learning from his experiences and continually growing as a person and as a judge.

Nina Fain One of the First Afri can American and women partners at an Amlaw100 firm, Holland & Knight LLP, Fain’s experi

John J. (Jack) Jiganti

ences fuel her commitment to improv ing the profession and the justice system. With a background in complex corporate transactions, real estate development, and finance, Fain has represented U.S.-based Fortune 500 and small-cap clients in domestic and international matters. She has also served as a law firm department chair as well as chief legal counsel to the office of the Illinois State Treasurer, with more than $20 billion under asset man agement. Presently, she serves as General

A partner at Madden, Jiganti, Moore & Sheridan LLP, a boutique firm in the areas of tax and busi

ness transactions, Jiganti concentrates his practice in tax planning and representa tion of families, their businesses, family offices, and foundations. In addition to creating fresh approaches to the prac tice of law, Jiganti has dedicated himself

Judge E. Kenneth Wright, Jr. is the Presiding Judge of the First Municipal District of the Circuit Court of Cook County, past CBA President, and a member of the CBA Record editorial board.

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