I grew up on the Southwest Side of Chicago, in the Gage Park Neighborhood.  I went to St. Gall grammar school and Maria High School.  I earned a Bachelor of Arts from the School of Education at DePaul University and a Master of Arts in American History from DePaul.  In 1984, I graduated from Chicago-Kent College of Law 4th out of a class of 200.  In law school, I served as an extern to a federal district court judge for the Northern District of Illinois and worked for the personal injury law firm of Patrick E. Mahoney & Associates. Immediately after law school, I clerked for Justice William G. Clark of the Illinois Supreme Court.  In that position I helped research and write opinions that were ultimately published and became the controlling law of Illinois.  After clerking I became a litigation associate at Wilson & McIlvaine, litigating and trying  numerous commercial matters including breach of contract actions, commercial forcible entry and detainers, construction disputes, and accounting malpractice matters.   I left Wilson & McIlvaine to join the international law firm of Foley & Lardner.  At the time I joined Foley, it had recently opened in Chicago and I handled a wide range of matters, at all stages of litigation, including employment matters, breach of contract actions, construction disputes, commercial mortgage foreclosures, as well as trials and appeals of these matters.  As the firm grew, my practice grew and came to include litigation of  securities and commodity matters.  I became a partner at Foley and continued to represent clients in a wide variety of  commercial disputes.  I eventually sought to become an Associate Judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County and was assigned to the Child Protection Division of Juvenile Court.  There I heard cases involving child abuse, neglect and dependency.   I subsequently returned to private practice at Foley and resumed my representation of clients in commercial disputes including numerous real estate litigation matters and appellate matters.  I left Foley to become a partner at Lowis & Gellen LLP where my practice expanded to the defense of civil rights claims and my appellate practice grew to include medical malpractice matters.  In December 2008, the Illinois Supreme Court recalled me to again serve as an Associate Judge.  I went back to the Child Protection Division. The Illinois Supreme Court recalled me for a second  time.  As a Judge in the Child Protection Division, I am called upon to decide cases involving child abuse, neglect and dependency.  I base my decisions on the law and what I find to be in the best interest of the children whose cases are before me with the knowledge that my rulings will almost always have an immediate impact on the lives of those children, their parents and other family members.  I treat all parties and their attorneys with respect and dignity.  Many times not all of the parties receive the result they may have hoped to obtain but I do my utmost to ensure that they know they have been treated fairly and honestly and that their voices have been heard. 

In  addition to practicing law, I have taught Appellate Advocacy and Litigation Drafting at The John Marshall Law School and I have been active in the community serving on the boards of directors for various non-profit organizations.