PILI is excited to welcome Kirsten Moran of Jones Day to our Board of Directors as the 2017 Graduate Fellow Alumni Representative. PILI appoints one Intern and one Fellow every year from the most recent class to serve on the board for a two-year term.
Kirsten is a first-year associate at Jones Day. She recently graduated cum laude from the Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law, and completed her PILI Graduate Fellowship at Cabrini Green Legal Aid. She primarily worked with clients facing the loss or denial of public housing benefits.
“Working with clients was my favorite part of being a PILI Fellow at CGLA,” Kirsten said. “I particularly enjoyed discussing cases with clients, being able to argue on their behalf in court, and giving positive updates.”
Kirsten got involved in pro bono work as a summer associate at Jones Day the summer before her PILI Fellowship. She used her 711 license to provide legal representation, alongside attorneys from Lawyers’ Committee for Better Housing (LCBH), to a pro bono client facing eviction in housing court. During law school, Kirsten also worked as a judicial extern for the Honorable Virginia Kendall in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois and as a law clerk in the office of the Illinois Attorney General, Criminal Appeals Division.
Since finishing her PILI Fellowship and starting at Jones Day, Kirsten has remained active in pro bono work. Within a month of joining the firm she became involved in two §1983 cases, representing individuals who suffered civil rights violations. Now three months into her tenure at the firm, she is already working on four different pro bono matters.
“My PILI Fellowship provided me with foundational legal training and experience in areas that a lawyer may not learn until much later in their career – how to navigate court, communicate with clients about the legal process, and prepare for an oral argument,” said Kirsten. “I’m excited about becoming involved in other pro bono opportunities at Jones Day, and plan to continue public service advocacy in the Chicago community.”