What's New?
Home / Sections / Hall of Fame / Hall of Fame 2012 / JUDGE JESSICA A. O’BRIEN Public Service

JUDGE JESSICA A. O’BRIEN Public Service

jessicaJudge Jessica A. O’Brien is the first Filipina Judge elected to the Circuit Court of Cook County. The life journey of Jessica A. O’Brien is one of determination, commitment, and inspiration. O’Brien has consistently demonstrated strong leadership in all she has set out to do, and has made a positive impact upon the profession and the community. She was born and raised in Cebu City, Philippines. After graduating from high school, she emigrated to the United States and attended Boston University where she earned her Bachelor of Science degree in hotel and food administration with a minor in financial management. She continued 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 half a decade at Caesar’s Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City. She quickly moved up the ladder from an entry-level management position to holding dual positions as Divisional Food and Beverage Trainer and as Acting Food and Beverage Comptroller, responsible for the training of approximately 1,000 employees and the management of a multi-million-dollar budget. During that time, she addressed important human resource issues such as sexual harassment, equal employment, and upward mobility with a focus on diversity, productivity, and cost reduction. Although law is O’Brien’s second career, she has quickly distinguished herself as a leader in the profession as well as in her community. A 1998 graduate of The John Marshall Law School, she was the first student to complete the JD/LLM joint degree program in Tax Law in three years. In 2002, O’Brien earned honors with her Master of Laws degree in Employee Benefits. She currently serves as a Special Assistant Attorney General with the Illinois Department of Revenue, where she litigates cases that involve corporate, partnership, and individual income and sales taxation. She is also Acting Chief Counsel for the Illinois Lottery, where she oversees the agency’s litigation docket and assists the Acting Superintendent and senior staff members with the agency’s day-to-day operations of its multi-billion-dollar business affairs. Prior to working in the public sector, O’Brien was an associate with Schuyler Roche & Zwirner PC, concentrating her practice in the areas of estate planning, employee benefits, and corporate 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 helped organize the inaugural Swearing-In of Bar Presidents Ceremony when she served as president of the Filipino American Bar Association. O’Brien serves as: the president of the Diversity Scholarship Foundation, NFP, treasurer for the Women’s Bar Association of Illinois, a member of the board of governors for the Illinois State Bar Association, board member of the Chicago Bar Foundation and the Asian American Bar Foundation, and board member of the Filipino American Bar Association. She is a past president of the Asian American Bar Association of the Greater Chicago Area. O’Brien’s substantial 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 and Disciplinary Commission, and in 2008, as a member of the Court’s Character and Fitness Committee, First District. In 2009, O’Brien was appointed by Chief Judge James F. Holderman to serve as a member of the Magistrate Judge Merit Selection Panel for the Northern District Court of Illinois. O’Brien’s invaluable contributions to the profession have been recognized by numerous organizations. To mention a few, O’Brien received the Outstanding Leadership Award from the Asian American Bar Association, was named twice as “Most Valuable Member” by the Women’s Bar Association of Illinois, and was honored with the Outstanding Service Award for Judicial Evaluation by Circuit Court of 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 recipient of the 2007 Distinguished Service Award from The John Marshall Law School Alumni Association. She has been named a Super Lawyer and a Rising Star by the publishers of the Chicago magazine, and has been inducted into the Chicago Filipino American Hall of Fame. O’Brien is married to Brendan A. O’Brien, a partner at Hinshaw & Culbertson, LLP. They are the proud parents of three daughters: Samantha, fourteen years old; Judy Rose, eight years old; and Vanessa Kate, five years old.

Leave a Reply

Scroll To Top