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Education:
Bachelor of Arts–Philosophy Master of Arts–American History Juris Doctorate (Cum Laude) |
| Practice Experience:
Karen began her legal career with Heyl Royster in 1984 after serving as law clerk to the Honorable Jay J. Alloy, Presiding Justice, Illinois Appellate Court, Third District. Previously, she served as law clerk to the Honorable Howard C. Ryan, Chief Justice, Illinois Supreme Court, 1981-1982. Born in Clearwater, Florida, Karen became a partner at Heyl Royster in 1991. Practice Emphasis: Karen concentrates her practice in appellate advocacy and leads the firm’s appellate advocacy team. She handles appeals in the five Illinois appellate districts, the Illinois Supreme Court and the United States Courts of Appeal. She has handled nearly 300 state and federal appeals resulting in published decisions, including nearly 40 cases in the Illinois Supreme Court. A Fellow since 1997, Karen is presently Secretary of the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers, and is past president of the Illinois Appellate Lawyers Association (1994-1995), past chair of the Appellate Advocacy Committee of the Tort and Insurance Practice Section of the American Bar Association (1994-1995), and past chair (1995-1996) and present member of the Amicus Committee of the Illinois Association of Defense Trial Counsel. She also served as an associate member of the Illinois Supreme Court Committee on Civil Jury Instructions, 1987-1996. Karen is past President of the Abraham Lincoln Inn of Court and currently serves as President of the Peoria County Bar Association. She is a former Editor-in-Chief of the Appellate Law Review. She is a member of the Association of Defense Trial Attorneys. She is also a member of the DRI Appellate Advocacy Steering Committee. Additionally, she serves as a member of the Board of Visitors at the Southern Illinois University School of Law. She was named S.I.U. Law School Alumnus of the Year in 1996. Karen is a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation. She regularly speaks at national, statewide and local bar seminars on effective appellate practice and presents mock appellate arguments on various issues. Most recently, she has served as a speaker at the 19th and 20th Annual Federal Practice and Advocacy Seminars, 2004 and 2005. Karen is a member of the Bar Association of the Seventh Federal Circuit, Bar Association of the Central and Southern Federal Districts of Illinois, and of the Peoria County, Illinois State, and American Bar Associations, and Scribes, the American Society of Writers on Legal Subjects. Listings: The Best Lawyers in America (2008); Leading Lawyers of Illinois (2002–present); Illinois Super Lawyers, Appellate (2005–present ); Top 50 Female Illinois Super Lawyers (2005–present); Top 50 Women Business Lawyers in Illinois (2007); and Top 10 Leading Business Lawyers in Downstate Illinois (2007) Admitted to Practice: State Courts of Illinois |