Women's Bar Association of Illinois

Corresponding Secretary: Jessica Arong O'Brien

The life journey of Jessica Arong O’Brien is one of determination, commitment, and inspiration. O’Brien has consistently exhibited strong leadership in all she has set out to do, and has made a positive impact upon the profession and the community.

O’Brien was born and raised in Cebu City, Philippines. After graduating from high school, she emigrated to the United States. O’Brien received her Bachelor of Science degree in Hotel and Food Administration and a minor in Financial Management from Boston University. She furthered 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 a decade at Caesar’s Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City, quickly moving up the ladder from an entry-level management position to holding dual positions as Divisional Food and Beverage Trainer, charged with training of over 1,000 employees, and as Acting Food and Beverage Comptroller, responsible for managing a multi-million-dollar budget.

Although law is O’Brien’s second career, she has quickly distinguished herself as a leader in the profession and the community. A 1998 graduate of The John Marshall Law School, she was the first student to complete both the JD/LLM joint degree program in Tax Law in just three years. In 2002, O’Brien earned her second LLM, with honors, in Employee Benefits. She is currently a special assistant attorney general with the Illinois Department of Revenue, litigating cases involving corporate, partnership, and individual taxation, as well as property and sales taxation. 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 president of the Diversity Scholarship Foundation, which was created to increase minority representation in law schools and to encourage high school students to pursue law as a career. She serves as the recording secretary for the Women’s Bar Association of Illinois, board member of the Filipino American Bar Association, executive board member of The John Marshall Law School Alumni Association, and a leader-mentor for the Abraham Lincoln Marovitz Lend-A-Hand program. O’Brien is also the immediate past president of the Asian American Bar Association of the Greater Chicago Area and immediate past chair of the Executive Committee of the Alliance of Bar Associations for Judicial Screening.

O’Brien’s outstanding 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 Disciplinary Commission, and in 2008, as a member of the Court’s Character and Fitness Committee. Most recently, O’Brien has been appointed to serve as a member of the 2009 Magistrate Judge Selection Committee for the Northern District Court of Illinois.

O’Brien’s invaluable contributions to the profession have been recognized by numerous organizations. Most recently, she received the Outstanding Leadership Award from the Asian American Bar Association, was named one of the two “Most Valuable Members” by the Women’s Bar Association of Illinois, and was honored with the Outstanding Service Award for Judicial Evaluation by 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 2007 recipient of the Distinguished Service Award from The John Marshall Law School Alumni Association. She has been named a Super Lawyer and a Rising Star, 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 PC. They are the proud parents of three daughters: Samantha, twelve years old; Judy Rose, six years old; and Vanessa Kate, three years old.

Jessica Arong O’Brien
Illinois Department of Revenue
100 W. Randolph St., Suite 7-301
Chicago, IL  60601
Phone:  312-814-1016
jarongobrien@sbcglobal.net
http://www.revenue.state.il.us

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