Fallon DePina Banks 

Fallon DePina Banks is deputy general counsel with UnitedHealth Group (UHG), the largest healthcare company in the world. Fallon’s practice sits at the thrilling junction between health and technological innovation. She advises on complex privacy and cybersecurity matters to both mature and nascent UHG businesses; develops and maintains data governance processes; and provides privacy and data use counsel in support of research & development, digital health products, clinical research programs, and other insurtech innovations. Prior to joining UHG, she served as privacy counsel at Aetna and as an associate at a leading New England law firm.

Fallon’s passions include diversifying the legal profession, racial justice, and community service. She serves as chair of the UHG legal department’s Culture, Inclusion, and Diversity Council. She mentors underrepresented professionals desiring to enter the privacy and cybersecurity field, including members of the Black Girls in Cyber organization. She is a former president of the George W. Crawford Black Bar Association, a National Bar Association chapter, and spearheaded the establishment of the George W. Crawford Black Bar Association Endowment at the University of Connecticut School of Law. She provides pro bono legal counsel to the Promise of Justice Initiative, fighting to overturn unconstitutional nonunanimous jury verdicts. She is also an active member of Jack and Jill of America, Inc., where she leads community service initiatives and culturally affirming activities for Black youth. 

Fallon earned a B.A., magna cum laude, from Northeastern University, and holds a J.D. from the University of Connecticut School of Law. In addition to this great honor, she is an International Association of Privacy Professionals Fellow of Information Privacy; a 2021 Hartford Business Journal 40 Under Forty honoree; a 2017 Leadership Council on Legal Diversity Fellow; and a 2013 Lawyers of Color Hot List honoree.  

Lillian M. Blackshear  

Lillian Blackshear is a partner in the Nashville office of Bass, Berry & Sims PLC—a full-service law firm with offices in Nashville, Memphis, Knoxville, and Washington D.C. Exclusively focused on public finance, Lillian has represented clients in public finance transactions totaling more than $10 billion since 2010. Her clients include an array of governmental entities and banks, and her deals include high-profile projects, such as stadiums for major league sports franchises. She recently represented investment bank clients in the underwriting of the largest general obligation bond deal ever sold by the State of Tennessee. 

In 2021, Lillian was elected by the partnership of Bass, Berry & Sims PLC to serve on the firm’s Executive Committee. Prior to her election to the Executive Committee, she served as Chair of the firm’s African-American Affinity group.

Additionally, Lillian serves as a commissioner on the Metropolitan Nashville Planning Commission, where she serves in an advisory role to the Metropolitan Nashville Council on land policy matters. She has also represented several nonprofit and indigent clients on a pro bono basis. She is a founding board member and Secretary for the Tennessee Chapter of Women in Public Finance.

Lillian was named to the Nashville Business Journal’s “40 Under 40” List in 2018 and was named to the Nashville Post’s “In Charge” List for the Legal Sector in 2022. She was also named a 2022 Fellow of the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity.

Lillian graduated summa cum laude from both Spelman College and the University of Tennessee College of Law. She has been published by both the Tennessee Law Review and Transactions: The Tennessee Journal of Business Law.

Lillian is a proud supporter of her alma mater, Spelman, where she started an annual scholarship named after her mother.

Alana C. Brown 

Alana C. Brown is the executive director of The Safe Sisters Circle. Ms. Brown is an award-winning attorney who has been fighting injustice for Black women survivors of domestic and sexual violence for the last ten years. Her expertise in the law has helped create a pathway for Black women survivors to receive free legal aid services to help facilitate their healing journey. 

In 2018 to further this mission, Ms. Brown started The Safe Sisters Circle to provide culturally specific, trauma-informed, and holistic services for Black women survivors of sexual and domestic violence living primarily in the underserved, majority Black communities of Washington, DC’s Wards 7 and 8. Ms. Brown currently serves as its Founder and Executive Director.

Ms. Brown’s work has been recognized by the larger Washington, DC community in which she received the 2020 Tip the Scales of Justice Award presented by DVLEAP for making an impact in the gender-based violence field in Washington, DC. Additionally, Ms. Brown has spoken locally, and nationally to various media outlets including the Washington Post regarding the systemic issues that Black women survivors of domestic and sexual violence experience. Ms. Brown has also published an article with the National Resource Center on Domestic Violence and spoken on panels regarding the intersection and cultural implications of the domestic and sexual violence of Black women and reproductive justice.

In a season where Black women survivors of domestic and sexual violence are disproportionately impacted by access to culturally specific legal aid, Ms. Brown has emerged as a drum major for justice in making sure that the most vulnerable citizens in Washington, DC receive culturally responsive legal services under the law. Ms. Brown received her Bachelor of Arts from New York University and her Juris Doctorate from Georgetown University Law Center.

Jehan “J” Carter  

Jehan “J.” Carter, Esq. is a principal attorney with the Carter Law Group and an adjunct with Pepperdine Caruso School of Law. Carter is a graduate of the University of Virginia with two B.A. degrees in Government and Spanish and received her Juris Doctor degree and Patent Law Certificate from New York Law School. In law school, Carter clerked for the Honorable Debra James at the New York Supreme Court. 

She has over 5 years of experience in areas of intellectual property, entertainment, business, and estate law with the Carter Law Group. In addition to her legal practice, she has worked in counsel at DreamWorks (formerly Classic Media) and Universal Music Group. Carter currently teaches Intellectual Property courses at Pepperdine and offers a nationwide remote law school internship program for students interested in entertainment and intellectual property. Previous alumni of her program have been students from an array of schools from Harvard to Howard.

She has been featured in many publications including TMZ, Yahoo Finance, and Forbes for her legal work and entrepreneurship including her representation of the Ahmaud Arbery estate overseeing all of his intellectual property rights and assets. In 2020, she was sworn into the Supreme Court Attorney Bar as the only Black attorney in her class and featured in Forbes for her criminal justice reform work assisting protesters nationwide. 

In 2021, she became the creator and host of the first-ever Black Lawyers Podcast that features a nationwide free directory of Black lawyers and a bar/book scholarship for Black law students. She is also the co-founder of Lawyer Bae LLC, the largest growing legal network that promotes diversity in the legal profession and highlights the largest number of women and minorities in their nationwide lawyer directory. 

Aubrey B. Coleman II   

Aubrey B. Coleman II is a Program Manager with Microsoft’s Airband Initiative. In this role, Aubrey leads efforts to close the digital divide by partnering with internet service providers to deliver affordable broadband internet access to unserved Black communities across the United States. Aubrey is also leading efforts to close the rural digital divide by working with internet service providers to deliver broadband internet access to more than 3 million previously unserved citizens in rural America.

Prior to joining Microsoft, Aubrey worked at T-Mobile where he developed a public policy program that advocated for broadband internet infrastructure expansion throughout the United States. Aubrey also worked at Alaska Airlines in the Airport Affairs group where he oversaw the airline’s legal and real estate interest throughout North and Latin America.

When Aubrey isn’t at work, he is leading a cohort charged with developing a community-run grocery store in South Dallas, Texas – a community struggling with food insecurity. Aubrey also volunteers as a Voter Protection Attorney with the Texas Democratic Party’s Election Protection initiative which aims to protect the rights of citizens casting ballots in Texas elections.

A native of Birmingham, Alabama, Aubrey earned his Bachelor of Science in Corporate Finance and Macroeconomic Monetary Policy from the University of Alabama. Aubrey later returned to the University of Alabama where he earned his Juris Doctorate and Master of Science in Civil Engineering and was recognized as the 2014 Outstanding Graduate Student of the Year. Aubrey has received numerous professional awards including the American Bar Association’s Jefferson B. Fordham Up and Comer Award and the Parkland Foundation Community First Award.

Aubrey lives in Dallas, Texas with his wife Elizabeth Coleman, Esq., and their dog Loki. The couple is eagerly awaiting the arrival of twins Aubrey III and Amelia later this summer. 

Charles Deskins II   

Charles Deskins is an associate with Alverson Taylor & Sanders in Las Vegas, Nevada. He practices family law and civil litigation. Charles was born and raised in Southeast Washington D.C. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. He received his Juris Doctorate from the Charlotte School of Law and his L.L.M  in the niche field of Gaming Policy & Regulation from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. 

In 2018, Charles Deskins became the first African American male to receive a L.L.M. from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. The same year, Charles launched a charity foundation in his father’s namesake to raise awareness and fight Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). The Charles Deskins Foundation’s mission is to educate families affected by COPD. In the near future, the foundation will offer scholarships for college students with parents or family members that have been negatively impacted by COPD. 

In the gaming industry, Deskins helped to develop the initial framework for sports wagering in the state of Maryland. Prior to joining Alverson Taylor & Sanders, Charles worked for GameCo, a slot manufacturing gaming company, which revolutionized the slot industry by developing hybrid machines featuring video games for multiplayers. This development became a branch of the gaming industry known as E-Sports.

When Charles is not working with his foundation or shaking the pillars of justice for his clients, he is a classically trained pianist who also enjoys cooking and traveling internationally. Charles is a horse racing expert, and former exercise rider at Laurel Park Racetrack in Laurel, MD. He is an accomplished sports handicapper and Sports Betting Handicap Director for the online stock monitoring website, Money.net. 

Jared Evans   

Jared Evans is a policy counsel with the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF), the nation’s oldest and foremost civil rights law organization. Jared’s practice area at LDF is focused on political participation, with a particular emphasis on voting rights, the census, and redistricting. 

During the 2021 redistricting cycle in Louisiana, Jared led the civil rights and racial justice coalition, a group of 16 human and civil rights organizations, in advocating for greater minority representation on all governmental and legislative bodies, including the Louisiana Supreme Court, the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, and the United States Congress. Jared also led the coalition’s efforts in successfully pressuring the Governor to veto the racist, unfair, and illegal congressional map passed by the legislature that packed Black voters into just one district and lobbying the legislature to sustain the Governor’s veto. The coalition’s efforts resulted in the construction of a robust and comprehensive record of racial discrimination at every step of the legislative process in preparation for litigation.  

Prior to joining LDF, Jared held legislative and policy positions with the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, the Louisiana House of Representatives, and served in the offices of former U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu and former Louisiana State Representative and Senator Rick Gallot. 

Jared is a magna cum laude graduate of Grambling State University and holds law degrees from Southern University Law Center and the George Washington University School of Law. He is a member of the Washington Bar Association Young Lawyer’s Division, Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc., and St. Augustine Catholic Church. He also serves as an Adjunct Professor at Southern University Law Center and is licensed to practice law in all courts in Louisiana and the District of Columbia. 

Nilaja S. Ford  

Nilaja S. Ford is the Founding/Managing Partner of the Law Office of Nilaja S. Ford, Esquire. As a non-traditional law student, Ms. Ford worked full-time as a Human Resources Manager at Rutgers University while attending law school in the evening at Rutgers Law School (Newark). She began her legal career as a Judicial Law Clerk (Superior Court of New Jersey – Essex County Vicinage Criminal Division) under the Honorable Harold Fullilove, Jr. She then worked as a Special Deputy Attorney General/Acting Assistant Prosecutor in the Bail Reform Unit and Special Victims Units. Ms. Ford ventured out on her own to build a full-service law firm where she specializes in Family Law. She currently employs 3 attorneys and 4 staff.

Ms. Ford is a very active servant and mentor in the legal community. She was recently named as a Trustee of the IOLTA Fund of the Bar of New Jersey for a five-year term beginning in March of 2022. She received a President’s Award for her work with the NBA during CK Hoffler’s presidency and was also named as a 2021 “New Leader of the Bar” by the New Jersey Legal Journal. Ms. Ford was featured by Essence Magazine on her experience as a Black woman in law: https://www.essence.com/lifestyle/celebrate-black-women-in-law/.



Her leadership roles include Region III Director of the National Bar Association (PA, NJ, and DE); Policy & Programming Coordinator for current the NBA Presidential Administration; Board of Directors & Co-Chair of the Substantive Law Committee for the Garden State Bar Association; Financial Secretary & Membership Committee Chair of the Association of Black Women Lawyers of New Jersey; 2021-2022 Fellow of the American Bar Association Family Law Section; Domestic Violence Chair of the American Bar Association Family Law Section; and Executive Committee/Founding Member of the Rutgers Law Alumnae Network. 



Derick G. Holt   

Derick Holt is an International Trade Partner with Wiley Rein LLP. He represents clients in a variety of international trade matters.

Derick attended Howard University School of Law (“HUSL”), where he graduated first in his class. After working at the U.S. International Trade Commission (“USITC”) throughout college and law school, Derick first came to Wiley as a Summer Associate and joined the firm as an Associate in 2011. With an outstanding record of success for Wiley’s trade clients, he was promoted to Partner at age 34 in 2021.

Recognized as a “Rising Star” by Law360 (2020) and The National Law Journal (2021), Derick has been instrumental in Wiley’s biggest trade cases, securing crucial victories for U.S. companies and industries whose very existence is threatened by foreign competitors’ unfair trade practices. This includes successfully representing domestic steel manufacturers as well as U.S. chassis, wind-tower, and wire-rod producers in subsidy and antidumping investigations to obtain trade remedies and protect American jobs.  

Derick is among the first Black law firm partners to practice international trade-remedy law. He serves as Vice-Chair of the Customs and International Trade Bar Association’s DEI Committee, advocates for changes needed in the trade field to foster more engagement and inclusivity among historically-underrepresented groups, and has established an endowed scholarship at HUSL for students interested in international trade.

This year, he participated in a USITC hearing and several roundtables focusing on race and ethnicity. He also is a participant in Wiley’s pro bono program, where he represents low-income DC residents and nonprofit organizations in landlord-tenant disputes. Derick is a trusted mentor to younger associates and co-chairs Wiley’s Minority Lawyers Affinity Group and Associates Committee has served on Wiley’s DEI Committee and was a 2018 Leadership Council on Legal Diversity Fellow. 

Martinis M. Jackson   

Martinis Jackson is the owner of Jackson Legal Services PLLC. He will accept the NBA’s 40 under 40 award in his hometown of Memphis, TN where he received his undergraduate (English) and graduate degrees (Masters in Teaching) from Christian Brothers University.

Prior to attending law school, Martinis gave back to his community by serving as a public school teacher and basketball coach in the district where he attended high school. Driven by a mission to fight for civil rights, Martinis left teaching and attended Howard University School of Law where he graduated valedictorian of his class. After graduating from Howard Law, Martinis made his mark on the criminal justice system as a prosecutor in the District of Columbia trying dozens of misdemeanor and felony cases. 

In 2018, Martinis published Justice My Way: Memoirs of a Black Prosecutor, which explores the role of prosecutors and details the difficulties minorities face when serving in this important role. Justice My Way has received recognition in the legal community and has garnered a 4.9 out of 5 rating on Amazon. 

Martinis appears frequently as a guest on panels, podcasts, and speaking engagements to share his views on civil rights and criminal justice. In 2019, he served as the guest speaker for the prestigious Ollie May Cooper Award for award recipient and Attorney General of the District of Columbia, Karl Recine. He currently owns and operates Jackson Legal Services PLLC, a firm dedicated to serving clients with life-changing injuries due to personal injury and police misconduct.  



Ashlee C. Martin   

Ashlee Martin is a named Partner at Gerger, Hennessy & Martin LLP, a Chambers Band 1 ranked white-collar criminal defense firm in Houston, Texas. Ashlee is an experienced trial lawyer and former federal prosecutor who currently defends individuals and companies in criminal and civil proceedings in federal and state courts. Her recent trial victory included receiving an acquittal of all charges against DOJ for client Mark Forkner, who was the only person criminally charged in the Boeing 737 Max crashes. 

Before private practice, Ashlee served as Trial Attorney and Assistant Chief in the U.S. Department of Justice, Fraud Section. She led the Health Care Fraud Strike Force—supervising seven prosecutors and overseeing complex fraud cases in Texas. She supervised dozens of investigations and prosecutions of white-collar crime and tried numerous federal jury trials involving hundreds of millions of dollars of fraud claims.  

Ashlee’s work at DOJ garnered several accolades including the HHS Inspector General’s Award for Integrity; HHS Inspector General’s Award for Excellence; IRS Criminal Investigation’s Recognition for Outstanding Support; and the Assistant Attorney General’s Award for Distinguished Service. 

Ashlee has served on the boards of several legal and social organizations, including the Texas Civil Rights Project, the Federal Bar Association for the Southern District of Texas, and the Houston Association of Women Attorneys. She is committed to pro bono service. Her recent pro bono work includes representing Maurice Hall, the passenger in George Floyd’s car, and helping students at T.M. Landry—a high school accused of submitting fraudulent college applications. Her work has been featured in Bloomberg Law, CNN Chris Cuomo, the New York Times, and was the focus of the premiere episode of NYT’s docuseries “The Weekly.” She has been named Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch 2020-2022. 



Ashlee attended Spelman College and Vanderbilt University Law School.  

Kelly D. Newsome   

Kelly D. Newsome is a Senior Associate with Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP. A member of Orrick’s White Collar, Investigations, & Compliance group, Kelly advises individuals and corporations in white-collar criminal and regulatory matters across the globe with a focus on the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and other anti-corruption laws and regulations. Kelly is also an active member of Orrick's Africa practice and works on a variety of legal matters across several jurisdictions in the areas of anti-corruption compliance, extractive industry transparency, illegal detention, and transitional justice.  

Kelly remains actively committed to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives and recently served as co-chair of the Black Lawyers of Orrick (BLOO) affinity group. Over the last two years, Kelly partnered with Orrick’s leadership to address the racial reckoning both inside and outside of the firm. She envisioned, executed, and hosted Juneteenth conversations with Soledad O’Brien and Dr. Henry Louis Gates that reached thousands of clients and team members. She brought the vision to the establishment of the firm’s innovative Racial, Social, and Economic Justice Fellowship program.  A gifted photographer and storyteller, Kelly captured powerful images of peaceful demonstrations throughout Harlem in the summer of 2020, which formed an essential part of Orrick’s solidarity statement.

Kelly serves on the Board of Directors for the New York Landmarks Conservancy, an organization dedicated to preserving, revitalizing, and reusing historic structures in New York state. She also serves on the advisory board of the International Medalist Association, an organization focused on nurturing girls' health, fitness, and leadership skills through sports and academics in West Africa. 

Kelly holds a BA and MPA from the University of Missouri-Kansas City, a JD from Georgetown University Law Center, and a French law degree from Sciences Po Paris. 

Roy Prather III   

Roy Prather is a Principal with Beveridge & Diamond, an environmental law firm. He maintains a national practice focused on complex environmental and commercial litigation matters. 

Roy represents businesses and public sector entities across a broad range of industry sectors in federal and state courts. He defends citizen suits and class actions involving toxic tort, product liability, and green marketing-related consumer protection claims. Roy advises clients on issues relating to environmental regulatory compliance and represents clients in indemnity and other commercial contract disputes relating to construction as well as contaminated site cleanup. He also works with clients to manage sensitive multi-stakeholder interactions related to environmental justice (EJ), including developing creative solutions to address EJ community concerns. Roy currently serves in firm leadership as a member of the firm’s Management Committee and before that as the Chair of the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee.

Roy regularly publishes and speaks regarding environmental litigation and EJ issues. He recently served as a member of Law360’s 2021 Environmental Editorial Advisory Board.  Additionally, in 2021 the American Lawyer’s AmLaw Litigation Daily highlighted one of Roy’s significant litigation accomplishments when he and his team were named “Litigators of the Week” for their successful resolution of major litigation defending the City of Newark over issues regarding lead in drinking water.

Roy prioritizes being an active member of his community. In 2022, Roy joined the Board of Directors of the National Aquarium. He also serves on the Advisory Board of the Black BigLaw Pipeline, Inc., a non-profit established to promote positive outcomes for Black attorneys in large law firms. Additionally, Roy currently serves as the Co-Vice Chair of the NBA’s Environmental, Energy, and Public Utilities Law Section.

Roy obtained a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania and his J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center.  

Joanne Saint Louis   

Joanne Saint Louis is the director of diversity outreach at JAMS, the world's largest private alternative dispute resolution (ADR) provider. Ms. Saint Louis joined JAMS in August 2019 as the first diversity and inclusion manager for an ADR provider and was recently promoted to director. She is the vice-chair of the Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) Committee. She oversees external diversity initiatives at JAMS. During her short time at JAMS, Ms. Saint Louis has co-created and facilitated employee resource groups within the organization and expanded the D&I Committee to increase JAMS’ diversity, equity and inclusion footprint within the legal industry. She has also created a domestic diversity fellowship to increase the diversity pipeline within ADR.

Ms. Saint Louis is a thought leader within the ADR industry and has published various publications to promote the selection of diverse neutrals. She continues to speak and create webinars to increase pipeline opportunities and enhance the visibility of diverse neutrals within the legal profession.

Ms. Saint Louis comes to JAMS from the American Arbitration Association, where she was the director of ADR services in its Labor, Employment and Elections Division. She was also a member of the AAA’s Diversity Committee and was responsible for putting on several successful ADR and diversity events.

Ms. Saint Louis graduated from Suffolk University in Boston, where she received a B.S. in political science, with a minor in sociology. She also received her J.D. from the Massachusetts School of Law. Prior to working at the AAA, she worked in Social Security Disability law.  Ms. Saint Louis is a founding member of the ADR Inclusion Network and vice-chair of the American Bar Association’s Dispute Resolution Section’s Diversity Committee. She is also a member of various affinity bar associations and organizations.  

Almuhtada Smith

Almuhtada Smith is currently employed as the principal attorney with ARS IP Law Firm, P.C. (“ARS Counsel”). With over a decade of legal experience, Almuhtada handles complex transactional matters providing counsel to various start-up enterprises, entertainment professionals, venture-backed companies and family-owned businesses.  His service areas of expertise include managing intellectual property, corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, licensing, e-commerce, and corporate governance. 

Almuhtada spent much of his career at several prestigious law firms, including The Cochran Firm and Jenner & Block. His exposure to Fortune 500 business leaders, entrepreneurs, and innovative start-ups influenced his entrepreneurial vision that inspired his founding of ARS Counsel. Almuhtada focuses on social innovation and racial equity in his practice, offering premium services to entrepreneurs and creatives of color. His high-quality work placed Almuhtada on the 2021 and 2022 Southern California Rising Stars lists, an honor reserved for only 2.5% of Southern California attorneys. Almuhtada champions diversity in the legal profession and recently penned an op-ed for Bloomberg Law titled "Flores' NFL Story Parallels Lack of Diversity in Legal Industry." He has also shared his expertise with Ebony Magazine, highlighting tips for Black entrepreneurs seeking start-up funding.  



A native of Passaic, New Jersey, Almuhtada was born into a loving family struggling with the realities of poverty. His environment instilled him with a strong sense of character, ethical values, and a determined work ethic. Almuhtada obtained his undergraduate degree at Morehouse College, where he joined Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., and earned his J.D at the UCLA School of Law. Committed to serving his community, Almuhtada is Chairman for the Los Angeles Southwest College Foundation and a lifetime member of the John M. Langston Bar Association. He enjoys spending time with friends and family and supporting the visual and performing arts community in Los Angeles.  

Patrice A. Sulton   

Patrice Sulton is Executive Director of DC Justice Lab. She is an attorney, professor, and criminal justice reform advocate based in Washington, D.C. Her career is devoted to fundamentally changing the way people think about who we punish, why we punish, and how we punish. A lifelong organizer, Patrice believes the brilliant ideas we are looking for are in the brilliant people we overlook. She envisions, writes, and fights for sweeping changes to American criminal laws and policies.  Patrice was named a “Rising Star” by the Greater Washington Area Chapter of the National Bar Association and received National Bar Association’s Lendon J. Alexander Advocacy & Leadership Award. This year, she is an Echoing Green Fellow, a finalist in the World Justice Challenge, and the recipient of the Washington Lawyers’ Committee’s Alfred McKenzie Award.

Patrice has represented clients in criminal and civil rights cases in D.C. courts and federal courts nationwide. She served on the District of Columbia’s Criminal Code Reform Commission (comprehensively rewriting D.C.’s criminal code), Police Reform Commission (recommending an overhaul of D.C.’s approach to public safety), and Jails & Justice Task Force (publishing a plan to decarcerate by half and bring D.C.’s residents home to a safe environment).

Prior to her work drafting legislation, Patrice earned a reputation as a focused and fierce advocate for her clients and is known for leveraging her deep understanding of substantive law and procedure to approach cases thoughtfully and holistically.   

Patrice is a passionate instructor and counsels law professionals, policymakers and community advocates on criminal justice, racial justice, constitutional law, advocacy, and systems change. She is a Professorial Lecturer in Law at The George Washington University Law School and, last year, she was awarded the Distinguished Adjunct Teaching Award. 

Patrice earned her BA in Philosophy from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and her JD from The George Washington University Law School. 

LaQuita R. Stokes   

LaQuita R. Stokes is a Managing Attorney at Stokes & Glass, PLLC.  She is licensed to practice law in Tennessee and primarily practices in the areas of family law, business, and entertainment law.  In 2013, she was the lead attorney on a child support case before the Tennessee Appellate Court that changed the law as it relates to disestablishing the paternity of a child.

Attorney Stokes is a Memphis native and graduate of Vanderbilt University College of Arts & Sciences and the University of Kentucky College of Law.  She is the current President of the Ben F. Jones Chapter of the National Bar Association and under her leadership as Vice-President and now President the organization has surpassed its fundraising goals two years in a row.  She serves on the board of the Memphis Bar Association, On-Location Memphis, Shelby County Law Library Board, and Charis Acres, a retirement home in Memphis.

She has received numerous awards, including the 2017 Tri-State Defender’s Best Overall Attorney and the 2017 Best Family Law/Divorce Attorney at the Annual Tri-State Defender’s Best in Black Awards.  In 2018, She was a “Dress for Success” honoree as a woman with an Entrepreneurial Spirit.  In 2019, she was an “Outstanding Citizen” honoree at the Memphis 2019 40 Under 40 Urban Elite Awards.



She is also the Co-Owner of Sapphire & Emerald women’s clothing store, an active member of the Memphis Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., and a faithful member of Cornerstone Church of Christ where her father is senior pastor.  She is the daughter of Jimmy L. Stokes Sr. and the late Peggie A. Stokes.  She has two (2) brothers: Pastor Jimmy Stokes, II & Corby Stokes; a sister-in-law, Akilah Stokes; one niece, Xaria Stokes, and one nephew Corby Stokes, II. 

Quinton Thompson

Quinton Thompson is a personal injury attorney with Morgan & Morgan in Memphis, TN where he primarily deals with automobile collisions, slip and falls, and wrongful deaths cases. 

Mr. Thompson earned his B.S. degree from the University of Tennessee Knoxville where he graduated magna cum laude with degrees in both Business Administration Management and Psychology. He then went on to earn his J.D. from Vanderbilt University Law School in 2015.  

Before joining Morgan and Morgan, Quinton practiced personal injury law with Nahon, Saharovich, and Trotz and he also completed a legal fellowship with the Mississippi Center for Justice where he helped hundreds of individuals expunge their criminal records. 



Quinton is currently the Immediate Past President of both the Young Lawyers’ Division of the Memphis Bar Association and the Ben F. Jones Chapter of the National Bar Association. He is also the Vice President for the Tennessee Bar Association Young Lawyers’ Division, and he serves an affiliate chapter representative on the National Bar Association’s Board of Governors.  

Eric L. White   

Eric White is a partner with Kirkland & Ellis LLP.  Eric focuses his practice on complex commercial litigation and investigations. He has broad experience representing both plaintiffs and defendants in a variety of industries, including environmental, technology, pharmaceutical, private equity, higher education, retail and insurance. He has successfully represented clients in all aspects of state and federal litigation, including complex discovery, motion practice, fact, and expert depositions, and bench and jury trials.  He also leads and counsels clients in sensitive investigations, which have included allegations of sexual harassment, discrimination, and employee misconduct.

Eric also maintains an active pro bono practice.  Recently, Eric along with dozens of attorneys across Kirkland’s offices assisted the Minnesota Department of Human Rights in their nearly two-year long investigation into the policing practices of the Minneapolis Police Department in the wake of the killing of George Floyd.  The investigation resulted in a finding that there is probable cause that the police department engages in a pattern or practice of discriminatory, race-based policing.



Outside of his legal practice, Eric is very involved within Kirkland and the Chicago community.  At Kirkland, Eric is a co-chair of the Chicago Black Affinity Group, and is a member of the Firmwide Diversity & Inclusion Committee, the Chicago Pride Affinity Group, the Chicago Recruiting Committee, and the Chicago Paralegal Review Committee.  In the Chicago community, Eric is a Board Director of Nourishing Hope and an Advisory Board Member of the Northwestern Law Bluhm Legal Clinic.  As a former sixth-grade teacher and Teach For America alum, Eric is also actively involved with Teach For America in Chicago.

Recently, Eric was also recognized as one of the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association’s 2022 40 Best LGBTQ+ Lawyers Under 40.  

Amar J. Williams  

Amar Williams joined the law firm of Gary, Williams, Parenti, Watson, Gary & Gillespie P.L.L.C. in 2011 and works closely with his father, Senior Partner, Lorenzo Williams.  Amar specializes in personal injury and wrongful death arising from automobile and trucking accidents.  He also has extensive experience litigating medical malpractice matters alongside Partner, Phyllis Gillespie and assisting in commercial trials with of Counsel, Elaine James.  Amar’s legal expertise, both in and out of the courtroom, has earned him numerous settlements in excess of a million dollars including an aviation settlement of 10 million and a multi-million dollar sexual assault settlement alongside Senior Partner, Willie Gary.  

Prior to joining the Firm, Amar worked in the legal department for a major retailer, during which time he was responsible for the employment contracts of campaign models and worked to protect the integrity and authenticity of the retailer’s logo and other trademarks.  Amar also served as a judicial clerk to the Honorable Donald L. Graham, of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida.



Amar graduated from the University of Miami in 2008 with a degree in International Studies with minors in Art and Business Law.  He then continued on to the University Of Pittsburgh School Of Law, where he served as President of the Student Bar Association, a member of the Black Law Students Association, and a legal writing teacher’s assistant to 2Ls and 3Ls.  Upon graduation, he was honored with the University of Pittsburgh Student Leadership Award in 2011. Amar is admitted to practice law in Florida, Pennsylvania, New York, and the District of Columbia.  He is a member of the National Bar Association, Martin County Bar Association, and the Palm Beach County ‘Canes.  When not practicing law, Amar regularly enjoys travelling internationally, spending his time and money on his niece and nephews and cheering his Miami Hurricanes to victory!