The Federal Bar Association Chicago Chapter invites members of the legal community to attend the 2026 Annual Employment Law Seminar, an afternoon of timely updates and practical guidance for in-house counsel and employment practitioners. Co-sponsored by JAMS and Chicago-Kent’s Martin H. Malin Institute for Law and the Workplace, this hybrid program features experienced practitioners, government officials, and judges discussing key policy developments, emerging case law, and advocacy strategies across the labor and employment landscape. This program features 4 hours of CLE credit (pending approval). A cocktail reception will follow, and remote attendees are invited.
The seminar’s first panel will address tensions employers face, given recently announced federal policy interpretations and litigation priorities that impact employer practices developed to comply with previous obligations (many of which employers still face under several states’ laws). This session is designed to help employers navigate compliance obligations and avoid enforcement actions, including issues such as affinity groups, efforts to promote “diversity, equity, and inclusion,” liability under the disparate impact theory, and more.
The seminar takes place on Monday, April 27, 2026, at Chicago-Kent College of Law, 565 W. Adams, Chicago, IL, with a hybrid attendance option. Programming runs from 12:45 p.m. to 5:15 p.m., followed by a reception until 6:45 p.m. New members joining the Chicago Chapter can get discounted dues using the code “CCIL20.”
Categories
Speakers(8)
Amrith Kaur Aakre
Director at EEOC Chicago District
Amrith Kaur Aakre is the Director of the EEOC’s Chicago District and a Senior Executive Service appointee leading multiple offices across six states. She oversees investigators, mediators, administrative judges, and attorneys; works with federal leadership on civil rights policy and litigation strategy; and previously served as the National Legal Director of the Sikh Coalition and as a Cook County felony prosecutor for more than 11 years.
Chief Magistrate Judge M. David Weisman
Chief Magistrate Judge at U.S. District Court
Chief Magistrate Judge M. David Weisman was appointed to the bench in 2016. His background includes service as an FBI special agent, work as an Assistant Corporation Counsel for the City of Chicago, and more than a decade as an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, including supervisory roles and a focus on federal litigation.
Christina O. Alabi
Associate General Counsel at Diligent
Christina O. Alabi is an Associate General Counsel at Diligent and a senior in-house global employment law and compliance counsel in the technology industry. She advises on innovative, business-minded solutions while balancing legal, reputational, and regulatory risk. She brings experience across in-house legal roles and private practice.
J. Bryan Wood
Attorney at Kaplan Law Firm, PLLC
J. Bryan Wood is an attorney at Kaplan Law Firm, PLLC, who launched the firm’s Chicago office in 2024 after nearly 25 years practicing employment law in Chicago. He has represented employees for over two decades and has extensive experience in agency proceedings, trial courts, appellate courts, and arbitration. He is Chair of the FBA Chicago Chapter’s Employment Law Committee and a frequent CLE speaker.
Jason R. Bent
Director at Chicago-Kent’s Malin Institute for the Law and the Workplace
Jason R. Bent is the Director of Chicago-Kent’s Malin Institute for the Law and the Workplace, having joined the faculty in 2025. A longtime legal educator and scholar, he co-authors a treatise on statistical evidence in discrimination cases. He has authored multiple books and has prior experience clerking in federal courts and practicing in employment, commercial litigation, and appellate matters before transitioning to academia.
Judge Georgia N. Alexakis
Judge at U.S. District Court
Judge Georgia N. Alexakis was sworn in as a U.S. District Judge on August 23, 2024. Before joining the bench, she served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney and Chief of Appeals for the Criminal Division in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois, and has experience in private practice and multiple federal clerkships.
Judge John Z. Lee
Judge at U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
Judge John Z. Lee serves on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, having been commissioned in September 2022. He previously served as a U.S. District Judge for the Northern District of Illinois since 2012. Before joining the bench, he practiced in Chicago law firms and served as a trial attorney in the U.S. Department of Justice’s Environmental and Natural Resources Division.
Laurie Elkin
Bureau Chief at Illinois Attorney General’s Civil Rights Bureau
Laurie Elkin is the Bureau Chief of the Illinois Attorney General’s Civil Rights Bureau, a position she assumed in July 2025. Previously, she served as a Senior Trial Attorney at the EEOC for two decades, litigating individual and complex class cases under Title VII, the Equal Pay Act, the ADA, and the ADEA, and also served as an attorney advisor to an EEOC Vice Chair.
Event Details
- Date
- April 27, 2026
- Location
- 🇺🇸 Chicago, United States
- Chicago-Kent College of Law
- Pricing
- From $0.00
- Audience
- In-house counsel and employment practitioners
- CLE Credits
- 4 hours of CLE credit (pending approval)