(CHICAGO) Katten announced today that Entertainment and Media Litigation associate Joanna M. Hill and Capital Markets associate Fabiola T. Valenzuela were selected for the 2022 class of Leadership Council on Legal Diversity (LCLD) Pathfinders.
"Both Joanna and Fabiola have distinguished themselves as emerging leaders and have shown true commitment to Katten's diversity, equity and inclusion efforts by serving as co-chairs of the firm's Committee for Racial and Ethnic Diversity," said Katten Chief Diversity Partner Leslie Minier. "This program will provide them with valuable experience to help them reach the next stage of their careers."
The seven-month-long Pathfinder Program is designed to equip high-performing, early-career attorneys with foundational leadership and relationship-building skills. The program provides participants with training and the opportunity to learn from top leaders in the legal profession along with experts in the fields of learning and development and executive coaching.
Hill and Valenzuela will be matched with program facilitators as mentors and offered practical tools for developing and leveraging internal professional networks, foundational leadership skills, and an understanding of career development strategies. From class meetings to group peer circles, they will have several opportunities to interact and network with their peers, both in person and in a virtual format.
"The LCLD Pathfinder Program exposes participants to intensive training, experiential learning, and opportunities to network with peers and esteemed LCLD Fellows and Alumni in small group gatherings. It's a program that can truly enhance one's career," said LCLD President Robert J. Grey.
Hill, who is based in Los Angeles, focuses her litigation practice on matters involving copyright, trademark, rights of publicity, breach of contract, defamation and fraud claims. She also participated in Katten's Kattalyst sponsorship program and is dedicated to pro bono work. She was recognized in Variety magazine's 2018 Legal Impact Report as an attorney who is "Up Next," in the field of entertainment and media.
Based in the Chicago office, Valenzuela concentrates her practice on structuring, negotiating and documenting business transactions and has represented emerging companies and investors throughout the corporate life cycle across a number of industries. She advises investors and companies on a variety of matters, including company formations, mergers and acquisitions, venture capital financings and corporate governance. She maintains an active pro bono practice, particularly representing minors in federal immigration and deportation matters.
The Leadership Council on Legal Diversity is an organization of more than 400 corporate chief legal officers and law firm managing partners — the leadership of the profession — who have pledged , through their Leaders at the Front initiative and other means, to create a truly diverse US legal profession. Their action programs are designed to attract, inspire and nurture talent in society and within their organizations, thereby helping a new and more diverse generation of attorneys ascend to positions of leadership. By producing tangible results in their institutions, they work to promote inclusiveness in their organizations and circles of influence and in society, with the ultimate goal of building a more equitable and diverse legal profession.
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