
Current Board
Through organized activities and individual contributions from its members, the CCBA has held various legal clinics and community forums at various sites and is supported by renowned civil rights organizations including Rainbow PUSH, local chapters of the NAACP, and other local groups and churches.
Executive Board
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Antonio C. Lee | President
Antonio Lee is a lifelong public servant with experience serving as a United States Presidential Management Fellow at the U.S. Department of Justice. Mr. Lee previously served as an Assistant State’s Attorney at the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office (CCSAO), where he handled all aspects of civil litigation for torts and civil rights cases in state, appellate, and federal court.
Prior to working at the CCSAO, Mr. Lee served with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development - Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, and U.S. Department of Justice – Community Relations Service. He holds several local and national leadership positions while tutoring law students to successfully pass state bar examinations and increase diversity in the legal profession. Mr. Lee is a licensed attorney in Georgia, Illinois, and the District of Columbia.
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LeDeidre S. Turner | President Elect
LeDeidre Turner currently serves the Cook County Bar Association (“CCBA”) as the Vice President of Education and Information and Co-Chairman of the Minority Law Student Job Fair. She is an Assistant General Counsel with Commonwealth Edison Company (“ComEd”) where she represents ComEd before the Illinois Commerce Commission and other state agencies in administrative proceedings and other relevant litigation.
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LeDeidre also serves as a Board Member for Legal Aid Chicago and Foster Progress. She is an active member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., Lambda Tau Omega Chapter. LeDeidre received a Juris Doctor from The John Marshall Law School (now known as UIC School of Law) and a Bachelor of Arts from Spelman College.
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Mark A. Dunham | Vice President of Operations
Mark A. Dunham, Jr. serves as the Vice President of Operations of the Cook County Bar Association, where he sits as a member of the Board of Directors and its Executive Committee, oversees the operation of the CCBA’s Sections and Standing Committees, and chairs the Board’s Governance and Operations Committee. Professionally, Mr. Dunham works as Director & Senior Counsel, Corporate Governance & Compliance at Mondelēz International – makers of iconic global and local brands such as Oreo, Ritz, LU, Clif Bar and Tate's Bake Shop, among others.
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Prior to in-house work, Mr. Dunham was in private practice as a securities and corporate governance attorney at three large, international law firms. Prior non-profit board service includes work with the National Black Law Students Association, Inc., where he served in numerous roles, including as its 48th National Chair, chair of its Alumni Advisory Committee, and general counsel. A double graduate of American University, Mr. Dunham received his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science in 2012 and his law degree in 2018. In addition to the CCBA, Mr. Dunham is active in the National Bar Association, Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc., and the I Am Abel Law Foundation, Inc. Mr. Dunham is a member of the New York and Illinois bars and is married to Attorney Christian A. Conway, with whom he lives in Oak Park, Illinois.
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Charmaine A. Saffore | Vice President of Education and Information
Charmaine A. Saffore graduated from the University of Illinois Chicago School of law in 2015, and has been a practicing Lawyer since 2016. In addition, to her Juris Doctorate she obtained a Master of Laws (LLM) in Taxation in January of 2017.
Since July of 2024, Charmaine has been employed by the Cook County Board of Review as a Legal Advisor to the Secretary of the Board. Simultaneously, her law firm has been in operation since November of 2016 working on a wide range of legal matters including representing clients in probate and real estate matters. From February 2020 to February 2023, she was an Assistant Attorney General. In that role she litigated white collar crime Felonies in the Special Prosecutions Bureau. From December 2018 to February 2020, Charmaine served as an Assistant State’s Attorney and litigated misdemeanors and traffic violations.
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Keyana Payne | General Secretary
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Isiaha M. Kyles | Treasurer
Isiaha M. Kyles is an associate attorney at Nyhan, Bambrick, Kinzie, and Lowry, P.C. He focuses his practice on worker’s compensation defense, utilizing a strong analytical background and problem-solving capabilities to navigate complex legal issues with precision, conduct thorough legal research, and support trial preparation.
Prior to his role as an associate, Isiaha served as an intern at the firm from 2023 – 2024, where he assisted with legal research and case preparation, gaining invaluable insights into legal practice through his experiences attending pretrial hearings and oral arguments. While in law school, Isiaha was a member of the Constance Baker Motley Regional Mock Trial team for the National Black Law Students Association in which he demonstrated exceptional courtroom proficiency, earning recognition as a 2024 Best Advocate at the Chicago Cup competition.
Board of Directors
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Glori Bond
Glori is an associate in the Firm's business litigation practice. She handles complex business litigation and class action matters, typically representing city governments and municipalities.
Glori enjoys how litigation cases do not have a one-size-fits-all solution and finds that each case has a unique set of complex issues, allowing her to constantly learn something new.
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Ivory Djahouri
Ivory currently serves as the Director of Compliance for Triune, a Black-owned tech startup that provides cutting-edge medical and legal alert services. Before stepping into the tech world, Ivory gained IP experience at both a prominent law firm in Chicago and at a global insights and information company. In 2024, she co-authored an article entitled, “Tailoring Compliance Before AI Walks the Runway.” Most recently, she taught Legal Writing at UIC School of Law for the SCALES program, the law school’s performance-evaluation-based admission program, which provides promising applicants with an opportunity to obtain a legal education.
In 2024, Ivory was selected by the National Black Lawyers as a Top 40 Under 40 member. She also serves as a scholarship committee member for the Cook County Bar Association Foundation. To date, one of her most memorable experiences was serving as a judicial extern for Justice Neville of the Illinois Supreme Court. As a first-generation attorney, Ivory is deeply committed to mentoring students and giving back to her community. She received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Finance with a minor in Business Analytics from UIC and her Juris Doctor from UIC School of Law.
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Lesley Gool
Lesley D. Gool grew up in the Beverly Hills neighborhood on the South Side of Chicago and graduated from Morgan Park High School. She earned a B.A. from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and later pursued further education, receiving her J.D. and LL.M. in Intellectual Property from The John Marshall Law School. During law school, Lesley worked as an extern at the Illinois Appellate Court, where she clerked for the current Illinois Supreme Court Justice P. Scott Neville, gaining valuable experience in the field.
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Hon. Arnette Hubbard, Ret.
Judge Arnette R. Hubbard has had a long tenure in law and public service. As an attorney, public official and elected circuit court judge in Cook County, Judge Hubbard has devoted her life to working for the protection of individual rights and freedoms. Judge Hubbard was appointed to
the bench by the Illinois Supreme Court in 1997, and elected by the people of Cook county in 1998.
Judge Hubbard, a local and national legal trailblazer was installed in 1978 as the first female President of the Cook County Bar Association, the oldest Association of African-American lawyers and judges in the nation. Judge Hubbard continued to make history by being elected as the first female president of the National Bar Association on July 31, 1981. Judge Hubbard has served in many leadership positions in a number of renowned organizations and boards such as the Illinois Commission on the 50 th Anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education, the American Law Institute, and the Chicago Board of Elections to name a few.
Judge Hubbard began her legal career in 1969 as an attorney for the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, eventually focusing her practice on criminal defense and civil litigation.
Judge Hubbard’s career in private practice spanned two decades in Illinois and federal courts.
Before taking the bench, Judge Hubbard served for nine years as a member of the Illinois Bar Admissions Committee. In this position, she championed unrestricted access for all qualified applicants.
Judge Hubbard received her Juris Doctorate degree from the John Marshall Law School which honored her with its Distinguished Alumnus Citation. Her undergraduate degree, earned at Southern Illinois University is in chemistry and mathematics. She was bestowed Southern
Illinois University’s Distinguished Alumni Award. Judge Hubbard has also been installed into the Cook County Bar Association’s Hall of Fame.
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Louis Raymond, II
Louis C. Raymond II, Esq., is a dynamic attorney and seasoned government affairs expert with a rich background spanning law, military service, and impactful leadership roles. As the Principal of Raymond Law Group, LLC, he specializes in municipal law, real estate, and probate matters, actively assisting not-for-profit organizations and small businesses.
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Alexzandria N. Rice
Alexzandria N. Rice (Johnson) is employed as an Associate Attorney at Lipe Lyons Murphy Nahrstadt & Pontikis practicing civil defense-insurance litigation. Alexzandria was honored as a Rising Star in Civil Litigation by Illinois SuperLawyers for the 2023-2024 year. Previously, Alexzandria served as a State's Attorney. In 2020, NCCU’s Law Review published Alexzandria’s article entitled, “We Deserve Better: How Hip Hop Perpetuates the Rape Culture of Black Women.”
Alexzandria has been honored by CCBA with awards including the Junior Counselor Award, Meritorious Service Award, Next Generation Award, and Presidential Awards. In 2016, she founded the MD Chamberlain Foundation which is named after a friend she lost to gun violence. The organization focuses on uplifting underserved communities. Alexzandria also mentors law students, and is a member of ELITE Chicago, which provides young women with mentorship.
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Trevor Rogers
Trevor Rogers is a dedicated trial attorney who earned his Juris Doctor from Loyola University Chicago School of Law, graduating cum laude. He has been a practicing attorney for four years and currently serves as an associate at JJ Legal Injury Lawyers, where he focuses on plaintiff’s personal injury litigation. His practice areas include motor vehicle accidents, slip and falls, wrongful death, and medical malpractice. Trevor began his legal career as an Assistant State’s Attorney with the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office, gaining invaluable courtroom and litigation experience.
Trevor proudly follows in the footsteps of his family’s legacy of legal excellence and public service as the grandson of former CCBA President Larry Rogers, Sr. and nephew of former CCBA President Larry Rogers, Jr. Outside of the courtroom, he serves as Vice President of the Young Democrats of Illinois and has been a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. since 2011. He is passionate about advocating for people, especially those who have been injured or marginalized, and remains committed to advancing justice, uplifting his community, and mentoring the next generation of legal professionals.
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Lori Roper
Born and raised on the South Side of Chicago. I attended Lindblom Technical High School, Class of 1983. I received an Associates of Arts from Kennedy – King College and a B. A. in Political Science from Roosevelt University. Received a Juris Doctorate from The Claude Petit College of Law at Ohio Northern University in 1993. Employed as an Assistant Public Defender at the Law Office of the Cook County Public
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André A. Sutton, Esq.
Originally from South Florida, Andre is a double graduate from the University of Florida. He was a first generation college student and is the first attorney in his family. Moving to Chicago 10 years ago with just a television and two suitcases, Andre attended and earned his J.D. from the University of Illinois Chicago School of Law. While his original plan was to move back to Florida, he fell in love with the city of Chicago and now calls it home. Andre began his legal career at Chicago Transit Authority before moving into private practice as a Labor and Employment attorney. Having received valuable experience and training at law firms, Andre now works as Lead Labor and Employment Counsel at the Cook County Public Defender's Office. He is the first person in this role.
Andre has been a part of the CCBA since he started law school and was a part of the 2023 inaugural class of CCBA's Next Generation awardees. In Andre's spare time, he serves as Corresponding Secretary for the Theta Mu Lambda Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc., traveling the world, and binging shows on Netflix.
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Juan Thomas
Juan R. Thomas is Of Counsel to Quintairos, Prieto, Wood & Boyer, P.A., and is the founder and principal of The Thomas Law Group. Dr. Thomas practice includes the following specialties: real estate/estate planning, labor and employment, and family law. In addition, Dr. Thomas provides counseling and training to firm clients in areas involving personnel, collective bargaining, and business development matters.
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Mecca L. Thompson
Ms. Thompson received her undergraduate degree (political science), minor in African American Studies, and International Studies from Loyola University of Chicago in 1995. Before entering law school she worked for Kirkland Ellis from 1995-1996. She graduated from Howard University School of Law in 2001.
• She is a member of the Board of Directors for the Cook County Bar Association
• She is a member of the Board of Directors for the Westside Branch of the NAACP
• She has served as member of the International Academy of Collaborative Professionals and a member of the Association for Conflict Resolution.
• She possesses a license to practice law before the courts in the state of Illinois and the general courts of the Northern District of Illinois.
• Ms. Thompson has served as an arbitrator with the Cook County Mandatory Arbitration program and has also served as an instructor for East West University.
• Ms. Thompson is a member of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc.
Mecca Thompson entered private practice to provide legal services to anyone seeking to
prepare for the transitions of life like, death, disability, divorce, or unplanned pregnancies..
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Luke Townsend
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Lynn J. Watkins
Lynn J. Watkins is a partner at ArentFox Schiff. He concentrates his practice in corporate and securities, as well as finance, where he has extensive experience in representing his clients in a range of complex financial transactions. Lynn has successfully represented both private and public companies in their acquisitions and divestitures. He has counseled institutional clients in connection with their investments in alternative investment vehicles. Lynn has also guided private equity funds in their formation and helped ensure their compliance with securities laws. He has significant experience in working with start-ups on a range of critical and sophisticated financial transactions.
Lynn also represents financial institutions and borrowers in a variety of financing matters, including secured and unsecured term note placements and mezzanine financings.
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Monique Woody
Monique Patton Woody currently serves as Assistant General Counsel for ComEd’s Regulatory Litigation Division. She is the General Secretary for the Cook County Bar Association’s Board of Directors, Chair of the Cook County Bar Association’s Mental Health Committee, and a member of the Board of Directors for Center for Independent Futures.
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Nicholas E. Cummings | Ex Officio
Nicholas serves as a Principal Corporate Counsel in the Corporate, External and Legal Affairs department for the Microsoft Corporation, working within the Public Sector Industries organization enabling sales to state and local government and educational institutions. He is the former Corporation Counsel/City Attorney for the City of Evanston, the first person of color to serve in the role. Prior to being appointed to Corporation Counsel, Nicholas served as the Deputy City Attorney, where he advised Evanston’s Reparations Subcommittee regarding the legal hurdles facing restorative justice programs.
Prior to joining the City of Evanston, Nicholas was a Chief Attorney in the Chicago Transit Authority’s Law Department, where he was responsible for complex litigation of personal injury cases and an Assistant States Attorney for Cook County, where he represented Cook County in a multitude of matters, ranging from real estate matters; federal fund management including CDBG and NSP programs; and complex litigation.
He received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Human-Computer Interaction from DePaul University and his Juris Doctor from Chicago-Kent College of Law. Nicholas was born and raised in Columbus, Ohio, but he has lived in Chicago nearly 30 years.
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Prior to ascending to the presidency, Nicholas has served as President-Elect; the Vice President of Committee on Committees; Vice President of Education and Information; Financial Secretary; and Chair of the Judicial Evaluation Committee for the Cook County Bar Association. Nicholas recently concluded a term as Affiliate Representative for the Cook County Bar Association on the National Bar Association Board of Governors.
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Eileen Letts | General Counsel
Eileen Letts is a premier civil trial attorney, with dozens of jury trials and over 100 bench trials, often. to Fortune 500 companies and iconic government entities. Ms. Letts has won high-stakes trials in a wide variety of subject matter areas. Areas of focus include complex tort and commercial litigations.
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Cordelia Brown | Executive Director
Cordelia Brown serves as the Executive Director for the Cook County Bar Association, which is the oldest association of African American Lawyers and Judges in the Country. She has served as the head administrator for Bar Associations for past 19 years. Cordelia is known for her warm smile, thoughtful ability to recall everyone’s name, kind spirit, and generous soul. Cordelia has helped organize and manage conferences, seminars, and organizations for a variety of law related organizations, including having served as the Administrator for the Illinois Judicial Council Foundation and the Black Women Lawyers’ Association.
She was also instrumental in volunteering for a variety of projects for Just the Beginning—A Pipeline Organization.
Cordelia is married to her husband of 29 years, Andre Brown and they have 3 children, William, Andre II and DeAndrea, and a seven-year old granddaughter, J’Nyah. She received her degree in Computerized Accounting and Business Administration from the Illinois School of Commerce.