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New Hampshire Joins Data Protection Trend, Passes Comprehensive Data Protection Law
  1. People

Colleen Spehar

Associate
Chicago
T.
312.273.1612
liamE

Colleen is committed to delivering thoughtful advocacy and exceptional client service in her legal practice. Drawing on her background in customer service, she is dedicated to making the client experience as positive and seamless as possible.

Colleen’s legal experience includes litigating complex First Amendment issues, delivering strategic counsel on speech-related matters, and assessing the viability of legal claims on behalf of individuals and groups seeking to engage in protected expression or challenge unconstitutional acts of institutional authority.

Her early legal training includes serving as a teaching assistant for two undergraduate law courses. In this role, she supported students in developing legal writing and collaborative problem-solving skills. This experience sharpened her capacity to communicate complex legal topics with clarity, reinforced her appreciation for the nuances of the law, and strengthened her ability to empower others to apply legal knowledge with confidence.

Building on this foundation, Colleen is committed to growing her practice and achieving meaningful results for her clients.

  • Litigation
  • University of Illinois College of Law, 2025, J.D.
    • magna cum laude
    • Notes Editor, University of Illinois Law Review
    • Harno Scholar (semester top 10%), Fall 2022, Spring 2024
    • Dean’s List (semester top 11%-30%), Fall 2023, Fall 2024, Spring 2025
    • CALI Excellence for the Future Award® (highest grade in class), Criminal Law, Fall 2022; First Amendment Clinic, Fall 2024; International Human Rights Law, Spring 2025.
    • Recipient, Dean’s Scholarship
  • University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign, 2022, Psychology with Concentration in Behavioral Neuroscience; Minor: Philosophy and Integrative Biology 
    • National Society of Collegiate Scholars
    • Dean’s List, Fall 2021, Spring 2022
    • Willis Theodore Mass Scholarship, 2018-19
    • Edmund J. James Scholar Honors Program, 2018-19
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