The Young Lawyers Section (“YLS”) has been shaping the legal profession for decades celebrating fifty years of implementing successful legal programs and services. The purpose of the YLS was to provide programs, leadership, and facilities to encourage young attorneys in the profession to work together on their own ideas and programs to improve the community and the profession at large. Yet, by the 1990s, the YLS drastically expanded to gain a total of 13,000 members of young attorneys. The YLS began the decade in a brand-new location at 321 South Plymouth Court where it still resides today.

The YLS largely operates through its committees. In the 1990s, there were over 40 committees where multiple new committees were created, including Bankruptcy Committee, Construction Law Committee, and the Family Law Committee. The Career Assistance Committee hosted lunches and seminars to assist young attorneys with career assistance. There was also a “Law Student Interview Workshop,” to prepare law students for the workforce. Also, in the 1990s, the Women’s Rights committee sponsored the first Women’s Mentor Program to assist young female attorneys in the profession.

The YLS also continued to build and contribute to the CBA when the first all-YLS written, double length edition of the CBA Record was also published.

Lastly, in this decade, the YLS members were also dedicated to giving back to the local Chicago Community. The YLS initiated the Federal Tax Clinic with Loyola University School of Law.  The YLS also began “Adoption Option,” a legal program designed to assist grandparents in the process of adopting grandchildren in their care. For services to the elderly and hospice patients, YLS members also volunteered to assist with preparing wills and powers of attorney. The YLS even partnered with local Judges and officials to produce a videotape directed toward children in the Juvenile Court system, entitled, “What It’s All About: Understanding the Children Protection Process.” The video explained the Juvenile Court’s procedures, judges, and lawyers to explain the terminology and procedure in a manner that children could understand. The YLS even implemented a volunteer clinic with the Citizen’s Utility board to fight to keep the heat on and available for the poor.

The YLS is proud of its accomplishments over the past fifty years thanks to the contributions of young attorneys throughout the decades.