Jeremy Protas to Serve as Panelist for the Chicago Bar Association’s Coming Out in the Workplace Seminar

December 2, 2020

Partner Jeremy Protas will serve as a panelist during the Chicago Bar Association’s Coming Out in the Workplace Seminar on Wednesday, December 2, 2020. The Seminar is presented by the Chicago Bar Association’s IP & Young Leaders Section Committees.

Register for the Coming Out in the Workplace Seminar

The panel will discuss topics such as:

  • Issues LGBTQ people have faced in the workplace in the past and present
  • How to support LGBTQ colleagues in law firms
  • Navigating cultural attitudes about LGBTQ issues with clients (especially for clients headquartered outside of Illinois or internationally)
  • What law firms and companies can do now virtually to ensure their diverse colleagues are being supported and not lost in the shuffle

Moderated by Kenneth Matuszewski, Associate Counsel at Neal, Gerber & Eisenberg LLP, Jeremy will be joined on the panel by:

  • Nicole Bashor, Partner at Husch Blackwell LLP
  • Timothy Downing, Chief Diversity Officer and Senior Counsel at Ulmer & Berne LLP
  • Vincent Rizzo, Associate at Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP

Diversity & Inclusion CLE credit is currently pending.

This Seminar will shed a light on issues that LGBTQ people face in the legal profession, whether it be inside or outside their workplaces. As attorneys become more senior, their personal and professional identities begin to blend, in order to connect with both existing clients and potential clients. The Seminar will also discuss ways to ensure LGBTQ people are celebrated and retained in the legal profession.

Jeremy Protas counsels clients on all types of patent-related matters, while focusing on securing patents in diverse technologies including process control, wireless communication, business methods, medical devices, and bioinformatics. In addition to client work, diversity in the legal profession and community involvement are important to Jeremy. He actively contributes to Marshall Gerstein’s Diversity & Inclusion and Pro Bono Committees, and participates in the firm’s marketing and community outreach efforts, particularly in the LGBT community. Jeremy served on the Board of Directors for the National LGBT Bar Association from 2010-2017, and served as the Association’s President in 2015.

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