The national law firm of Quarles & Brady LLP announced that Illinois State Senator Kwame Y. Raoul has joined the Firm’s Chicago office as a partner in the Labor & Employment Group.

“Quarles is extremely pleased that Mr. Raoul has agreed to join the ranks of our quickly growing Chicago office,” said Firm chairman John W. Daniels Jr. “He will be a brilliant addition to our world-class Labor & Employment Group.” 

Senator Raoul has extensive experience in higher education, labor and employment, and litigation law. He also has a history of representing local governmental entities. He has represented the 13th district since 2004, when he was appointed to fill the vacancy of U.S. Senator Barack Obama. Since then, he has successfully advanced legislation promoting pension reform, economic development, employment law reform and political reform. He is credited for leading the successful effort to abolish the death penalty in Illinois and passing the first ever Illinois Voting Rights Act. 

“I’m looking forward to bringing my skills to the impressive legal team at Quarles and Brady. There are many great law firms in the Chicago area, but Quarles was definitely the right fit for me, in terms of both the working atmosphere and the team I’ll be working with,” Raoul said. 

Senator Raoul currently serves as chairman of the Senate Pensions and Investment Committee and Senate Committee on Redistricting, as vice-chairman of the Senate Criminal Law Committee and on the Judiciary and Financial Institutions Committees. He serves on the board of directors for International Child Care. Senator Raoul has received numerous awards and recognition for his work on criminal justice reform. He has also been recognized for passing legislation that makes the State of Illinois more employer friendly. 

“Kwame Raoul is emblematic of the attorneys that we’ve been recruiting,” said Quarles Chicago office co- managing partner Scott Watson. “We’ve built a law firm worthy of Chicago’s premier clientele, and Mr. Raoul is exactly the kind of talent we’ve been working hard to attract.” 

He earned his law degree from Chicago-Kent College of Law and his undergraduate degree from DePaul University.