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| Selected by peers as a Leading Lawyer in: | Extensive Experience in: |
| Civil Rights/Constitutional Law | Civil Rights/Discrimination |
| Employment Law: Employee | Labor & Employment Law |
| False Claims Act/Whistle Blower Law | Sexual Harassment |
| Retaliation/Whistle Blower | |
| Class Action |
Ms. Benassi has lived and practiced law in central Illinois for the past 39 years. Originally from California, she moved to Illinois in 1968 with her husband, A. Lou Benassi, whom she met and married while in law school.
Ms. Benassi received a Bachelor's Degree in political science from California State University in 1964. She was awarded the three highest honors given by the University: the Outstanding Graduate Award, the Outstanding Female Graduate Award, and the Outstanding Graduate in Political Science Award. After her graduation, Ms. Benassi traveled to Germany where she attended the University of Heidelberg . Upon her return a year later, she worked as a social worker in Salinas, California helping primarily Hispanic women. That experience prompted her to become an attorney. She attended the University of California (Boalt Hall) and later the University of Illinois, graduating with a juris doctorate from the University of California in 1969.
She began her legal career with the National Labor Relations Board where she worked from 1969-1980 in the Peoria office. During her tenure, she received an Outstanding Attorney Award and an Outstanding Supervisor Award. In 1980, she and her husband established the law firm of Benassi & Benassi, P.C., which has served central Illinois for the past 28 years in employment law, civil rights law, personal injury law, domestic relations law, as well as other areas of general law. Ms. Benassi has represented individuals in numerous high-profile discrimination and civil rights cases, in Central Illinois and throughout the nation, including the landmark sexual harassment case against Mitsubishi Motors. She has represented plaintiffs in multi-plaintiff cases and class action cases obtaining successful results for thousands of employees. She has also represented labor unions and employers who are committed to the principals of equal opportunity and work place fairness and who have sought her experience and skill. Numerous plaintiffs whose constitutional rights have been violated by governmental entities primarily in employment matters involving the First and Fourteenth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution have sought her help and received successful results in their cases.
Ms. Benassi has been awarded an AV rating by her fellow lawyers for the past 23 years, the highest rating possible for ability and integrity. She was named one of the top most influential women lawyers in Illinois in 2000 by American Legal Media; received the Women of Achievement Award from Women in Management in 1994; and the Equality and Justice Award from the National Organization of Women in 1996.
Bar Admissions:
Illinois, 1969
U.S. District Court Central District of Illinois, 1970
U.S. District Court Northern District of Illinois, 2000
U.S. Court of Appeals 7th Circuit, 1983
U.S. Supreme Court, 1985
Date of Birth: 1943
Law School: University of California at Berkeley, Boalt Hall School of Law, J.D., 1969; University of Illinois College of Law, Champaign, Illinois, 1968
Undergraduate School: California State University, B.A., 1964, Major: Political Science;
Monterey Institute of Foreign Studies - Graduate Studies, Monterey, CA, 1964, Major: German;
University of Heidelberg Graduate Studies, Heidelberg, Germany, 1964, Major: German Language and Literature
Employment History:
National Labor Relations Board, Trial Attorney & Trial Specialist, 1969 - 1975
National Labor Relations Board, Supervisory Attorney, 1976 - 1979
National Labor Relations Board, Faculty Member & Teacher, 1976 - 1980
Bar/Professional Association Involvement:
American Bar Association
Peoria Bar Association
Peoria County Bar Association, 1992 - 1993
Board of Directors
Illinois Bar Association, 1980 - Present
Illinois State Bar Association Labor Law Section Council, 1984 - 1985
Chairman
AFL-CIO Union Lawyers Coordinating Committee, 1981 - 1990
Advisory Board to the AFL-CIO Lawyers Coordinating Committee, 1984 - 1988
American Trial Lawyers Association
Illinois Trial Lawyers Association
National Employment Lawyers Association
Committee to revise local rules for the United States District Court, Central District of Illinois
Foiunding Member and Master of the Bar in the Abraham Lincoln Inns of Court, Peoria, Illinois
(Emeritus Member)
Women in Management, 1991 - Present
Member
Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA)
Board of Directors
American Association of University Women, 1992 - Present
Planned Parenthood (Peoria Chapter)
Member, Board of Directors
Peoria Chamber of Commerce
National Association of Women Business Owners
The College of Labor and Employment Lawyers
Honors and Awards:
Martindale-Hubbell AV - Highest rating possible for legal ability and integrity given by attorneys with whom and against whom one practices., 1983 - Present
Illinois Leading Lawyer, 2004 - Present
Ida B. Wells-Barnett Award (National Organization for Women), 2007
Mother M. Frances Krasse Professions Award (YWCA), 2006.
America Legal Media, One of Top Ten Most Influential Women Lawyers in Illinois, 2000
Equality and Justice Award (Peoria Chapter of National Organization for Women), 1996
Women of Achievement Award (Women in Management, Peoria Chapter), 1994
Abraham Lincoln Inns of Court Master, 1988 - 1991
Abraham Lincoln Inns of Court Emeritis, 1991 - Present
Outstanding Supervisory Attorney - National Labor Relations Board, 1978
Outstanding Trial Attorney - National Labor Relations Board, 1974
Moot Court Honors Award - University of California, Boalt Hall, 1968
Outstanding Graduating Senior - California State University at Northridge
Outstanding Graduate in Political Science (Jenny L. Feugerson Award) - California State University at Northridge, 1964 - Present
Outstanding Woman Graduate - California State University at Northridge, 1964 - Present
Legal Lectures:
Classes/Seminars Taught:
National Labor Relations Board Faculty, 1975 - 1979
Sangamon State University Instructor General Labor Law, 1981
National Labor Relations Board Anniversary Conference (Plant Closings)
Oil and Chemical Workers International Representatives Conference (Labor Law Issues), July 1984 and July 1990
Illinois State Bar Association's Annual Meeting in Toronto, Canada (Labor Law Issues), July 1985
Women in Management, June 1991
American Business Women's Club (Sexual Harassment in the Workplace), May 1992
Cosmopolitan Club (Sexual Harassment in the Workplace), December 1992
Women in Management (Sexual Harassment in the Workplace), January 1993
Peoria Lions Club, February 1993
City of Washington Chamber of Commerce (Sexual Harassment, Americans with Disabilities Act & Employment Contracts & Employment Policies & Practices), March 1993
Labor Relations Issues Involving Caterpillar, Inc. and the United Auto Workers (UAW), 1992 and 1993
National Association of Women Business Owners ("Sex Discrimination, A Two-Edged Sword"), August 1993
American Association of University Women (Sexual Harassment in the Workplace), March 1994
Illinois State Bar Association (Women's Legal Battles), Mid-Year Meeting, 1996
Illinois Federation of Business and Professional Women's Clubs (Public Policy Resolutions), April 1997
National Employment Lawyers Association (Discovery Strategies), Annual Meeting - Toronta, Canada, June 1997
Bradley Unversity (Attributes of Leadership), March 1998
Illinois Employment Lawyers Association (Backroom Trial Strategies), April 1998
Illinois Professional Women's Council (Justice for Working Women), October 1998
AAUW - IL, Inc. (Sexual Harassment), October 1998
University of Illinois, College of Law, Association of Women Law Students (Women as Lawyers and Lawyers as Leaders), Feburary 1999
Women in Management (Women: Our Past & Our Future), Peoria, Illinois, April 1999
National Employment Lawyers Association (Media Relations) New Orleans, Louisiana, June 1999
American Bar Association Section of Dispute Resolution Meeting (Mediation of the Mitsubishi Sexual Harassment Case), San Francisco, California, April 2000
Bradley University (Women's Studies - "Apple of Knowledge") Peoria, Illinois, October 2002
Peoria County Democratic Women (Annual May Day Dinner) Peoria, Illinois, May 2003
American Inns of Court (Using Issues of Gender, Ethnicity and Class in Evaluating Witness Credibility) Peoria, Illinois, October 2003
Bradley University (Women's Studies - "A-ha Moments! How I Became a Feminist") Peoria, Illinois, November 2003
Women's Lifestyle Show (Challenges and Responsibilities as Women on This Small Planet) Peoria, Illinois, November 2004
South-West Kiwanis Club (Medical Malpractice Lawsuit Crisis-Fact or Fiction) Peoria, Illinois, February 2005
National Employment Lawyers Association Educational Program (Maximizing Damages in Sexual Harassment Cases ) Chicago, Illinois, March 2005
Bradley University Leadership Roundtable Speaker, Peoria, Illinois, March 2005
National Organization for Women - NOW, Peoria (The Road Ahead - A Global Challenge), Annual Meeting, February 2006
Peoria ACLU Annual Awards Dinner (High Crimes & Misdemeanors), May 2006
Eureka College Faculty (Legal Issues in Education), November 2006
National Employment Lawyers Association (Discovery Tactics), Annual Convention, San Juan, Puerto Rico, June 2007
Illinois State Conference of National Organization for Women (Leadership - Now and in 2008), September 2007
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