JENNIFER HANSEN, ATTORNEY; LARA CLEARY, ATTORNEY: HANSEN & CLEARY LLC

North Shore attorneys Jennifer Hansen and Lara Cleary founded Hansen & Cleary LLC in 2017, bringing more than 30 years of collective experience and a common philosophy of client-centered representation to their boutique law practice. “Our mission at Hansen & Cleary is to offer the highest quality counsel to families, schools, and private clinicians, with the most empathetic, attentive, and personalized service possible,” they say. With a focus on representing children and families, individuals with disabilities, mental health professionals, and private schools in the greater Chicago area and throughout Illinois, the practice is concentrated in the areas of special education law, school law, mental health law, DCFS matters, and other disability related law. They each bring personal experience in these challenges to their work. “When I was in elementary school, I had a speech articulation issue … so I received speech therapy services,” says Cleary, explaining that her experience led her to become a special education teacher before going to law school to focus on representing individuals with special needs. “Our advocacy and success on a case can change a child’s life.” Hansen’s path took her to study in the Netherlands and then to Illinois, where she worked as an assistant public defender. “I began to realize that many of my clients were adults with disabilities or mental health issues and I found that my empathy and understanding of individuals with disabilities really helped my representation,” she says, explaining that her parents worked with children with disabilities.” Cleary had an opening at her previous law firm and Hansen happily took on that role. Today, the duo says they are proud to support and guide their clients through the legal process with compassion and resolve.

For more information, visit hansencleary.com.