Heather is currently the owner and President of the Law Offices of Heather A. Widell, offices of experienced attorneys specializing in all areas of criminal defense, personal injury and civil plaintiff litigation.
Before starting The Law Office, Heather worked as an associate attorney under the tutelage of distinguished trial attorney John F. Lyke. Immediately upon graduation from law school and passing the bar exam Heather worked as an attorney practicing civil insurance defense litigation, first with the Llorens Law Group and then at SmithAmundsen where she specialized in the areas of commercial litigation, toxic tort, and products liability.
While her practice is generally trial law and specifically defense-minded Heather additionally had an opportunity to work on the “other side” as a legal intern for the Appellate Prosecutions division of the Illinois State’s Attorneys Office.
Heather graduated from law school at Chicago-Kent College of Law where she was an active member of the renowned criminal defense clinic as well as the long-established nationally ranked Trial Advocacy Team where she won numerous awards and competitions at the national level.
Heather continues to maintain a close relationship with the Chicago-Kent Trial Team as a mentor and coach of several teams in her spare time.
Prior to law school Heather received her Bachelor’s Degree from Syracuse University in upstate New York where she majored in Sports Management/Marketing and minored in Psychology. While at Syracuse, Heather was a part of the class that spearheaded the idea for Steiner Sports Collectibles, one of the first online sports memorabilia stores. Additionally she was an active member of the Beta Tau chapter of the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority.
Heather attended Choate Rosemary Hall prep school in Connecticut for high school but is proud to have been born and raised in Chicago where she attended the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools for elementary and middle school.
Heather is a member of many organizations and associations including the Lookingglass Theatre junior board, the Chicago Bar Association, the Illinois State Bar Association, the American Bar Association, the Women’s Bar Association of Illinois, and the National Trial Lawyers where she has been honored to be named as a recipient of their 40 Under 40 accolade in multiple years recent years (2018, 2020, 2021).
