Mass Transit Today and the Impending “Fiscal Cliff” – A Conversation with Kirk Dillard

Kirk Dillard is a partner in the law firm of Locke Lord LLP where he concentrates his practice in business and governmental relations and in the representation of manufacturers in product liability prevention and litigation. He is currently the Chairman of the Regional Transit Authority (RTA) in metropolitan Chicago — the nation’s second-largest mass transit system with assets of nearly $200 billion and over one million weekday riders. He also serves as the Independent Chair of the privately owned Chicago Skyway Toll Road. His presentation to the Lawyers Club will address the value transit brings to the Chicago region and the current fiscal challenges facing the RTA.

Dillard was recently appointed to serve on the Board of Directors of Intersect Illinois, a statewide economic development organization focused on bringing new businesses, jobs, and investment to Illinois. As a member, Dillard will be part of a non-partisan group of academic, civic, and private-sector leaders with the unique opportunity to help impact the state’s economic development trajectory.

Dillard also serves as a member of the Illinois Supreme Court Historic Preservation Commission, a position he has held since 2012, to help assist and advise the Illinois Supreme Court in acquiring, collecting, preserving, and cataloging documents, artifacts, and information relating to the Illinois judiciary.

Dillard also served in the Illinois Senate, representing Chicagoland’s western suburbs for nearly 20 years. He held a number of key leadership positions while in the General Assembly — including Chairman of the Judiciary Committee before stepping down in 2014 to assume the RTA chairmanship. Prior to his election to the Senate, Dillard served with distinction as former Illinois Governor Jim Edgar’s Chief of Staff and Legislative Director to the late Governor James R. Thompson. He also served as a Judge on the Illinois Court of Claims. In 2023, Dillard was appointed by Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker to Western Illinois University’s Board of Trustees and he is currently a member of the DePaul University College of Law Dean’s Advisory Council.

We look forward to seeing you on December 5, 2024!

Cancellation Policy: If you need to cancel your reservation, call 630.853.4868 or email attorneys@lawyersclubchicago.org 72 hours in advance of the event to avoid receiving an invoice or to receive a refund if you have prepaid.