Darryl DePriest

Darryl L. DePriest, a practicing lawyer based in Chicago, Illinois, is the Regional Advocate for Region 5, covering the states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin. This is DePriest’s second tour of duty with the Office of Advocacy, having previously served as Chief Counsel from December 2015 to January 2017.

DePriest began his legal career as a law clerk to the Hon. Robert E. Keeton, a federal district court judge for the District of Massachusetts. Following his clerkship, DePriest joined the Chicago law firm of Jenner & Block as an associate and was eventually elected to the partnership. DePriest left Jenner & Block to become the General Counsel of the American Bar Association. As General Counsel, DePriest was responsible for managing all the ABA’s legal affairs. In addition, DePriest was the senior manager with oversight of the ABA’s Center for Professional Responsibility. This center, largely staffed by lawyers, provides counsel and support to the ABA committees involved in developing the ethical norms that guide the legal profession. DePriest was also the primary staff for the ABA’s Standing Committee on Amicus Curiae Briefs and coordinated the filing of over ninety amicus briefs with the United States Supreme Court. 

After leaving the ABA, and prior to becoming Chief Counsel, DePriest was the senior consultant and director of Legal and Regulatory Communications for Hill + Knowlton Strategies. In that capacity, DePriest worked with communications professionals in Hill + Knowlton’s domestic offices in providing counsel to clients involved in litigation, mergers and acquisitions, and regulatory matters.