Attorney Maria Gabriella Antoniolli works closely with individuals who are going through some of the hardest challenges of their lives while passing through the family court system.

“We see people at their worst and try to get them out at the other side of the tunnel,” says Antoniolli, who goes by “Gabby.” “You have to deal with a lot of contentious and high stress situations, sometimes its people fighting over their kids or assets.”

Antoniolli says the job can be emotionally draining, but she has found that she has the right temperament for the challenge.

“There’s a need and it’s something I’m able to do and be good at it,” Antoniolli says.

Antoniolli will ascend to the presidency of the DuPage County Chapter of the Justinian Society of Lawyers at their installation ceremony on May 14 at Il Sogno Ristorante in Wheaton.

She’ll be accepting the gavel from outgoing president Kira N. Albrecht. Joining Antoniolli as officers will be Vice President Lindsey Mirabella, Second Vice President Anthony Pasquini, Secretary Marta Prell, Treasurer Michael Scalzo, Director Evan Davi and Comptroller Elizabeth Pope.

Antoniolli got involved with the chapter when she was at John Marshall Law School and has long enjoyed the camaraderie and community the chapter provides.

“Italians, we like to stick together and help each other out,” Antoniolli says.

After earning her law degree at John Marshall in 2012, she spent several years prosecuting traffic and misdemeanor cases as part of the DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office. Antoniolli says those cases tended to have a lot in common because there are only so many ways to prosecute a DUI offense. But after leaving the SAO for family law in 2018 she’s found family court to have an abundance of variety.

“You never have the same case,” Antoniolli says. “We are dealing with people’s lives and those are ever-changing.”

She currently serves as managing partner at Antoniolli, Cerny & Winthers, P.C., which she helped to launch in October 2023.

Antoniollo is proud to be a small business owner like her father, who was born in a small mountain town called Giustino in the Trentino region in the north of Italy and ran a family knife-sharpening business in the Chicago area.

Antoniolli says her goals as president of the DuPage Justinians are to organize more social events for members and to continue to raise money for the group’s charitable efforts.

“We’ve had a few strong years and I’d like to keep that going,” she says.

The chapter’s two main fundraising events are its St. Joseph’s feast, held this year at Clara’s in Woodridge, and the Halloween Charity Ball. Last year, the proceeds from the ball went to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

The group recently brought back its scholarship program for law school students. Last year was the first since the pandemic that the chapter had offered scholarships.

The chapter also shares a holiday party with the DuPage Bar Association and the DuPage Association of Women Lawyers. The combined party is a plus, Antoniollo says, because it limits the number of gatherings the members need to attend during the busy holiday season.

For more information about the DuPage Justinians, or to make reservations for the May 14 installation, click here.

As the incoming president of the DuPage County Chapter of the Justinian Society of Lawyers in Illinois, Kira N. Albrecht already has one goal: to bring back monthly or quarterly meetings held at restaurants, so members can socialize while enjoying appetizers and refreshments.

“That kind of stopped during COVID, but I want to revive it,” she says.

Albrecht is an attorney at the law firm Mirabella, Kincaid, Frederick and Mirabella, based in Wheaton, Illinois, where she focuses on family law and appellate litigation. Lynn Mirabella and Lindsay Stella, both partners of the firm, are past presidents of the DuPage County Chapter.

Kira’s father, Edward Manzo, was an active member of the Cook County Justinian Society of Lawyers while he practiced patent law in Chicago. That’s what initially sparked her desire to join the organization, Albrecht says.

Albrecht grew up in Lake Forest, where she now lives with her husband and two young children.

She has a law degree from Chicago-Kent College of Law and has been a practicing attorney since 2014. She joined her current firm in 2020, the same year she joined the organization, whose members must be law students, lawyers or judges.

“I thought it was a great way to meet people to network and to get a sense of community. I think it’s really important to continue the representation of Italian heritage in the legal community,’ she says. “And, it’s just a wonderful organization that has wonderful charity initiatives. Many close colleagues and friends and part of the organization as well, and it’s really nice to see them on a regular basis and have that connection.”

For example, the annual Charity Ball this October will benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, a cause she calls “close to her heart.” The DuPage Chapter also hosts an annual St. Joseph’s dinner, which this year took place at an Italian restaurant in the Chicago suburbs.

In April, the chapter will host a Talent Night in conjunction with the DuPage Association of Women Lawyers and the DuPage County Bar Association. Earlier this year, the chapter joined in a bocce tournament along with the Cook County Chapter.

The DuPage Chapter also gives out scholarships; students need not be Italian to apply.

So why did Albrecht choose family law? Because besides legal knowledge, family law requires compassion and “a deep level of human understanding,” she says.

“I think that’s a really important skill set, and I felt that was a way I could make a difference, using my legal acumen, to help clients in a very human way as they go through really difficult times, such as a divorce or custody battle,” she says. “I was always drawn to being able to help people in that way.”

Also, family law attorneys can find themselves taking novel legal issue to the appellate courts, and “sometimes we get to make new law,” she says.

Albrecht is also involved in the bar associations representing Kane County and DuPage counties, and for many years played the violin for the Chicago Bar Association Symphony Orchestra while she lived in Chicago. “I stopped when I moved out of the city,” she says. “It’s too hard to get downtown for rehearsals, but I loved that group.”

Albrecht will step up to the presidency of the DuPage Justinians at an installation dinner on May 30 at LaBarra Ristorante in Oak Brook. She’ll be accepting the gavel from outgoing president Amanda Zannoni. Joining Albrecht as officers will be Vice President Maria (Gabby) Antoniolli, Second Vice President Lindsey Mirabella, Secretary Anthony Pasquini, Treasurer Mike Scalzo, and Comptroller Elizabeth Pope. To make reservations, call 630-279-6800 or click here.

Zannoni joined the chapter on the recommendation of a partner at the first law firm she worked at as an attorney. “The partner, now deceased, embodied the ideals of Justinians and Italian-American lawyers. He was down to earth, sharp as a tack, knew everyone in the community and was well-loved. He was a legend in the DuPage legal community, and the referral from him was meaningful,” she explains. “And he was right about the organization. The officers and the members are some of the best people I’ve worked with. I’m honored to be a part of this storied institution, and I hope to live up to the legacy that our former presidents and officers have built.”

Zannoni foresees a year of rebuilding and adapting. “After the COVID-19 pandemic, we’re now able to maintain our regular events and charity work in a more or less normal fashion. However, times have changed irrevocably,” she explains. “Our board is the youngest it has ever been. Our courts, and our law practices, have shifted in tangible and intangible ways. To address these changes, I thought long and hard about where our priorities are, and our board sat down and discussed what we wanted to see in the following years.

During her tenure, Zannoni and her fellow officers and board members plan on modernizing the chapter’s website, updating operations, reaching out to and involving past presidents, and building bridges with the Justinians’ Cook County chapter.

An attorney with the Wheaton civil law firm of Rathje Woodward LLC, Zannoni concentrates on estates and trusts administration and litigation. “My firm is chock full of excellent litigation attorneys,” she explains. “Many of my successes could not have occurred without their support and I am proud to have Rathje Woodward behind me as I take on this role for the DuPage Justinians.”

Zannoni has served as a board member of the DuPage County Bar Association and as a two-term secretary for the DuPage Association of Women Lawyers. “My roles on those boards have helped me shape and plan my upcoming year as President of the DuPage Justinians.”

For reservations to the installation dinner, call 630-510-4931.

Oak Brook attorney Mario Palermo has been elected president of the Justinian Society of Lawyers’ DuPage County Chapter.

Palermo grew up in New York City, attended Kent College of Law in Chicago, passed the bar in 1996 and joined the chapter 15 years ago after setting up shop in DuPage County.

“The organization gave me a chance to meet people who are respected in the legal community and establish connections to help me grow my business,” he says. “I’ve made lifelong friends, and now I get to mentor younger lawyers and pay it forward.”

“The people are fantastic, and the organization does so much good,” he continues. “We raised over $50,000 for Ronald McDonald House, and at our charity ball on Oct. 29, we’ll be raising funds for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.”

In addition to the October charity ball, the chapter hosts a St. Joseph Day dinner in March, an installation dinner in August and a Christmas party in December. It also provides scholarships to law school students.

Palermo is the lead attorney at the Palermo Law Group, a personal injury firm in Oak Brook that he founded five years ago. Before starting PLG, he was a partner at Woodruff, Johnson & Palermo or 10 years and an attorney at a pair of Chicago law firms for 10 years prior to that.

Among his many goals, he hopes to get the organization back on track after the pandemic and “to give lawyers the type of loving and supportive legal family that Italians are known for.”

For details about the DuPage Justinians, click here.