LEGAL EXPERIENCE

Legal AI Editor - Innodata/LexisNexis                

  • Collaborated with LexisNexis to beta-test and refine legal AI tools, providing feedback for accuracy, functionality, and user experience

  • Assisted in optimizing AI algorithms for legal research and document review

Managing Attorney - Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation

  • Litigated and advocate on behalf of survivors of criminal and civil sexual assault and trafficking cases; collaborated with policy team

  • Managed attorneys and train lawyers; created community partnerships and led outreach programming 

Legal Counsel - Cook County Department of Human Rights and Ethics

  • Enforced County’s anti-discrimination laws and ethics code; draft decisions, rules, and policy;  advised on compliance and procedures 

Civil Rights & Family Law Attorney - Amal Law Group

  • Litigated civil rights and employment cases in federal and state court, conducted depositions, drafted affidavits, wrote briefs

  • Collaborated with a team of co-counsel in civil rights cases; represented independently on family law and domestic violence cases

Adjunct Professor, Legal Analysis, Research, and Communication Level II - DePaul University College of Law: Department of Legal Writing

  • Teach Legal Analysis, Research, and Communication levels III and II to law students at DePaul Law over multiple semesters 

Supervising Attorney - Beyond Legal Aid ( Community Activism Law Alliance)

  • Supervised staff attorneys and fellows in order to develop litigation skills and legal practice areas; created a CLE training for staff

  • Conducted intakes and representation in employment, public benefits, and civil rights cases, and also provided legal advice 

  • Filed immigration petitions including Adjustment of Status, VAWA, U-Visa, asylum, SIJS

Staff Attorney - Life Span Center for Legal Services and Advocacy

  • Represented victims of domestic violence, and sexual assault in Order of Protection, family law, and immigration cases 

  • Conducted interviews, discovery, legal research, and negotiations in order to represent clients in statuses, hearings, and trials 

Domestic Violence Staff Attorney - Prairie State Legal Services

  • Educated, advised, advocated for, and represented victims of domestic violence and sexual trafficking under the Illinois Domestic Violence Act of 1986, Civil No Contact Order Act, and Stalking No Contact Order Act 

  • Collaborated with other staff attorneys while learning about housing law, public benefits, disability rights, and employment law

  • Developed trial advocacy, litigation, and research skills through intensive trainings, supervision, and constructive critique

Advocate Supervisor, Legal Liaison, and Internship Program Coordinator - Court Appointed Special Advocates of Cook County

  • Supervised and managed 25-30 trained CASA advocates to drive services, gather information, build relationships with youth foster care, and compose written reports for child protection court proceedings

  • Served as a liaison between CASA Advocates and Judges, Public Defenders, Department of Child and Family Services, Guardian ad Litems, and other service providers while learning about the juvenile court process and child welfare system   

Volunteer Civil Rights Attorney - Council on American-Islamic Relations

  • Litigated First Amendment cases for incarcerated clients in the Prison Project; conducted intakes and assisted with civil rights cases

Governor Edward Coles Fellow - Illinois Human Rights Commission Office of the General Counsel

  • Worked under Administrative Law Judges by performing legal research on the Illinois Human Rights Act and administrative agency cases, preparing documents, summarizing depositions, analyzing records, and drafting orders

Judicial Extern - Honorable Judge Thomas Lipscomb – Law Division: Pretrial Motions

  • Reviewed parties’ pretrial motions and briefs, researched law, drafted memos, and summarized arguments

  • Observed motion hearings and regularly discussed with judge to review trial strategies and counsels’ arguments 

Research Fellow: Enforcement Mechanisms Project - International Human Rights Law Institute: DePaul University College of Law

  • Co-authored research on the Convention on Elimination of Discrimination against Women and enforcement mechanisms 

  • Attended 54th CEDAW Committee session at the United Nations to gather research (February 2013/Geneva, Switzerland)

Law Clerk, Extern - Council of American-Islamic Relations

  • Handled client intakes, presented information to supervisors, and researched and wrote briefs for civil rights cases

  • Spearheaded “Know Your Rights” campaign project by developing presentations and workshops for educational purposes

OTHER EXPERIENCE

  • Muslim Bar Association: Board Member

  • Heart to Grow: Workshop Facilitator, Educator, Legal Consultant                    

  • Interfaith America Alumni Speakers Bureau: Public Speaker

  • Ansar Burney Trust (Human Rights NGO, Karachi, Pakistan):  Interviewer & Writer 

LANGUAGES: Urdu (fluent/native), Hindi (fluent), Arabic (intermediate, working proficiency), Spanish (beginner) 

OTHER SKILLS: Public Speaking, Photography, Mediation/Alternative Conflict Resolution, Canva, Adobe Suite