A calm, confident leader, Julie Porter excels at solving complex legal problems for her clients. Julie is a careful investigator, a skilled negotiator, and an exceptional trial lawyer who is a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers and is ranked by Chambers as a top litigator for White-Collar Crime and Government Investigations in Illinois. She has committed her career to seeking justice and becoming a voice for those who might not otherwise be heard. At Salvatore Prescott Porter & Porter, PLLC, Julie brings her deep experience with complex commercial litigation and prosecuting public corruption, financial crimes, and child exploitation to a private practice that focuses on sophisticated criminal defense and investigative work, commercial litigation, and civil rights and employment litigation.
After graduating with honors from Williams College and The University of Michigan Law School, Julie joined the litigation department at Kirkland & Ellis LLP. As a partner in Kirkland’s Chicago office, Julie represented clients as both plaintiffs and defendants, in commercial and employment cases big and small.
Julie then served the public as an Assistant United States Attorney in Chicago, handling some of the most significant cases that the U.S. Attorney’s Office has brought over the past decade. Julie successfully tried to juries complex cases that garnered nationwide interest, including cases against international media baron Conrad Black (corporate fraud), Illinois powerbroker Bill Cellini (public corruption), top Chicago Mayoral aide Robert Sorich (public corruption), and prominent Jesuit priest Donald McGuire (child exploitation), among others. As Chief of the Chicago Office’s Criminal Division, Julie supervised nearly 150 criminal prosecutors and all criminal prosecutions, including health care fraud, securities and commodities fraud, other financial crimes, public corruption and organized crime, national security, cybercrimes, violent crimes, narcotics, and appeals. Julie mentored many AUSAs and promoted a culture of excellence at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, which she carries into her practice at Salvatore Prescott Porter & Porter.
Finally, Julie is also an arbitrator, serving on the American Arbitration Association’s national roster for commercial cases. One of Julie’s greatest abilities as a lawyer is being a problem-solver. She avoids tangents, focuses on key issues and how to overcome obstacles, shows creativity in finding solutions to tough problems, and works well with others. She is also experienced at facilitating collaboration among groups with differing interests in highly sensitive matters.