Erin Wilson, Founder of The Law Office of Erin M Wilson LLC
Name: Erin Wilson
Founder: The Law Office of Erin M Wilson LLC
Who is Erin Wilson?
I have been a licensed attorney for nearly 16 years and am known as a trusted advisor and skilled advocate, successfully tackling tough parenting disputes and complex financial cases. I have built an all women team, where we work incredibly hard but are supportive of one another, and advocate not only for our clients but also in the community to promote other women. I am frequently appointed as a Guardian ad Litem or Child Representative, an take these cases very seriously, in meeting with the children and investigating the families, as she advocates for the children’s best interests, while also attempting to help the parents in a child-centric, less conflictual approach. I attempt to resolve family conflict, while being mindful of emotions, the history that leads to where the family is, and with a goal to reframe the lens with which parents view each other to benefit their ability to coparent.
In less than three sentences tell us about your company and what you do.
We are a family law firm, offering services in litigation, mediation, collaborative law, and I am appointed as a Guardian ad Litem and Parenting Coordinator. We represent clients of diverse backgrounds with a range of issues including uncontested divorce, trials involving complex financial and parenting disputes, child support and maintenance, domestic violence and prenuptial agreements. We always strive for an amicable settlement by crafting creative solutions while aggressively protecting your rights and interests in a courtroom.
What does BEING a FoundHer mean to you?
Having an all female, kick ass team of hard workers that care about each other. I want to promote my employees' ability to spend time with their family and friends, work hard for our clients, and support one another as people and advocates. I won a workplace flexibility award in 2023 from the Women's Bar Association of Illinois. My employees noted in the nomination "Erin Wilson has done everything in her power to be flexible for her employees so the firm is a safe and welcoming environment for all."
How do you support other female founders and women in business?
From my award nomination: "Erin devotes her time and energy, despite her busy professional and personal calendar, to uplifting women in this profession and checking in on them, even those outside her firm, to ensure they are receiving the support they need." "Erin advocates for the inclusivity of all women, ensuring there is a seat at the table for all of us."
I am the co-founder of the Lady Lawyers who Lunch and then as Associate Group "ALL" to protect young female attorneys from any instances of sexual abuse in the legal field and to give all around support in the profession.
At what point did you make your company a full time gig? How did you know the time was right?
I was practicing at a firm that I helped to grow for 10 years, but I was beginning to be frustrated at the lack of flexibility of being a young mom, wanting to work hard but also be there for my kids. That was my primary reason to open my own practice, and now I want to set the example that you can go to your kids' events in the middle of the day, but you still need to get your work done when it is convenient for you.
What lesson or skill did you take with you from a prior job to help you succeed in your role today?
To work very hard and be honest and ethical.
Let’s talk social media—who handles it for your company (you, an internal team member, an outsourced solution?) and what is the secret to making it successful? What is the biggest challenge?
https://www.dbcbrand.com/
I take all the pictures from the events we're at, and my team write all of our blog articles, and they do the actual posting for us.
How did you land your first client?
When I left my firm, I had about 20 clients. When I opened my practice, the community was so supportive knowing my reputation as being a skilled trial lawyer and custody attorney. I started to get more and more appointments to advocate for children and referrals for divorce cases. It was quite quickly I hired my first law clerk who has now been promoted to senior associate, and our firm has grown since that time.
What is something you do differently from the industry standard?
Outwardly support young women in law.
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