Poonam K. Lakhani

Poonam Lakhani is the founder of the Law Office of Poonam Lakhani. After over 15 years successfully representing clients in litigation, Ms. Lakhani now focuses her practice on preventing disputes before they arise. Her goal is to help clients avoid costly, time-consuming, and uncertain conflicts by crafting solid agreements and providing proactive counsel—saving clients’ money, time, and stress while ensuring their interests are fully protected

Ms. Lakhani is a pragmatic counselor who understands the practical impact of legal advice on real-world business operations. She regularly advises clients on employment matters, including hiring and termination, ADA and FMLA compliance, drafting employment agreements and handbooks, and general business matters such as contract negotiations, commercial leases, and business formation.

Before founding her firm, Ms. Lakhani represented a diverse range of clients, including individual employees, executives, and employers, ranging from small businesses to mid-sized multi-state entities. She has obtained a multi-million dollar jury verdict, and regularly represented clients in state and federal courts, before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the Illinois Department of Human Rights, the Illinois Department of Labor, the Cook County Commission on Human Rights, and other administrative bodies.

Ms. Lakhani is also skilled in handling a wide range of employment claims, including discrimination, harassment, retaliation claims, as well as wage and hour matters. She also has extensive experience representing physicians and negotiating physician employment agreements.

Ms. Lakhani is widely recognized for her legal knowledge. She has given numerous interviews and statements to media outlets, such as National Public Radio (NPR), Fox News Chicago, Crains Chicago Business, and Mother Jones.

Throughout her career, Ms. Lakhani has dedicated much of her free time to public service. In recognition of her work on a labor trafficking case, Ms. Lakhani was awarded the Northern District of Illinois Excellence in Pro Bono and Public Interest Service Award in 2023. She is a member of the South-Asian Bar Association of Chicago (SABA Chicago), for which she previously served as community chair. She also served as a Trustee on the South-Asian Bar Association Foundation. She assisted many income-eligible individuals with various legal matters though the Cyriac Kappil Pro Bono Legal Clinic. Ms. Lakhani also volunteered with the Southern Poverty Law Center to help victims of labor trafficking.