Yolanda Riley

Yolanda earned a Bachelor of Science in Speech Communication and Criminal Justice from Illinois State University and a Juris Doctor from Southern Illinois University School of Law. A proud Peoria native, she is deeply passionate about her work and committed to advocating for her clients.

She began her legal career as a Staff Attorney at a large regional firm handling matters across nine central Illinois counties, where her practice focused on expungements and record sealing, post-conviction criminal relief, family law, landlord–tenant disputes, orders of protection, and guardianship matters.

Yolanda later joined a smaller private practice, concentrating on family law, criminal defense, and expungement/sealing work, before moving on to serve as a Litigation Attorney with Kavanagh, Scully, Sudow, White & Frederick, P.C. There, she focused on civil litigation, criminal defense, expungement/sealing, family law, and estate planning.

She is now the founder and principal of her own solo practice, serving clients throughout Central Illinois.

Yolanda is an active member of the Illinois State Bar Association, Illinois Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Peoria County Bar Association, Tenth Judicial Circuit Pro Bono Committee, Prairie State Legal Services Peoria Campaign for Legal Service, serves on the board of Elite Community Outreach, a member of the PCBA - Foundation Trustee Committe, and the ISBA Committee on Equal Justice. 

Her prior leadership roles include serving on the board of the Hult Center for Healthy Living, as President of the Peoria Area Chapter of the ACLU and former member of Central Illinois Black Bar Association.

Yolanda’s dedication and impact have been recognized through numerous honors, including:

2018 Doers of Deeds Award

2019 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drum Major Award

2021 Pro Bono Attorney of the Year – PCBA

2023 Peoria Role Model Project Recipient- City of Peoria 

2024 Pro Bono Volunteer Honor Roll Recipient – Public Interest Law Initiative (PILI)

2024 Game Changer Award – Elite Community Outreach