Jennifer L. Rediehs can trace her longtime love for law back to those iconic legal drama television shows like Perry Mason and Matlock. But while she never pursued becoming a criminal defense attorney like her inspirations, Jennifer found her niche and passion in the legal field as a member of Team GS.
“I loved the GS Model. Growing an office for the firm, in a city that I was familiar with, seemed like a wonderful opportunity and great way to really begin my career,” said Jennifer, a partner who joined Goldberg Segalla in 2014 as part of the original team to establish the firm’s Chicago office.
“Years later, I had the opportunity to move to California and start growing the California product liability team at the Orange County office.”
Jennifer has worked on a wide range of matters throughout her career, such as premises liability, construction-defect cases, professional liability for architects and engineers, and trucking incidents. However, product liability has always been her bread and butter. She has worked with David J. O’Connell since the beginning of her career, and he was the one that encouraged her to follow him to GS in 2014.
“I jumped right in and loved it. That has been my practice group ever since,” said Jennifer. “I act as a national coordinating counsel for many prominent consumer product distributors and defend litigation, with the help of an amazing team at GS, all over the country.”
The relationship Jennifer builds with her clients and the trust they place in her is what drives her, she said.
“I thrive on being the person that can be counted on in all sorts of sticky situations.”
As her career continues to grow, diversity and mentorship are two principles that Jennifer feels are important.
While she’s proud of Goldberg Segalla’s commitment to elevating more women and hiring attorneys from diverse backgrounds, helping them grow into leadership positions, Jennifer said more work needs to be done across the legal profession when it comes to providing opportunity for women and people of color.
“Unfortunately, I have not had a lot of minority women in mentorship positions as I have grown up in the profession. I hope to change that and be a mentor to the incoming attorneys for years to come.”
Mentorship, she said, is essential in the legal profession, as having senior attorneys to turn to for guidance and advice can help young lawyers progress faster in their practice and careers. As for own career, she credits fellow Team GS partners David J. O’Connell, James W. Ozog, and James M. Rozak for their positive influence, noting she’s learned much from them and continues to do so to this day.
A former volunteer in Chicago with Wills for Heroes, which is dedicated to preparing wills and powers of attorney for first responders, Jennifer is also a mom of an 8-year-old and a member of his school’s PTA.
“It keeps me busy!”