MBA 2006
– 2007 Board of Directors
Kalim Fuzail
President
Kalim Fuzail serves as Senior Counsel at Kraft Foods Global, Inc. located in
Northfield, Illinois. He received his J.D. from the John Marshall Law School in
January 2000 and is admitted to practice law in the State of Illinois as well as
before the United States Patent and trademark Office. Prior to his legal career
Kalim was a research chemist and received his B.S. in biochemistry and M.S. in
chemistry from the University of Illinois at Chicago. As a lawyer Kalim has
been committed to community service through pro bono opportunities and local
organizations such as the Muslim Bar Association. In particular, Kalim has
focused his efforts towards community awareness of their legal rights especially
since September 11, 2001 and the enactment of the Patriot Act. He looks
forward to increasing his community involvement in the coming years.
Zubair
Khan
Past-President
zubairjd@ameritech.net
Zubair Khan is an associate at the law firm of Grippo & Elden. Mr. Khan’s practice includes a variety of complex litigation matters including breach of contract, fraud, insurance coverage and antitrust. Mr. Khan's practice covers both state and federal court litigation. As part of his practice, Mr. Khan has monitored and reported on the Chicago Housing Authority's relocation of residents under the Plan for Transformation. Mr. Khan has represented victims of hate crimes, civil rights violations, and domestic violence as part of his pro bono practice. He has also submitted amicus briefs to the U.S. Supreme Court and the Illinois Supreme Court on behalf of pro bono clients.
Mr. Khan is a member of his firm’s Antitrust and Trade Regulation, and Litigation Practices. Mr. Khan graduated from the University of Michigan Law School in 2001. During his second year of law school, Mr. Khan participated in the Civil Section of the Michigan Clinical Law Program. Mr. Khan obtained his undergraduate degree in economics and philosophy from Northwestern University in 1998. Mr. Khan is admitted to the Illinois Bar.
Anthony E. Simpkins
President-Elect
Anthony
Simpkins received his JD, and his MA in Political Science, both in 1994
from Loyola University Chicago, where he was president of the Black Law
Students Association (BLSA). He is also the 2005 recipient of the BLSA-Loyola Distinguished Service Award. He
is a lifelong resident of Chicago, and is currently a Senior Counsel
with the City of Chicago Law Department's Building and Land Use
Litigation Division, where he is a supervising litigation attorney. His
practice includes enforcement of municipal building and public safety
codes, foreclosures, real estate receiverships, drafting municipal
ordinances, bankruptcy proceedings, and general civil litigation. He
also supervises several special projects, including the Housing
Abandonment Prevention Program, Troubled Building Initiative, Housing
Court Reform and Receivership subcommittees, and the Emergency Heat
Call.
Before
working for the City of Chicago, Anthony was a Skadden fellow, doing
policy and advocacy work and representing low-income victims of illegal
summary evictions. Anthony is a past president
of the Muslim Bar Association of Chicago as well as a past Executive
Board member and committee chairman for the Council of Islamic
Organizations of Greater Chicago. He also
volunteers with two community based organizations, the Inner-city
Muslim Action Network and the Crib Collective, Inc., which provide
mentoring and other services for young people in Chicago.
Anthony has four children with his wife Tamaria McCann-Simpkins. Tammy
is herself, an accomplished professional jazz vocalist, who has toured
around the world and has released several CD's, including her most
recent CD, "Classic," released February, 2006.
Shehla F. Syed
Attorney
SSyed@jenner.com
Shehla F. Syed is an Associate at the law firm of Jenner
& Block in its Intellectual Property and Technology Law Group. Ms. Syed concentrates her practice in patent
litigation and has represented clients in scientific fields including polymer
chemistry, inorganic chemistry, mechanical engineering, pharmaceuticals and
medical devices. She has participated in
patent litigation cases before the United States District Courts for the District
of Delaware, Middle District of Florida and District of New Jersey.
Ms. Syed is registered to practice before the Patent and
Trademark Office and is admitted to the State Bars of Illinois and Maryland.
Along with the Muslim Bar Association of Chicago, she is a member of the
Federal Circuit Bar Association and the Intellectual Property Law Association
of Chicago. Ms. Syed also serves on the
Board of Directors for the Downtown Islamic Center in Chicago.
Ms. Syed earned her law degree in 2001 from the University of Pennsylvania, where she served as a
Senior Editor of the Journal of
International Economic Law. She is a
Phi Beta Kappa graduate the Johns Hopkins University where she received her
degree in Biology and Economics in 1998.
Mohammed Diwan
Secretary
MDiwan@schiffhardin.com
Mohammed Diwan is an Associate in the Corporate & Securities practice group at the law firm of Schiff Hardin LLP. His practice focuses on representing public and private companies in all stages of corporate transactions. His pro bono focus is on representing immigrant survivors of domestic violence.
Mohammed received a J.D. from Duke University School of Law, where he was an Articles Editor for the Duke Journal of Comparative & International Law, and an A.B., with high distinction, Phi Beta Kappa, in Political Science, African-American & African Studies and French from the University of Michigan.
