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JEANINE DILLY
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Venable LLP
Jeanine Dilly, a paralegal at Venable LLP, had already decided on the legal field when she first enrolled at Villa Julie College, now known as Stevenson University. While working as a bank teller in high school, she spoke with an attorney in the same building, who served as a sounding board as she considered a legal career. She has been with Venable LLP since 1997.
She earned an associate of arts from Villa Julie in 1987 and went on to work as a legal administrative assistant — first at Weinberg and Green, now known as Saul Ewing, and later at the legal department of First National Bank. Although she had built a very good career in that role, she wanted to expand her opportunities and decided to return to Villa Julie for a prelaw degree, taking courses in business and constitutional law while continuing to work. She balanced day and evening classes with her job, drawing on support from her employer, family and friends. During that time, she was elected to Alpha Chi National College Honor Scholarship Society, Maryland Epsilon Chapter, in 1995. She earned her bachelor of science in 1997, the same year she received the Dean’s Award for Exceptional Scholarship.
After graduating, Dilly joined Venable LLP’s corporate practice, where her work has included domestic and international matters and client closings. “Every day is different, as are the assignments and closings,” she said. “I have a wonderful career where I get to interact with clients, work on domestic and international matters and be an essential part of a leading law firm.”
Outside the office, Dilly has competed in baking categories at the Maryland State Fair, earning multiple ribbons including a first-place blue ribbon.
Her academic work also took her beyond Maryland — a philosophy paper she wrote on the Socratic method while at Villa Julie was selected for presentation at a conference in San Francisco, where she represented the college in person.
Looking ahead, she hopes to remain connected to the legal field and use her experience to focus on philanthropic projects in the community.
