Sidley’s John G. Levi Honored With the 2024 “Seymour Preston Award”

John G. Levi has been honored as the 2024 recipient of the Council for Advancement and Support of Education’s (CASE) 2024 “Seymour Preston Award,” which is presented annually to a school trustee for “exceptional commitment and leadership in developing voluntary support for his or her institution.” The award pays tribute to Seymour Preston, a long-time trustee of the Lawrenceville School and the first recipient of the award.

For nearly three decades, John has served as a dedicated volunteer, leader, and philanthropic champion for the Francis W. Parker School (Parker) in Chicago. He has successfully led three campaigns raising nearly $150 million in fundraising initiatives. John helped establish the school’s Campaign and Major Gift Committee, a vital group of volunteers that has met weekly for 30 years. He is also an active member of the current campaign committee helping to secure funding for Parker to expand access and affordability. John is a past chair of Sidley’s Law School Recruiting Committee and currently co-leads the firm’s committee that oversees its adoption of the Kanoon Magnet School (Kanoon), which began in 1984. Now in its 39th year, Sidley’s partnership with Kanoon is the longest-running corporate partnership for any Chicago public school.

John has been at Sidley for 50 years and is a former co-head of Sidley’s Labor, Employment and Immigration practice. His practice runs the full range of employment law. Throughout John’s career, he has represented major professional and financial services firms, and national and multi-national corporations in employment and labor matters before numerous federal and state courts, government agencies, and arbitration forums. President Obama appointed him to the 11-member Board of Directors of the national Legal Services Corporation (LSC) in 2010. John has been reconfirmed and reelected to the national post and is now the longest serving chair in the 50-year history of the LSC.