Jill Gibson Odell

Jill Gibson Odell has extensive experience in government law and policy work.  As an attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington D.C., Jill worked closely with Attorney General Janet Reno and represented the Department on federal legal issues with the White House and Congress.  Most recently, Jill served as the Legislative Director for the Oregon House Republican Office, where she provided legal and policy advice on all matters of Oregon State government. 

Jill also has substantial litigation experience. She served as a federal prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia, where she obtained guilty verdicts in civil and criminal trials and successfully argued appellate cases before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.  Jill also gained valuable litigation and negotiation skills as a Deputy District Attorney for Multnomah County.  Jill is an excellent legal writer and has written numerous complex briefs for the Oregon Court of Appeals, the Oregon Supreme Court, federal district courts, and federal appellate courts.      

Jill graduated from the University of Arkansas School of Law, where she was Associate Editor of the Arkansas Law Journal.  While in law school, Jill was an active board member of the Urban League of Little Rock, and served as legislative staff for US Senator Dale Bumpers, D-Ark, and for the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship.  Jill graduated with honors from Hendrix College, and studied Comparative Governments at Oxford University (St. Peter’s College) in Oxford, England.  While at Oxford, Jill was a research assistant in the British House of Commons.  Jill lives in Beaverton and loves to watch her kids play basketball and volleyball.  She also loves cooking, camping, fishing, and watching Razorback football.      

 Speeches & Presentations