A first-generation college graduate and daughter of Cuban immigrants, Yvette Ostolaza, A.B. ’86, J.D. ’92, rose to become one of the most influential attorneys in the country, shattering glass ceilings and taking over boardrooms along the way. In 2022, she became Sidley Austin LLP's Management Committee Chair, making her the first woman or Hispanic to lead the global firm, the first woman to lead any top 7 revenue U.S. law firm, and the first Hispanic to lead any top 20 revenue firm. She also sits on the Board of Directors and chairs the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee of Lions Gate Entertainment, Inc.
At Sidley, Ostolaza leads more than 2,100 attorneys on four continents at the 158-year-old firm that generated $3.1 billion in revenue in 2023. “I try to spend time giving back to the community through various activities and making sure that others know that your parents can be immigrants and you can end up being one of the leaders at the firm that Mary Todd Lincoln used,” she told the Miami Herald, referring to President Abraham Lincoln’s widow.
Over her 32-year career, Ostolaza established herself as an advisor on crisis management matters, trial lawyer, and arbitrator focusing on complex commercial litigation, international disputes, and multi-district litigation. She is highly sought after by boards and companies to conduct investigations and assist with crisis management. Ostolaza is ranked as a Band 1 lawyer by Chambers USA and named one of the top litigators in the U.S. by Benchmark Litigation.
Ostolaza’s career has earned her extensive recognition including recently being named to CNBC’s inaugural list of 50 “Changemakers: Women Transforming Business.” In 2023, the American Bar Association awarded her the “Margaret Brent Women Lawyers of Achievement Award,” which recognizes “female lawyers who have excelled in their field and paved the way for other women.” Ostolaza also received the National Association of Women Lawyers’ 2023 “M. Ashley Dickerson Diversity Award,” for “her commitment to forging a path to leadership for women and diverse attorneys to follow.”
Yet, Ostolaza, who was raised in Miami’s Grapeland Heights neighborhood, had no intention of becoming a lawyer when she started at the University of Miami. After earning her bachelor’s degree, she worked as a marketing professional in the airline industry. But, seeing the impact lawyers had across all areas of the business, she decided to return to the University of Miami to attend the School of Law on an academic scholarship and excelled at every step.
As a member of the University of Miami Law Review, she authored a case note on AIDS discrimination at a time when that area of the law was in its infancy. She was a founding member of the University of Miami Business Law Review and served on Mock Trial and Moot Court teams. “That experience, along with the litigation skills clinic, prepared me so well for a career in trial work that I felt confident in pursuing a career in litigation and have been enjoying it for the past 30 years,” she said.
In 1992, Ostolaza graduated magna cum laude, was elected to the Order of the Coif, and then took her J.D. to Texas to join one of the largest firms in the country. She spent 21 years there, rising to lead 190 attorneys in the firm’s commercial litigation group and joining the global firm’s management committee.
In 2013, Ostolaza left for Sidley. She became the managing partner of its Dallas office, which grew from 15 to more than 125 lawyers. She eventually joined the firm’s Executive and Management Committees and in 2017, she was named global co-leader of the firm’s 750-person litigation group. Then, in 2021, she was tapped to chair Sidley's Management Committee, the equivalent of the law firm’s CEO. Under her leadership, Sidley has continued growing in the U.S. and abroad, including opening a 21st office in Miami in 2022.
As she’s risen in the legal world, Ostolaza has given back to her community. In Texas, she represented disabled nursing home residents pro bono and served on the Board of Girls, Inc. and the AT&T Performing Arts Center. Ostolaza is a member of the Orange Bowl Committee.
She also has given back to her alma mater. She joined the Dean’s Advisory Committee at Miami Law in 2023, established the Yvette Ostolaza Mock Trial Endowment to cover the team’s travel and entry fees, and continued fostering young attorneys.
Miami Law is proud to welcome Yvette Ostolaza as this year's Commencement speaker.
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