LEONARD A. GAIL
Leonard A. Gail is the Founding Partner of Massey & Gail LLP, a law firm with offices in Chicago and Washington, DC that specializes in strategic answers to legal challenges including litigation. He graduated from Dartmouth College in 1985 Magna Cum Laude and Harvard Law School in 1988 Cum Laude. After graduation, he clerked for the Honorable James B. Moran in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. After his clerkship, he joined Kirkland and Ellis as an Associate. In 1991, he and several others left Kirkland & Ellis to form Bartlit Beck Herman Palenchar and Scott where he became a partner and worked until 2000. At that time, he became Deputy General Counsel for Bank One where he had responsibility for litigation, bankruptcy, regulatory proceedings, real estate, technology and finance and administration within the Company's Law, Compliance and Government Relations Department before and throughout the merger with JPMorgan. He thereafter served in the United States Department of Justice as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Northern District of Illinois.He has also served as a board member of the Legal Executive Forum and taught trial advocacy at the Law School of the University of Chicago.

Mr. Gail, who had served on the board of the National Association for Urban Debate Leagues since December 2006, joined its staff as its Interim Executive Director after he left the DOJ and through the winter of 2008. The NAUDL brings academic debate opportunities to less well off students around the country. Mr. Gail has served as the NAUDL Board chair since 2008. He debated at Maine East High School in the Chicago area from 1977-1981 where he was twice the state champion and successfully competed nationally, including a second place finish at the 1981 National Forensic League National Tournament.He also debated in College from 1981-1984 where he won numerous awards in inter-collegiate competitive debate, including first place speaker and first place team at the 1984 National Debate Tournament.He was voted "Debater of the Decade" by the National Debate Tournament's Coaches panel and also represented the US in Japan for the biennial Japanese-American exchange debates.