President
Eryn Hanlon
Eryn has been a member of AWLL since 2011 and previously served as the AWLL Events Director from 2012-2014. She took some time off of the Executive Board to open her own law practice and rejoined the Board as Secretary in 2017.
Eryn has a BA from the University of Michigan, a JD from Wayne State University Law School (Detroit) and a LLM from Kingston University Law School (London). She qualified as an attorney in the State of Illinois in 2008 before moving to the UK permanently in December 2009.
Eryn is a Partner practicing US immigration law at Greenwood Hanlon Kendrick LTD with offices in London and New York. Before starting GHK, Eryn was an attorney at another London firm practicing US immigration as well as a regular volunteer advisor with the Citizens Advice Bureau.
Vice President
Membership Chair
MOlly O’Brien
Molly has been a member of AWLL since 2013. She is a Michigan native and a loyal MSU Spartan. She earned her J.D. from Whittier Law School in California and her LL.M. from Trinity College Dublin. She maintains active California bar membership.
Prior to moving to London, Molly found her passion in law by representing plaintiffs in pharmaceutical product liability litigation. She later worked as a medical negligence defense lawyer, representing hospitals, medical professionals and insurance companies. In London, Molly works as a locum lawyer for various law firms. She is currently in the process of taking the SQE to become a UK solicitor.
Outside of her legal career, Molly teaches yoga and related therapeutic aspects including hypnobirthing and is a Supporting Member of the Center for Nonviolent Communication (CNVC).
Secretary
Rachel Owens
Rachel joined the Executive Committee as Secretary in late 2024, in addition to being a long-standing member since her arrival in London in 2018.
Rachel is a Compliance officer in a large investment bank, with a particular focus on advising the firm’s investment research division on various financial regulations across Europe, Middle East and Africa impacting the business.
Prior to her move to compliance about 10 years ago, Rachel was a practicing litigation lawyer in law firms in New York, advising clients on a wide range of commercial litigation matters. Although no longer practicing, Rachel is a member of the NY bar and is dual qualified as a UK solicitor.
In her spare time, Rachel loves to travel and perform karaoke.
Treasurer
Emily Grasset
Emily has been a member of AWLL since 2025. She is originally from New Hampshire, but is excited to make London home, after only having moved here in 2024.
Emily earned her BA from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte in Philosophy in 2012 and her JD from Georgetown University Law Center in 2022. When not working as a corporate lawyer, she enjoys trying new restaurants, baking, traveling, playing volleyball and watching Real Housewives.
Events Co-Chair
catherine betancourt
Catherine has been a member of AWLL since 2018. She personally benefitted from the wonderful networking events hosted by AWLL, primarily the 4th of July BBQ, where she made a professional connection with another member and was later hired to join the esteemed Flynn Hodkinson law firm where she works as a US immigration attorney. She is very happy to take up the leadership role of Events Director at AWLL to create similar opportunities for other women working or hoping to work in the legal profession in London.
Catherine is originally from Puerto Rico, but wished to live in London from a very young age. She finally moved to London in 2017 to pursue an LLM in Immigration Law at Queen Mary University where she graduated from in 2018. She hopes to stay in the UK for years to come with her partner, whom she lives with in East London.
Prior to moving to London, Catherine lived in a variety of cities, including Shanghai, Miami, and Washington D.C. She earned a degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University in Washington D.C. in 2014 and went on to attend law school at the same university. She graduated law school in 2017 and was admitted as a member of the D.C. bar in that same year. During her spare time, Catherine loves to travel, bake, and dance.
Events Co-Chair
Mary Suberu
Mary has been a member of AWLL since 2024.
She grew up in southern Vermont but lived in New York prior to moving to London. She has a passion for women empowerment and is strongly aligned with the mission of AWLL: to support women lawyers and provide professional development and networking opportunities to help them excel professionally in the London legal market.
As someone who moved to London with no pre-established legal network, she witnessed first-hand how difficult it was to navigate the London legal field. She is excited to work with AWLL to help ex-pat women navigate life in London and excel in their legal careers.
Mary earned her undergraduate degree at State University of New York College at Plattsburgh and completed her Graduate Diploma in Law and Legal Practice Course at BPP before starting work at a US law firm in London. Her prior legal experience includes working at the NYC Law Department and working in financial services regulation.
In her free time, Mary loves running, playing guitar, and spending quality time with friends and family.
Events Co-Chair
Lily Smith
Lily has been a member of AWLL since 2023. She is from Chicago and earned her J.D. from Stanford Law School. She is a member of the California bar and moved to London in March of 2023.
Prior to moving to London, Lily worked as a litigation associate in Morrison & Foerster's Tokyo office. In London, she works for McAllister Olivarius doing plaintiff's side employment litigation.
Before law school, Lily worked supporting refugee resettlement in Amman, Jordan and Washington, D.C. She earned a degree in Global Politics from the London School of Economics in 2012.
Lily has three children and loves to cook Indian food.
Website Chair
Cherryl Maranan
Cherryl has been a member of AWLL since 2024.
She is from California and lived in the San Francisco Bay Area prior to moving to London.
Cherryl earned her BA from the University of California, Berkeley and her JD from the University of California College of the Law, San Francisco. She maintains an active California bar membership and has worked as an Associate at US law firms primarily in litigation covering a wide range of practice areas, including labor & employment, intellectual property, and commercial matters. She also has previous experience working as an intern for the San Francisco City Attorney’s Office and as a Law Fellow for the Oakland City Attorney’s Office. Currently, she runs her own legal and business consulting practice.
In her free time, Cherryl loves exploring London, trying out new recipes, and traveling when she can.
Newsletter Chair
Louisa Lindsley
Louisa has been a member of AWLL since 2024. She joined the Executive Committee in 2025 as Newsletter Chair, where she is excited to bring together AWLL’s community through creative and engaging quarterly newsletters.
Originally from Dallas, Texas, Louisa studied International Relations at the University of St Andrews in Scotland and later earned her Postgraduate Diploma in Law from the University of Law in London Bloomsbury. She is pursuing qualification as a solicitor in England and Wales and has a strong interest in tech law, M&A, and disputes.
Louisa is passionate about building connections among women lawyers and creating multigenerational spaces where professional development and community thrive.
In her free time, Louisa enjoys running, playing golf, and hosting dinner parties.
The following Executive Committee positions are open;
to learn more about these vacancies, see our Recruiting! page.
Marketing Chair
The Marketing Chair plays a crucial role in supporting AWLL. She shall develop, implement and monitor AWLL's overall marketing strategy to create awareness of AWLL's activities and support our growth, including: developing brand strategy, analysing member engagement and keep abreast of current marketing trends. The Marketing Chair will be responsible for content, search engine optimization (SEO), advertising, email, branding, PR and social media. She will work with the Website Chair to create content relevant and useful for our members and also with the Events Chairs to ensure all events information is being effectively promoted.