| Kathy Byrne | |
| Birth Name: | Katherine Crane Byrne |
| Birth Date: | 31 December 1957 |
| Death Place: | Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Education: | Saint Mary's College Loyola University Chicago |
| Occupation: | Lawyer |
| Years Active: | 1988–2024 |
| Children: | 1 |
| Parents: | Jane Byrne (mother) Jay McMullen (stepfather) |
Katherine Crane Byrne (December 31, 1957 – August 8, 2024) was an American lawyer. She worked at a Chicago-based law firm, became involved in politics, and president of the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association.
Byrne was born on December 31, 1957, to William and Jane Byrne.[1] Her mother later became a politician and her father was a marine pilot who died in a crash while in route to Naval Air Station Glenview when she was eighteen months old.[2] She was raised in Sauganash, Chicago where she lived with her mother and grandparents. Byrne was an editor of her high school newspaper and initially wanted to be a political journalist. She earned a bachelor's degree in political science at Saint Mary's College. Her mother later remarried to political journalist Jay McMullen.[3] In October 1978, she was hired through her mother, who by then was mayor of Chicago, to work in a public relations job at the Chicago Transit Authority making US$17,500 . She left the position after ten months. Byrne completed a law degree from Loyola University Chicago School of Law in 1988.
Byrne joined Cooney & Conway as a law clerk on the day she passed the Illinois Bar Examination in 1988.[4] She worked there as a trial attorney for over 35 years. Byrne specialized in asbestos law. She co-chaired Susana Mendoza's campaign during the 2019 Chicago mayoral election.[5] She fundraised for Joe Biden's 2020 and 2024 presidential campaigns. On June 9, 2023, Byrne became the second woman to serve as president of the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association.[6]
Byrne died of lung cancer at the Rush University Medical Center, on August 8, 2024, at the age of 66.[7]