Jen Patton is Chief Operating Officer (COO) for Foley & Lardner LLP, responsible for the leadership and strategic oversight of the firm’s administrative and operational functions. In this role, Jen focuses on advancing key initiatives, innovation, and driving operational excellence across the organization, all while continuing to champion the firm’s unique culture.

Prior to her role as COO, Jen served as Chief Talent Officer, overseeing and leading the firm’s talent strategy for attorneys and business professionals, including recruitment, professional development, employee relations, benefits and compensation, coaching, and diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.

Jen came to Foley from Vinson & Elkins, where she most recently served as Director of Professional Development. In that capacity, she directed all attorney development initiatives, including professional skills training, continuing legal education programming, on-demand learning, individual coaching, and all attorney onboarding, orientation and integration efforts.

She previously spent four years as that firm’s Director of Lateral Recruitment, where she oversaw global lateral recruiting efforts, and prior to that, two years as V&E’s Director of Alumni Relations.

Jen é formada pela Faculdade de Direito da Universidade do Texas e atuou na Baker Botts e na Suprema Corte do Texas após a formatura. Ela fez a graduação na Universidade Rice, onde também jogou no time de basquetebol da Divisão I e atuou como capitã por três anos. Antes de ingressar na faculdade de direito, ela passou dois anos como analista de investimentos bancários na Goldman Sachs.