Greg Leighton helps companies manage privacy and cybersecurity risk with precision, designing practical compliance programs that reduce exposure and defending clients when privacy-related disputes arise. He advises clients across industries on building and maintaining domestic and international privacy frameworks, data security, navigating cross-border data transfers and structuring transactions that involve technology or data flows. Greg also represents clients in class-action lawsuits involving alleged breaches of privacy and security laws, bringing a combination of regulatory insight and courtroom experience. As Vice Chair of the firm’s Privacy & Incident Response practice, he helps lead the group’s national strategy and growth.
In addition to his privacy work, Greg is a registered patent attorney who advises clients on patent prosecution and the protection and enforcement of intellectual property assets. He has successfully represented clients in patent, trademark and copyright disputes before federal courts, the Patent Trial and Appeal Board and U.S. International Trade Commission. With a technical background in chemical engineering — in which regularly advanced innovative product and process designs — he brings valuable perspective to clients in science and technology-driven industries.
Greg’s practice spans the full range of projects needed to build and maintain effective privacy compliance programs, including:
- Privacy risk and gap assessments
- Data mapping
- Website and internal privacy policy drafting
- Data processing agreements
- Data Subject Request policies and procedures
- Cross-Border Data Transfer Agreements and Impact Assessments
- Data Privacy Impact Assessments
- Data license and access agreements
- Data governance policies
Education
- Loyola University Chicago School of Law (J.D., cum laude, 2006)
- Northwestern University (B.S., 2003)
Bar Admission
- Illinois
Court Admissions
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit
- Supreme Court of Illinois
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois
- U.S. District Court, Central District of Illinois
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Texas
- U.S. District Court, Central District of California
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York
- U.S. District Court, Middle District of Tennessee
- U.S. District Court, Western District of Texas
- U.S. District Court, District of Utah
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of Alabama
Professional Affiliations
- Northern District of Illinois Trial Bar
- International Association of Privacy Professionals
- Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP/US and CIPP/E)
- Certified Information Privacy Manager (CIPM)
Recognition
- Selected for inclusion in Best Lawyers in America® for Privacy and Data Security Law, 2026
- Recognized in “40 Under 40,” Chicago Daily Bulletin, 2019
- Recognized as a Privacy Law Specialist by the International Association of Privacy Professionals and the American Bar Association
