Featured Alumni | Simmons Law School | SIU

The Simmons Law community doesn't end at graduation: it grows. Our alumni pursue careers as varied as the communities they serve, including prosecutors and public defenders, civil litigators and corporate counsel, entrepreneurs, public servants, and judges serving at every level of the judiciary.

Some have built their practices right here in Southern Illinois, serving the region that shaped them. Others have taken their Simmons foundation to courtrooms, boardrooms, and public offices across the state, the country, and beyond. Wherever they land, they carry with them the values, skills, and relationships forged at the only law school in Southern Illinois.

 

We're proud to spotlight a few of the individuals who carry the Simmons name forward. Know someone who should be featured — or want to share your own story? We'd love to hear from you.

Some careers unfold exactly as planned. Others take a turn that changes everything, in the best possible way. For Diane Goffinet (’92), a last-semester internship at the Jackson County courthouse set her on a path she never anticipated: federal judicial clerkship, a life rooted in Southern Illinois, and a career devoted to expanding access to justice for those who need it most.

 

Now the Managing Attorney for the Southern Regional Office of Land of Lincoln Legal Aid, she leads a team of more than 20 staff serving clients across the bottom 23 counties of Illinois. She is also a nationally recognized leader in the Medical-Legal Partnership movement. We sat down with her to talk about the winding road that brought her here and what she learned along the way.