Senior Management Team

David Larson joined the Illinois Human Rights Commission as General Counsel in September 2022.  Mr. Larson previously served as Deputy General Counsel for the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission where he provided strategic support and consultation for all the commission's departments, boards, and proprietary funds.  In addition to his day-to-day responsibilities as Deputy General Counsel, Mr. Larson led the team that designed, built, and implemented CompFile, the cloud-based case management and electronic filing system for workers' compensation cases.

Prior to joining the State of Illinois, Mr. Larson worked in private practice representing employers in workers' compensation litigation and representing financial institutions in structured finance, securitization, and factoring transactions.  He also worked as an investment analyst helping to oversee the administration of the endowment and planned giving program at DePaul University.  Mr. Larson earned his Bachelor of Arts from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and his Juris Doctor from DePaul University College of Law.

Claudia P. Ortega joined the Illinois Human Rights Commission in August 2021 and serves as Chief Financial & Human Resource Officer. Ms. Ortega previously worked at the Office of the Executive Inspector General (OEIG) for nearly eight years, serving as the Chief Administrative Officer. Ms. Ortega served as the principal budget and accounting advisor to the OEIG and senior management and oversaw the administrative functions in Finance, Human Resources, and IT.  

Prior to joining the State of Illinois, Ms. Ortega worked in various roles in the private sector, advising senior staff on policy initiatives, procedural functions, and compliance related matters. Ms. Ortega earned her MSA degree from Benedictine University, College of Business, in Lisle, IL. She is a graduate of DePaul University in Chicago, IL, where she earned an undergraduate degree in Accounting. Ms. Ortega is a Certified Fraud Examiner.

Go to the "Administrative Law Judges" page for Chief Judge Weinthal's biography.