Sidney Lewellen joined Craig, Kelley & Faultless LLC in 2023 as an associate attorney in the personal injury practice area. She began clerking with the firm during her first year as a law student at Indiana University. Sidney’s practice currently focuses on discovery matters. “In this role, I get to help ensure that our attorneys have the information they need to be able to best represent our clients,” she says. In addition to working on discovery, she also does legal research and drafts legal briefs.
Sidney has wanted to be an attorney for as long as she can remember, and the idea of standing up for others drew her to the profession. “Lawyers help provide the public with access to justice,” she says. “I think there is something beautiful about using your knowledge, experience, and voice to help fight for others.”
The “client-first” culture at Craig, Kelley & Faultless LLC is one of the traits Sidney values most about the law firm she says has made her a better person. “I love working for a firm that shares my values. CKF puts the clients first and advocates fiercely for people who may be experiencing one of the hardest times in their life. But CKF does not only care about its client – the people at CKF care about each other and about the community,” she says.
Sidney feels particularly privileged to have the opportunity to make a difference in the future for people facing some of the most stressful circumstances. “I know that many of our clients are coming to us because they have just had something terrible happen to them,” she says. “I appreciate the trust our clients put in us during one of the most vulnerable times in their life.”
The practice of law in general and the values of the law firm in particular focus on improvement and development, according to Sidney. “I also love getting to work in an environment where I am constantly learning new things from others and being challenged to improve myself. I think all the attorneys at CKF are constantly learning and growing with each other, which only makes us better advocates for our clients,” she says.
In her free time, Sidney enjoys knitting and crocheting, as well as hiking and running. She is the “proud parent” of two orange cats.
Sidney’s Education and Background
Sidney grew up in Columbia City, a small town just outside Fort Wayne. She earned her undergraduate degree, summa cum laude, in philosophy from Ball State University. She then went to IU McKinney School of Law for her J.D. and graduated second in her class.
During law school, she completed over 60 hours of pro bono work at the Center for Victim and Human Rights. She also participated in IU’s Pathway to Law program by mentoring an undergraduate student interested in law and served as a volunteer moot court judge.
Sidney is licensed to practice law in Indiana and the U.S. District Court, Northern and Southern Districts of Indiana. She is also a member of the Indiana State Bar Association.
Awards and Recognitions
Sidney was the 2022 recipient of the Eleanor D. Kinney Award for Dedicated Service from the Indiana Health Law Review. She was a member of the Order of the Barristers for the 2021 Staton Intramural Moot Court Competition.
Sidney’s note entitled “An Argument for Multi-District Climate Litigation” was selected for publication in Indiana Health Law Review, Volume XX, Issue No. 2, 2023. Her article entitled “The Value of Withholding Forgiveness” was published in compos mentis: Undergraduate Journal of Cognition and Neuroethics, 2019.
