A graduate of Chicago’s John Marshall Law School, Ridgeway has spent his entire legal career dedicated to public interest causes and improving the lives of others through the law.

As a recipient of the Alvin Baum Family Fund Fellowship fund to work for the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless, Ridgeway’s first summer in the legal community was spent fighting against the City of Chicago for 4th Amendment violations against its homeless citizens, aiding families in need following Chicago Public Schools’s simultaneous closing of more than 50 disadvantaged schools, and performing various other forms of outreach for the benefit of the homeless community.

Following this, Ridgeway externed for the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights, where he aided in the adjudication of a series of complaints regarding racial, gender, and disability discrimination.  Most significantly from this experience, Ridgeway was able to draft precedent-influencing briefs regarding a school’s ability to segregate classes based on gender.

Still while in law school, Ridgeway worked for Triage Cancer on draft legislation to allow cancer-drug recycling in Illinois, reducing waste and providing life-saving medicine to families in need.  From there, he spent a summer working at the San Diego Volunteer Lawyer program to advocate for the educational needs of foster children in San Diego County.  

Ridgeway’s dedication these causes, along with his coursework specializing in Trial Advocacy, resulting in him receiving The Heart of John Marshall Award, given to students demonstrating a strong work ethic, integrity, leadership and affinity for the school.

After graduating, moving to San Diego, and passing the California Bar Exam in 2016, Ridgeway has been a member of the American Bar Association and the LGBT Bar Association.  He has been working as a contract attorney while volunteering as a board member, secretary, and digital media director for PIAC.