Whitley focuses on supporting the legal needs of Detroit’s entrepreneurs, small businesses, and nonprofits. After serving in the Peace Corps, receiving her B.A. from Columbia University, and her J.D. from American University Washington College of Law, Whitley returned to Michigan where she worked as a litigator in the Detroit office of Dykema Gossett PLLC. Whitley has worked with clients on a range of litigation matters, including financial services, commercial real estate, healthcare, and municipal disputes. Whitley has also represented clients in real estate development and environmental matters.

Prior to returning to Michigan, Whitley served as an intern for the Housing Opportunities Commission of Montgomery County, Maryland. She also worked as a student attorney at American University Washington College of Law’s Community and Economic Development Law Clinic, where she assisted small business owners and a low equity housing cooperative in D.C. While in law school, Whitley served as a research assistant for Professor Susan Bennett regarding language access issues. Whitley also served as the Symposium Editor for the Journal of Gender, Social Policy and the Law, as president of the Women’s Law Association, and on the executive board of the Black Law Students Association.

Whitley was admitted to the State Bar of Michigan in November 2016. She is a member of the Wolverine Bar Association, the Detroit Bar Association, and the American Bar Association. From 2018 to 2019, Whitley participated as a Scholar in the American Bar Association’s Young Lawyer Division.