Elmm Law Group founder to receive WILBYBETTY honor in New Orleans

Gordana “Gordi” Mikalacki, founder of Elmm Law Group, will receive WILBYBETTY’s 2026 Resilience & Reinvention Award at the Women in Leadership conference Sept. 16-18 in New Orleans. She will also join three business-of-law panels as the event spotlights leadership, growth and firm-building in the legal industry.

Why it matters: - The award spotlights a personal injury lawyer whose career path reflects rebuilding, adaptation and firm growth. - The conference puts Mikalacki in front of a national legal audience that includes law firm owners, trial attorneys, judges and legal-industry executives. - The panels focus on the business side of law, where growth, cash flow, systems and leadership shape whether firms scale successfully.

What happened: - Gordana “Gordi” Mikalacki, Esq., partner and founder of Elmm Law Group, was named a 2026 WILBYBETTY® Leadership Honoree. - Mikalacki will receive The Resilience & Reinvention Award at the WILBYBETTY® Women in Leadership by Betty Annual Conference. - The conference runs Sept. 16-18, 2026, at The Roosevelt New Orleans. - Mikalacki was also named a featured panelist on three business-of-law sessions. - The award will be presented Friday, Sept. 18, during The WILBYBETTY® Awards & Leadership Brunch. - The closing event is titled Honoring Women of Power, Purpose, Prosperity.

The details: - WILBYBETTY® says the Resilience & Reinvention Award recognizes leaders whose careers show the ability to rebuild, adapt and grow. - Before founding Elmm Law Group, Mikalacki served as an Assistant Attorney General in Arizona under three attorneys general. - Mikalacki founded Elmm Law Group after concluding Arizona's personal injury market had become stale and overly focused on firms' bottom lines. - The three panel appearances are scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 17. - “Growth, Leadership & Scaling in the PI Industry” starts at 10:10 a.m. and will be moderated by Edward Susolik, senior partner and trial attorney at Callahan & Blaine. - “The Numbers Every 7- and 8-Figure Woman CEO Must Know” starts at 11:20 a.m. and will be moderated by Joshua Lockamy, founder of Lockamy & Associates. - “Scaling One Figure at a Time: The Roadmap from Six to Seven to Eight Figures” starts at 3:50 p.m. and will be moderated by Nate Hendricks. - The first panel will focus on leadership, systems, strategic growth, team building and competition in a crowded market. - The second panel will focus on financial and business metrics that drive profitability, cash flow and sustainable growth. - The third panel will focus on leadership strategy, financial benchmarks, systems and team building across growth stages. - Elmm Law Group is an Arizona-based personal injury law firm founded by Mikalacki. - The firm handles car accidents, motorcycle accidents, truck accidents, pedestrian accidents, dog bites, catastrophic injuries, wrongful death claims and other negligence-related cases. - Elmm Law Group says it emphasizes direct attorney access, clear communication and personalized legal strategies. - The firm says it has recovered millions of dollars for injured clients throughout Arizona. - Elmm Law Group also points to community programs including the Backpack to the Future school supply drive, an annual Elmm Law Group Successful Small Business Scholarship, and local partnerships and sponsorships. - WILBYBETTY® is a national women-in-leadership platform for the legal profession founded by Betty Aquino. - Its 2026 Annual Conference includes a leadership and wellness retreat, two days of business-of-law programming, CLE sessions and the WILBYBETTY® Leadership Awards.

Between the lines: - The award and panel slots position Mikalacki as both a subject-matter lawyer and a business operator. - The conference theme, Power. Prosperity. Purpose., suggests a strong emphasis on leadership as well as firm economics. - Mikalacki's remarks frame the panels as a place for candid conversations about what it takes to build a law firm, not just practice law.

What's next: - Mikalacki is set to appear on all three panels on Sept. 17. - The award presentation follows on Sept. 18 at the closing brunch. - Conference attendees will continue the event with sessions aimed at leadership development, wellness and law-firm growth.

The bottom line: - The New Orleans conference will give Mikalacki both recognition and a speaking platform as WILBYBETTY® highlights women shaping the legal profession.