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July 21, 2014

July 21, 2014, 7:50 am
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Too Poor To Sue? Here's Help, But Maybe Not For Long
From Crain's Chicago Business
Oasis Legal Finance LLC makes money legally, though less than honorably, at least according to corporate insurers. The Northbrook company provides what is known as lawsuit funding and says it accounts for as many as four of 10 loans made to personal injury plaintiffs.
Despite rates that would be usury in other instances, however, business doesn't look as promising as it has been. This month a new Tennessee law forced Oasis out of the state, just one of many considering restricting if not halting a practice that insurers say spurs more lawsuits, larger settlements and ultimately higher premiums for policyholders.
“The insurance consumers, at the end of the day, are bankrolling this industry,” says Joe Thesing, vice president of state affairs in Indianapolis at the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies.
Although the Tennessee act allows annual interest charges of 46 percent, Oasis says other provisions, including a prohibition against assigning contracts, will kill funding from banks and junior capital providers. “It's like taking the coffee beans away from Starbucks,” Oasis CEO Ralph Shayne says.
Since 2013, bills have been introduced in Illinois, Indiana and 15 other states to ban or restrain lawsuit lending, or to enable it, according to trade groups representing one side or another. None besides Tennessee's passed.
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July 22, 2014

July 22, 2014, 6:36 am
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Court OKs Expedited Appeal Of Term Limits Case
From the Associated Press
An Illinois appellate court has agreed to hear an expedited appeal of a ruling that banned a question on term limits from the November ballot.
The Chicago-based First District Appellate Court issued its order Monday.
Supporters gathered signatures to put a measure on the ballot to limit legislators to eight years.
But a lawyer for top Democrats sued, and a judge ruled last month the measure didn't meet constitutional requirements to be on the ballot.
The Illinois Supreme Court said last week it wouldn't hear an immediate appeal.
Supporters then asked the appeals court for an expedited process, because state election officials must approve the ballot by Aug. 22.
Republican Bruce Rauner is leading the effort. He's made it a major issue in his race against Gov. Pat Quinn.
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July 23, 2014

July 23, 2014, 6:37 am
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Durbin Warns Of Customer Boycott If Walgreen Moves HQ To Europe
From Crain's Chicago Business
The U.S. Senate's No. 2 Democrat Tuesday ramped up his opposition to tax-driven corporate headquarters relocations another notch, suggesting that customers of Walgreen Co. may defect if the drugstore chain proceeds with a rumored HQ move to Europe.
"Is 'the corner of happy and healthy' somewhere in the Swiss Alps?" Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., asked in a letter to Gregory Wasson, president and CEO of the Deerfield-based retailer. "I strongly urge you and the board of directors to reconsider your decision to move the company's domicile overseas to avoid U.S. taxes," a process known as a corporate inversion.
Actually, Walgreen has made no such decision yet, at least not one that's been announced. But one is widely expected after last week's announcement that another big Illinois company, AbbVie Inc., is acquiring a British firm so it can move its headquarters and cut its corporate tax rate from 22 percent to 13 percent.
In his letter, Mr. Durbin conceded that Walgreen could "dodge" an estimated $4 billion in U.S. taxes over the next five years by moving its headquarters to Switzerland. "I recognize that potential windfall is an attractive option for shareholders," he wrote.
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July 24, 2014

July 24, 2014, 6:38 am
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Chief Judge Came Close To Shutting Chicago's Federal Court During Government Shutdown Last Fall
From the Chicago Tribune
U.S. District Chief Judge Ruben Castillo was less than three months into his tenure overseeing Chicago’s federal courts last year when the budget crisis in Washington forced him to draft a doomsday email that would have halted all trials at the busy downtown courthouse.
The federal government had been shut down for 17 days and Castillo had no more money to pay jurors, court-appointed attorneys or other costs of a trial. Officials in Washington had told him to give jurors IOUs for their service if necessary – something he refused to do.
“If the shutdown hadn’t ended exactly when it did, we were out of money,” Castillo recounted Wednesday in an interview with the Tribune about his first year in office. “If we had gotten to Day 18, I would have sent the email. I really thought at that point that they did not pay me enough to be the chief judge of this district.”
Speaking in his chambers on the 25th floor of the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse, Castillo said morale sank last summer as layoffs mounted – at one point the court staff was down 20 percent -- and those who remained had to take on increased workloads.
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July 25, 2014

July 25, 2014, 2:08 pm
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FBI Agent Found Probable Cause That Ex-Judge Cook Possessed Drugs With Intent To Distribute
From the Madison County Record
Federal Bureau of Investigation agent Julie Neiger found probable cause to believe former St. Clair County judge Michael Cook possessed drugs with intent to distribute them and conspired to distribute them, she swore last year.
An affidavit she signed on April 9, 2013, portrayed Cook as partner of heroin dealer Sean McGilvery rather than customer as their eventual guilty pleas would indicate.
It shows AT&T provided McGilvery’s records on March 11, 2013, a day after St. Clair County associate judge Joe Christ died at Cook’s hunting lodge near Pittsfield.
Neiger filed the affidavit to obtain a warrant for satellite tracking of Cook’s cell phone.
She asked for a 30 day delay in notice, writing that immediate notice would give him an opportunity to destroy evidence, change behavior patterns and flee from prosecution.
She filed a similar affidavit on McGilvery, writing that he and Cook communicated on their cell phones more than 2,000 times in a year.
Her affidavits provide evidence of drug dealing beyond the evidence that news outlets reported months ago from Neiger’s affidavit for a warrant to search Cook’s home.
The warrant for the home search involved a drug user owning weapons, while the warrant for tracking involved drug dealing.
The Record found the tracking warrants by conducting an Internet search of Cook’s phone number.
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July 28, 2014

July 28, 2014, 2:10 pm
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Sen. Kirk's Office Challenges Illinois Migrant Figures
From the Associated Press
Recent data released by the federal government may reflect only a fraction of how many unaccompanied children apprehended at the U.S.-Mexico border are in Illinois, with state officials saying hundreds more could be at shelters.
In a state-by-state list made public Thursday, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Administration for Children and Families said 305 children were released to Illinois sponsors from Jan. 1 through July 7 of this year. However, Republican U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk's office said Friday federal data given to his office this month shows that another 429 children were at Illinois shelters as of July 8.
Kirk's office said Friday the number of children at the shelters fluctuates. A message left for a federal health and human services spokesman wasn't immediately returned.
Illinois is prepared to "help in whatever way necessary," Gov. Pat Quinn said Friday. His comment comes as governors in some other states, including Idaho, have asked federal officials not to send any of the children.
"We have a responsibility to ensure all children are treated with respect, compassion and dignity," the Chicago Democrat said in a statement. "My administration will continue to discuss this important subject with other federal, state and local elected officials."
The details of how and where the children are kept in Illinois as they await immigration proceedings are sparse.
The U.S. faces a sharp rise in unaccompanied minors who have been fleeing violence in Central America and crossing into the U.S. because they believe they will be allowed to stay.
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July 29, 2014

July 29, 2014, 6:20 am
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Durbin Bill Today Targets Corporate Inversions
From the Chicago Sun-Times
Sen. Dick Durbin said he and other Democrats today will unveil a bill to curb corporate tax dodging.
No federal contracts would go to businesses that engage in corporate “inversions” to lower their tax bills, the Illinois Democrat said.
The measure is called the “No Federal Contracts for Corporate Deserters Act.”
Durbin will appear at a press conference in Washington at 9:15 a.m. Chicago time to talk about the bill.
The bill would mean no federal contacts would go to businesses that incorporate overseas, are at least 50 percent owned by U.S. shareholders and do not have substantial business opportunities in the foreign country in which they are incorporating.
The law now defines a company as being “inverted” if it is at least 80 percent owned by U.S. shareholders after it reincorporates overseas, according to Durbin.
Drug maker AbbVie and Walgreens are among the most recent corporations to announce they are “moving their mailbox overseas to avoid paying their fair share of taxes,” a statement from Durbin and the other Democrats said.
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July 30, 2014

July 30, 2014, 6:32 am
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Iowa Chief Justice Reflects On Politicization Of Judicial Elections
From the Legal Times
Judges must do a better job of educating the public about their roles in a democracy to counteract the politicization of state judicial elections, Iowa’s chief justice said on Monday.
“There is an abundance of misinformation about the courts,” Iowa chief justice Mark Cady told the first-ever “Fair Courts State Summit” in Washington, attended by advocates for judicial independence. “We need to give voters the tools” to understand and appreciate the need for fair and impartial courts, he said.
Since 2010, Cady said, his court has held sessions in 13 communities around the state and participated in more than 100 programs at high schools, colleges and universities. The goal, he said, is to “give the public a better perspective so they can see through” attacks on the courts.
Cady was speaking from experience. In 2009, he authored Varnum v. Brien, the unanimous Iowa Supreme Court ruling that struck down the state’s ban on same-sex marriage as a violation of the state constitution’s equal-protection clause. The next year, three justices lost retention elections after being targeted for their votes on the issue—the first time in decades that sitting justices in Iowa had been defeated for retention.
“It was an attempt to influence judicial decision-making and an attack on fair and impartial courts,” Cady said. “We simply put too much faith in the public’s understanding of judicial independence.” The defeats compelled Cady to launch his efforts to “do our work in a more transparent way.” Cady himself faces a retention election in 2016.
The public needs to learn how important fair courts are to “the strength of our nation,” Cady said. He cited a World Bank study that found that “the most important factor by far” in fostering a strong economy is the ability of a nation’s court system to make “impartial decisions based on the rule of law.”
Cady has also been an advocate of cameras access to proceedings in both federal and state courts. His court streams oral arguments online. In his remarks Monday, Cady made no mention of the U.S. Supreme Court, which has rejected proposals for camera coverage and has not held a session outside of Washington in more than two centuries.
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July 31, 2014

July 31, 2014, 7:45 am
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St. Clair County Brings Legal Settlements Into The Open
From the Belleville News-Democrat
The St. Clair County Board has taken a step toward more transparency in how it approves legal settlements.
The change is the result of a review of binding opinions issued by the Illinois Attorney General's Office, according to St. Clair County State's Attorney Brendan Kelly. The binding opinions are administrative decisions that allow the attorney general to clarify Sunshine laws and increase disclosure.
Kelly said County Board members will now verbally announce in public session the amount agreed upon and the subject of the litigation when finalizing settlements. Previously, the board, after discussing settlements in closed session, only publicly approved a motion to "approve recommendations presented by legal counsel in executive session regarding pending litigation."
The new method reflects the state's Open Meetings Act, which says that "Final action shall be preceded by a public recital of the nature of the matter being considered and other information that will inform the public of the business being conducted."
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August 1, 2014

August 1, 2014, 6:35 am
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Litigating In Illinois Is Antithesis Of ‘Easy,’ Say Asbestos Defendants In Forum Appeal
From the Madison County Record
Defendants in three separate Madison County lung cancer asbestos cases have appealed orders denying their forum non conveniens motions to the Fifth District Appellate Court.
In petitions filed June 23 and July 14, they argue that Judge Stephen Stobbs’ orders are a “clear abuse of discretion” because the cases brought by out of state claimants have no relevant connection to Illinois.
Defendants Union Carbide Corporation, CBS Corporation, Honeywell International, Inc., Crane Co., Georgia Pacific, LLC, Ingersoll-Rand Company, Trane U.S., Inc., General Electric Company, National Automotive Parts Association, Carlisle Brake & Friction, Inc., 84 Lumber Company and York International Corp. also argue that the denials render the forum non conveniens doctrine a “dead letter” in cases involving numerous defendants, which applies to nearly every asbestos case filed in Madison County.
Associate Judge Stobbs, who has presided over the asbestos docket since last October, denied the motions on May 23 saying defendants failed to sufficiently argue that Illinois is inconvenient for all parties involved in the cases, failed to show that the plaintiffs could have filed their claims against all defendants in another state and specifically failed to state which court in alternate states would have been a more appropriate jurisdiction.
“[N]ot only must a moving party demonstrate that a plaintiff’s initial forum is inconvenient to the moving party, but they also must demonstrate that another forum is more convenient to all parties involved,” Stobbs wrote.
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August 4, 2014

August 4, 2014, 6:24 am
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What Did Prosecutors Know About Former Judge Michael Cook?
From the Belleville News-Democrat
St. Clair County prosecutors may have to answer when they found out that former judge Michael Cook was under investigation by federal drug agents.
Circuit Judge Bob Haida will allow attorney Gil Sison to move forward in efforts to win a new trial for his client Kenny Wicks, who was convicted of first-degree murder during a jury trial presided over by Cook in January 2013.
When asked whether Sison will subpoena State's Attorney Brendan Kelly or his assistants, Sison replied, "We aren't ruling it out."
Kelly declined to comment because the case is pending.
There is a status hearing in Wicks' case set for Sept. 4.
A jury convicted Wicks on Jan. 31, 2013, for the murder of James Earl Rogers Jr. The jury also found Wicks was the one who fired the gun. Cook sentenced Wicks to 20 years in the murder charge, plus 25 years for the firearm enhancement.
But it isn't just when prosecutors found out Cook was under investigation, but when he started to use heroin that Sison wants to discover. Confidential informants put Cook's drug use back to before he became an associate judge in 2007, according to federal search warrant applications, and that's part of what Sison wants to know.
"I think that matters. This isn't just because he was under investigation for drugs but because he was a heroin addict who was on the bench making decisions on criminal cases," Sison said.
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August 5, 2014

August 5, 2014, 7:35 am
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Dillard Steps Down From Illinois Senate To Chair RTA
From the Associated Press
Republican state Sen. Kirk Dillard, who made two attempts at Illinois governor, officially resigned from the Legislature after more than two decades in office to become chairman of the Chicago-area’s Regional Transportation Authority, Senate Republican officials announced Monday.
The Hinsdale lawmaker, who first took office in 1993, also served as chief of staff to former Gov. Jim Edgar, a fact he often touted during his most recent gubernatorial bid. Despite heavy support from unions, Dillard lost the four-way GOP primary in March to businessman Bruce Rauner. He also lost a close 2010 gubernatorial GOP primary to state Sen. Bill Brady.
Dillard, 59, was an intern for Senate Republicans as soon as he graduated from Western Illinois University in 1977. He went to law school, later going on to work as a legislative director for former Gov. Jim Thompson. He was appointed to the Illinois Senate to fill a vacancy in 1993 and won election the following year.
“I was called to public service at a young age,” he said in a statement from Senate Republicans. “I respected the process and worked hard to honor the wishes of those who elected me and sent me to the General Assembly to work humbly on their behalf.”
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August 6, 2014

August 6, 2014, 7:47 am
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Average Illinois Public Pension Catching Up To Average Salary
From the Chicago Daily Herald
The average pension for a retired public employee in Illinois is quickly approaching the average salary of those still working.
The gap has narrowed rapidly over the past decade, illustrating the problem of years of generous salary growth, compounded cost-of-living adjustments for pensioners and the financial perils of early retirement incentives, critics say.
"More and more people are making more in retirement than they did when they were working, and I just don't see how you can do that," said David From, Illinois state director for Americans for Prosperity, a national tax policy reform organization. "People in the public sector are not making a pauper's wage."
The average 2013 pension was $31,674 for retirees in nine statewide and metropolitan Chicago public pension systems for government workers, teachers, legislators, judges and university professors, a Daily Herald analysis shows. That's 60 percent of the $55,120 average salary for pension fund members who are still working.
Ten years ago, the average pension was less than half of the average salary.
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August 7, 2014

August 7, 2014, 7:49 am
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Illinois Sends State Troopers To Help Chicago Reduce Criminal Violence
From the Wall Street Journal
Forty state troopers will join city efforts to reduce violence after several attention-grabbing incidents this summer, including more than four dozen shootings during the July 4 weekend.
The city and state plan to form about 20 so-called surge teams, consisting of five Chicago officers and two troopers, who will work on arrest warrants, surveillance and investigations, Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn said Wednesday.
The effort is set to last 30 days, at which point it will be evaluated for a possible extension. The troopers are being reassigned from elsewhere.
Funding for the initiative, which was requested by Mr. Emanuel, will come from the state. The cost wasn't disclosed.
Despite the violence, Chicago's murder rate this year remains one of the lowest in decades. Through the end of July, the city saw 211 murders, or 17 fewer than during the same period in 2013 and 92 fewer than at the same point in 2012.
Colleen Daley, executive director of the nonprofit Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence, said she was pleased by the news of the police cooperation. "Recognizing that we can have more assistance from the state police is a good thing," she said.
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August 8, 2014

August 8, 2014, 7:53 am
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NRG To Close Romeoville, Illinois Coal Plant In Clean Air Move
From the Associated Press
An energy company has announced plans to close one Illinois coal-fired generating unit in Romeoville and convert a facility in Joliet to natural gas to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. The company says the move will eliminate 250 jobs.
New Jersey-based NRG Energy Inc. announced the plans Thursday. The company says it will close one of two coal-fired units in Romeoville, convert its plant in Joliet to natural gas and upgrade its plants in Pekin and Waukegan.
The company took over the four Illinois facilities in April when it acquired Edison Mission Energy.
The company says the changes represent a $567 million investment that will reduce overall carbon dioxide emissions by at least 16 million tons annually by 2020.
Environmental groups say it's an important step, but doesn't go far enough.
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ICJL begins judicial evaluation process; Big races for area voters

August 8, 2014, 8:25 am
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From the Madison County Record

The Illinois Civil Justice League (ICJL) has launched its 2014 judicial candidate evaluations process, seeking to keep voters informed about potential jurists who “can have a tremendous impact on the daily lives of the citizens of Illinois.”

Throughout last week, the ICJL distributed surveys to 69 candidates for election. Surveys to the 158 sitting judges who are seeking retention in November will be sent this week.

“It’s very important people pay attention to judicial elections,” said ICJL President Ed Murnane. “Illinois is one of the few states that elects judges on a purely partisan basis.”

Judicial candidates who respond to the survey will have their answers posted at IllinoisJudges.net. Candidates who decline to respond will be noted and publicized, according to Murnane.

“The judicial system in Illinois is very ignored,” said Murnane. “Very few people pay attention and there is little to no competition. People don’t know who these judges are and what they stand for.”

Once a judge or justice is elected, it’s very rare they are ever voted out office, Murnane said.

In the Nov. 4 general election, candidates seeking retention must get approval — or “yes” votes — from 60 percent of those casting ballots on the retention question. Candidates in contested races must receive more votes than his or her opponent.

“This is probably one of the poorest judicial selection processes in the U.S.,” Murnane said. “Judges have a tremendous impact on the daily lives of the citizens of Illinois. They have the right to take children away from families and sentence people to years in prison. People ought to know who these judges are.”

Even in groups of lawyers, Murnane says it’s a struggle to find an attorney who can name all the justices on the Illinois Supreme Court.

One Supreme Court election is on the ballot this year. Justice Lloyd Karmeier, Republican, is seeking retention in the Fifth Judicial District, which includes the 37 most southern counties in Illinois.

Terms for supreme and appellate justices are 10 years each. Circuit court terms are six years each.

In addition to keeping people informed, ICJL has submitted proposals to the state legislature in hopes of reforming the judicial selection process.

Murnane said he’d like to see partisan titles removed from judicial elections and have the elections held during odd year municipal elections, rather than during general elections in November when ballots are crowded with more headline-grabbing races.

He called the state’s partisan system “dangerous,” when one political party dominates a bench.

Democratic judges prevail in the circuits that include Madison and St. Clair counties – the Third and Twentieth Judicial Circuits.

In addition to Karmeier’s retention in November, Third Circuit voters also will decide whether to retain Circuit Judges Dennis Ruth and Richard Tognarelli to their second six year terms.

They also will decide between Associate Judge Clarence Harrison, Democrat, and St. Jacob attorney John Barberis, Republican, for the circuit court seat vacated last year by Ann Callis, Democrat, who stepped down to make a bid for Congress.

St. Clair County voters will decide who will fill the vacancy created following the resignation last year of Michael Cook, Democrat, who left in disgrace after he was charged with heroin possession and weapons charges. He is serving a two year prison sentence.

On the ballot will be Circuit Judge Stephen McGlynn, Republican, who was appointed by the Illinois Supreme Court to fill Cook’s seat, and Associate Judge Heinz Rudolf, Democrat.

ICJL’s site will be updated almost daily as judicial candidates and sitting judges respond to the questionnaire, Murnane said. Evaluations and merited endorsements will be made by the organization in mid-September.

ICJL is a coalition of Illinois citizens, small and large businesses, associations, professional societies, not-for-profit organizations and local governments that have joined together to work for fairness in the Illinois civil justice system, according to the ICJL website.

Read the story at the Madison County Record.

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August 11, 2014

August 11, 2014, 7:48 am
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90 Years On, Push For ERA Ratification Continues
From the Associated Press
Drafted by a suffragette in 1923, the Equal Rights Amendment has been stirring up controversy ever since. Many opponents considered it dead when a 10-year ratification push failed in 1982, yet its backers on Capitol Hill, in the Illinois statehouse and elsewhere are making clear this summer that the fight is far from over.
In Washington, congresswomen Jackie Speier, D-Calif., and Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., are prime sponsors of two pieces of legislation aimed at getting the amendment ratified. They recently organized a pro-ERA rally, evoking images of the 1970s, outside the U.S. Supreme Court.
"Recent Supreme Court decisions have sent women's rights back to the Stone Age," said Speier, explaining the renewed interest in the ERA. The amendment would stipulate that equal rights cannot be denied or curtailed on the basis of gender.
Participants in the July 24 rally directed much of their ire at the Supreme Court's recent Hobby Lobby ruling. In a 5-4 decision, with the majority comprised of five male justices, the court allowed some private businesses to opt out of the federal health care law's requirement that contraception coverage be provided to workers at no extra charge.
"They could not have made the Hobby Lobby ruling with an ERA," Maloney said.
Meanwhile, in Illinois, battle lines are being drawn for a likely vote this fall in the state House of Representatives on whether to ratify the ERA. The state Senate approved the ratification resolution on a 39-11 vote in May, and backers hope for a similar outcome in the House after the legislature reconvenes in November.
If the amendment gets the required three-fifths support in the House, Illinois would become the 36th state to ratify the ERA. Thirty-eight states' approval is required to ratify an amendment -- but the ERA's possible road to ratification today is complicated by its history.
The Illinois resolution's chief sponsor in the Democrat-controlled House, Deputy Majority Leader Lou Lang -- a Skokie Democrat who said he was close to securing the 71 votes needed for approval -- is motivated in part by Illinois' role in the ERA drama of the 1970s. Back then, the legislature's failure to ratify the amendment was a crucial blow to the national campaign.
"Illinois was the state that killed it 40 years ago," Lang said, calling that "appalling" and noting that Illinois has an equal rights amendment in its state constitution.
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August 12, 2014

August 12, 2014, 5:54 am
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U.S. Court Seats Filling Up
From the National Law Journal
The Senate confirmed federal judges at a faster rate in the past five months than at any time during President Barack Obama's administration — significantly reducing the number of vacancies on the nation's courts.
The average number of judicial confirmations per month since March was 11. The monthly average during the rest of Obama's presidency? Four.
Senate Democrats made ­confirmations a higher priority this spring in part for fear of losing their majority in the November elections, lawyers and scholars who closely watch the confirmations process said. Partisanship on Capitol Hill stalled progress on major legislation, leaving time on the Senate floor to move Obama's judicial picks.
At the same time, historic changes to the Senate's filibuster rules — put in place in November during a fight over nominations to a key federal appeals court in Washington — prevented Republicans from getting in the way.
The urgency to fill judicial slots might be based on politics, but the effect is practical. The high number of vacancies during Obama's presidency — which hovered around 90 for several years amid stalemates in the confirmations process — caused litigation costs to increase, judges to spend less time on cases and made civil disputes harder to settle, according to a July report from The Brennan Center for Justice.
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August 13, 2014

August 13, 2014, 6:23 am
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State Agency Is Ignoring Salary Database Law
From the Chicago Daily Herald
An Illinois law requiring the state to keep a salary database of most local government employees is being disregarded because no money was ever appropriated to pay for it.
Department officials claim they didn't have to create the database because they were not given funding.
Some lawmakers say they were never told it would cost anything, maintain there is no additional cost and are upset they were never notified the law was being ignored.
"The statute indicates it was 'subject to appropriation,'" said Alka Nayyar, spokeswoman for the Illinois Department of Central Management Services, which was charged with creating the database. "I don't believe the General Assembly appropriated the funds required to implement the additions" to the Illinois Transparency and Accountability Portal.
The portal was created in 2010 as an employment database of state workers that lists their names, job titles, current pay rates and year-to-date salary totals.
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August 14, 2014

August 14, 2014, 6:49 am
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Vikelis A Write-in Winner
From the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin
Judges regularly must read between the lines. In April, many of Cook County’s circuit judges wrote between them.
The judges received ballots with 26 names to fill 13 associate judge vacancies. Then-Circuit Judge Peter J. Vilkelis, fresh off a March primary defeat for his appointed seat, was not one of those names.
But Vilkelis’ colleagues on the bench weren’t quite ready to see him pack up his office in the court’s Child Protection Division.
“I started getting text messages and phone calls saying they wanted to mount a write-in for me,” Vilkelis said.
One of the messages came from Circuit Judge Robert Balanoff.
“As soon as we saw the list and saw Pete wasn’t on it, we were sort of shocked,” Balanoff said.
Such a campaign, a rarely attempted avenue to a spot on the bench provided under Illinois Supreme Court rules, requires voting circuit judges to fill in a qualified candidate’s name on a blank line below the printed names.
Balanoff, a 10-year judicial veteran, said he’s unaware of any previous successful write-in campaigns. He sent a letter to judges asking them to vote for Vilkelis.
Vilkelis printed palm cards to hand out at a judicial educational conference in early May and sent two sets of mailings explaining his background and goals as a judge.
“Given all the encouragement I was getting from a lot of judges, I let Chief Judge (Timothy C.) Evans know what I was doing, and he told me if I was successful, I’d be welcomed with open arms,” he said.
“I felt, what did I have to lose at that point?”
His fellow judges made him one of their 13 picks.
Now formally an associate judge, Vilkelis said he’s gratified and humbled by the support he received.
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