Today, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals announced the passing of Judge Joel M. Flaum. He passed away on December 4, 2024, having served nearly 50 years on the federal bench. He was 88 years old.

A native of Hudson, New York, Judge Flaum graduated from Union College and moved to Chicago, where he eventually enrolled at Northwestern University School of Law, earning a J.D. degree in 1963 and an LL.M. in 1964. He worked for several years as an Assistant State’s Attorney in Cook County before moving to the Illinois Attorney General’s Office, starting as an Assistant Attorney General and rising to the position of First Assistant. In 1972, he became a federal prosecutor, serving as First Assistant United States Attorney in Chicago until 1975.

In December 1974, President Ford appointed him to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. He began his service at the age of 38—at the time the youngest federal judge in the nation. Judge Flaum served on the district court until President Reagan elevated him to the Seventh Circuit on June 1, 1983. Judge Flaum was an active-duty circuit judge for more than 37 years. He assumed senior status in November 2020 and continued to serve the court of appeals as a senior judge until his death. In his 41 years as an appellate judge, he authored more than 2,000 published opinions covering virtually every subject within the jurisdiction of the federal courts.

Judge Flaum also held many leadership positions within the federal judiciary. He served as Chief Judge of the Seventh Circuit from August 2000 to November 2006. In connection with that position, he held a seat on the Judicial Conference of the United States and was also a member of the Conference’s Executive Committee. Later he served on the Conference’s  Judicial Conduct and Disability Committee.

In addition to his judicial work, Judge Flaum taught law students for many years as an adjunct professor at Northwestern. He also served for 11 years as a commissioned officer in the Judge Advocate General’s Corp in the United States Naval Reserve.

For his many contributions to the federal justice system, last month Judge Flaum received the Opperman Foundation’s Edward J. Devi Distinguished Service to Justice Award, which annually recognizes an Article III judge for lifetime achievement in service to the nation’s courts. Judge Flaum’s other awards include the Order of Lincoln, Illinois’s highest honor for outstanding individual achievement; the Chicago Bar Association’s Justice John Paul Stevens Award; and the American Inns of Court Seventh Circuit Professionalism Award.

The court will hold a formal memorial service in the coming months.