Justice Judy Cates of the Illinois Appellate Court, Fifth Judicial District, is accepting applications for an in-chambers appellate court judicial secretary/law clerk in St. Clair County, Illinois.  The duties include legal research and analysis, and the drafting of judicial opinions, orders, and memoranda. The position also requires performance of administrative duties, including correspondence with the courthouse and other chambers, maintenance of court files, tracking of motions and cases, and other duties as assigned.  The annual salary is $87,391. 

Applicants must be graduates of an ABA-accredited law school with strong academic records; superior skills in legal research, analysis, and writing; the ability to work independently; familiarity with Microsoft Office programs; outstanding communication, computer, and organizational skills; and the ability to utilize electronic platforms, including videoconferencing, and related technology.  Writing experience, such as Law Review, or similar journal experience, is preferred, but not required.  Preference will be given to those with an Illinois law license, and prior experience as a judicial law clerk or research attorney.

The position will be available on March 13, 2023, and will remain open until filled, although those submitting applications before February 3, 2023, will be given first consideration.  Interested individuals should submit - via e-mail - a cover letter, resume (including the applicant's GPA, class rank and bar status), one complex writing sample (not just a simple motion), and three references to: mmurphy@illinoiscourts.gov.

Additional information about the position may be found here.

Justice Ann Brackley Jorgensen of the Illinois Appellate Court, Second District, seeks a Judicial Secretary/Law Clerk for an opening in her chambers in Wheaton, Illinois.

BENEFITS: An attractive judicial branch employee benefits package is offered, including pension; medical, dental, vision, and life insurance, deferred compensation; and vacation. 

SALARY: $87,391 per year

ESSENTIAL DUTIES: The Judicial Secretary/Law Clerk conducts legal research and drafts memoranda, orders, and opinions for the justice. The position additionally requires administrative duties, including corresponding with the courthouse and other chambers, tracking the status of motions and cases, paying bills, and maintaining case files. Applicants must have exceptional organization skills.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE: Graduation from an ABA-accredited law school and licensed in Illinois or pending bar examination in Illinois. Prefer prior experience as a judicial law clerk and/or legal practitioner but will consider all applicants with an excellent academic record and superior research/writing skills.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS: This position requires the ability to sit for extended periods of time. This is a professional office working environment requiring telephone usage and the ability to process written documents.

To apply, submit a cover letter, resume, one writing sample, law school transcript, and two references to justiceannjorgensen@gmail.com.  The position will remain open until filled.

The Third District Appellate Court has posted a job vacancy announcement for an Appellate Court Research Attorney position.  The job is located in Ottawa, Illinois. The information contained in the posting can be found below:

Salary: $71,737 per year

Benefits: An attractive judicial branch benefits package is offered, including pension, medical, dental, vision, and life insurance, as well as deferred compensation and generous leave time.

Essential Duties: This position involves research and drafting of appellate opinions for seven justices.

Experience, Education, and Training Requirements: Graduation from a law school accredited by the American Bar Association is required. Candidate must have excellent writing and analytical ability. License to practice law in the State of Illinois is preferred but not required.

Physical Requirements:  Ability to sit for extended time periods. Professional office working environment requiring telephone usage and the ability to process written documents.

Interested individuals should submit, via email, a letter of interest, resume with GPA, and a writing sample to: ldonahue@illinoiscourts.gov. Applicants may be required to submit additional material or complete job specific tests for this position. 

Applicants' information should be submitted as soon as possible, but must be received by January 18, 2023. 

The Illinois Supreme Court has announced that Judge Linda Davenport has been appointed to the Illinois Appellate Court, Third Judicial District, effective December 21, 2022.  Judge Davenport will fill the vacancy created by Justice Mary K. O'Brien's election to the Illinois Supreme Court.

In 2006, Judge Davenport was first appointed as an Associate Judge in the Eighteenth Judicial Circuit.  She was reappointed in 2011 and 2015, and in 2018 won election as a Circuit Court Judge in the Eighteenth Circuit.

Before joining the bench, Judge Davenport spent 28 years in private practice. During that time, she also served as a hearing officer for the Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission and a City Council Member in Wheaton, Illinois.  Judge Davenport earned her Bachelor of Arts from the University of Colorado and earned her Juris Doctor from the DePaul University College of Law.

The Illinois Supreme Court's announcement of Judge Davenport's appointment may be found here.  The ALA congratulates Judge Davenport on her appointment to the Third District.

Justice Eugene Daugherity of the Illinois Appellate Court, Third Judicial District, has retired, and the Illinois Supreme Court has assigned Justice Adrienne Albrecht to the Third District to fill that vacancy.  Justice Albrecht's assignment took effect December 12, 2022.

Justice Daugherity had been appointed to the Third District to fill the vacancy created by Justice Robert E. Carter's appointment to the Illinois Supreme Court in 2020.  Justice Daugherity was first appointed to the bench in 2001 in the Circuit Court for Thirteenth Judicial Circuit.  He was elected to the circuit court in November 2002 and was retained in 2008, 2014, and 2020.  Justice Daugherity served as the Presiding Judge of the Civil Division in LaSalle County from January 2010 to his appointment to the appellate court.

Before joining the bench, Justice Daugherity worked in private practice in Ottawa, Illinois, since 1982.  Justice Daugherity earned his Bachelor of Arts from Loyola University and his Juris Doctor from the DePaul University College of Law, where he graduated with honors.

Justice Albrecht served as a resident circuit judge on the Circuit Court for the Twenty-First Judicial Circuit in Kankakee County from 2006 until her retirement in 2022.  She won election in 2008 and retention in 2014. 

Before serving on the bench, Justice Albrecht worked for 26 years in private practice.  She earned her Bachelor of Arts from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and her Juris Doctor from the University of Illinois College of Law.

The Illinois Supreme Court's announcement of Justice Albrecht's assignment to the Third District can be found here.  The ALA congratulates Justice Daugherity on his retirement and distinguished career, and congratulates Justice Albrecht on her assignment to the Third District.

The Illinois Supreme Court has announced that it is assigning Cook County Circuit Judge David R. Navarro to the Illinois Appellate Court, First Judicial District, effective February 6, 2023.  Judge Navarro is being assigned to fill the
vacancy created by the assignment of Justice Mary Mikva to the vacancy created by the retirement of Justice Maureen Connors.  The assignment is will continue until further order of the Court.

Justice Connors has served on the bench since 1988, when she was selected to serve as an associate judge in the Circuit Court of Cook County.  As an associate judge, Justice Connors served in Traffic Court, Domestic Violence Court, the First Municipal District Court, and the Fifth Municipal District Court in Bridgeview, Illinois.  She was elected as a circuit judge in 1994 and assigned to the Probate Division, where she served until her appointment to the appellate court in October 2010.

Judge Navarro was appointed to the Cook County Circuit Court in May 2017 and won election in 2018.  He was named Supervising Judge of the
Pretrial Division in January 2020, and was named Acting Presiding Judge of the Pretrial Division in November 2021.  He currently sits on the Illinois Supreme Court Rules Committee as well as several Illinois Supreme Court Subcommittees.

Before joining the bench, Judge Navarro served as the Chief of the Public Integrity Bureau for the Office of the Illinois Attorney General from 2009 to 2017, and previously served in the Cook County State's Attorney's Office as an Assistant State's Attorney and Supervisor of the Professional Standards Unit.

Judge Navarro earned his Bachelor of Arts from the University of Chicago and earned his juris doctor from the University of Iowa College of Law.

The Illinois Supreme Court's announcement of Judge Navarro's appointment may be found here. 

The ALA congratulates Justice Connors on her retirement and Judge Navarro on his appointment to the appellate court.

Judge Doris Pryor has been appointed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit after being confirmed by the Senate on December 5, 2022.  President Biden nominated Judge Pryor to the Seventh Circuit in May 2022 to fill the vacancy created by Judge David Hamilton's taking senior status.

Judge Pryor has served as a magistrate judge on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana since 2018.  She received her J.D. from Indiana University's Maurer School of Law in 2003, served as a law clerk for Chief Judge Lavenski Smith on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit from 2003 to 2004, and served as a law clerk for Judge J. Leon Holmes on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas from 2004 to 2005.  After her clerkships, Judge Pryor served as a Deputy Public Defender for the Arkansas Public Defender's Commission and an Assistant United States Attorney in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Indiana., where she served as its National Security Chief from 2014 to 2018. 

The Appellate Lawyers Association congratulates Judge Pryor on her appointment to the Seventh Circuit.

The Illinois Appellate Court, Third Judicial District, is accepting applications for the position of Clerk of the Court with a projected start date of January 19, 2023.  This is a highly responsible professional, supervisory and administrative position.  The Clerk of the Appellate Court is appointed by the Appellate Court Justices within one of the five Appellate Districts. 

The Clerk is responsible for administering all phases of work in docketing case flow management and other areas of operations necessary to execute the responsibilities of the office.  Duties include supervising the filing and intake of court documents, overseeing the oral argument calendar, managing budget expenditures and procurement, supervising and managing staff,  coordinating the administrative functions of the court, and conferring with court justices about court policy and planning.

Applicants must have a J.D. and a minimum of five years' progressively responsible experience or training in the processing of litigating either trial or appellate court cases.  Applicants must live within the boundaries of the Third District (Bureau, DuPage, Grundy, Iroquois, Kankakee, LaSalle, or Will County).

Additional details about the position, including how to apply, may be found in the following vacancy announcement.  The position will remain open until filled, but applications received on or before December 26, 2022, will be given first consideration.

Judge Amy Lannerd, who has been assigned to the Illinois Appellate Court, Fourth Judicial District, effective December 5, 2022, is seeking to fill two positions in her chambers in Quincy, Illinois.  

Judge Lannerd is seeking a Law Clerk to perform legal research, analysis, and writing, to review and assist in the drafting of judicial opinions, orders, and other legal documents, and to perform other duties as needed.  Applicants should possess excellent research, case analysis, and writing skills, and experience as a law clerk in a reviewing court is strongly preferred.  The annual salary for this position is $96,754.  Instructions on how to apply, as well as other details about the position, may be found here.

Judge Lannerd also is seeking a Law Clerk/Judicial Secretary to conduct legal research and assist in drafting memoranda, orders, and opinions, as well as perform administrative duties such as corresponding with the Springfield courthouse and other chambers, tracking the status of motions and cases, paying bills, maintaining case files, and keeping the library up to date.  Applicants should have outstanding academic records and superior research and writing skills, and those with prior experience as a judicial law clerk or in appellate practice will be given preference.  The annual salary for this position is $87,391.  Instructions on how to apply, as well as other details about the position, may be found here.

Both positions will remain open until filled, but applicants submitting their materials by November 14, 2022, will be given first consideration.

The United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois is accepting applications for a full-time United States Magistrate Judge position in the Eastern Division, with the Everett McKinley Dirksen United States Courthouse at Chicago, Illinois as the duty station. The deadline for the submission of completed applications is 5:00 p.m. on November 23, 2022. Filling this U.S. Magistrate Judge position is contingent upon approval of the Seventh Circuit Judicial Council and of the Judicial Conference Committee on the Administration of the Magistrate Judges System. The candidate selected will be appointed only upon the successful completion of a Federal Bureau Investigation and Internal Revenue Service background check.

For more information, see the PDF at the following link: Magistrate_Judge_Announcement