Illinois First District Appellate Court

	Illinois First District Appellate Court
	Court information
Judges:	24
Founded:	1877
Salary:	Associates: $255,419
	Judicial selection
Method:	Partisan election of judges
Term:	10 years

	Illinois First District ; Appellate Court
	Caseload • Judges
	Former Judges • Notable Cases

The Illinois First District Appellate Court (also called the Cook County Judicial Circuit) consists of all of Cook County, Illinois, and meets in the city of Chicago. An executive committee serves as the general administrative authority for this district.^[1]

There are five appellate court districts in Illinois. Each judge has a support staff of two law clerks and a secretary.^[1]

The clerk of the First District Appellate Court is Steven Ravid.^[1]

Published opinions of the Illinois Appellate Court can be found here.

Judges

Judge	Tenure	Appointed By
Michael Hyman	January 8, 2013 - Present	Illinois Supreme Court
Aurelia Marie Pucinski	2010 - Present	Elected
Bertina E. Lampkin	2009 - Present	Elected
Thomas Hoffman	1993 - Present	Elected
Jesse G. Reyes	November 6, 2012 - Present	Elected
Terrence J. Lavin	February 1, 2010 - Present	Elected
David Ellis	December 1, 2014 - Present	Elected
Mary Katherine Rochford	2010 - Present	Elected
Sharon Oden-Johnson	December 7, 2020 - Present	Elected
Nathaniel R. Howse	August 10, 2009 - Present	Elected
Mary L. Mikva	2016 - Present	Illinois Supreme Court
Margaret Stanton McBride	1998 - Present	Elected
LeRoy K. Martin, Jr.	January 4, 2021 - Present	Illinois Supreme Court
James Fitzgerald Smith	December 2, 2002 - Present	Elected
Sanjay Tailor	October 3, 2022 - Present	Illinois Supreme Court
Raymond W. Mitchell	December 5, 2022 - Present	Elected
Debra B. Walker	December 5, 2022 - Present	Elected
Freddrenna M. Lyle	December 2, 2022 - Present	Illinois Supreme Court
Rena M. Van Tine	July 18, 2023 - Present	Illinois Supreme Court
Carl A. Walker	June 15, 2018 - Present	Elected
David Navarro	February 6, 2023 - Present	Illinois Supreme Court
Ramon Ocasio, III	September 29, 2023 - Present	Illinois Supreme Court
Cynthia Cobbs	September 22, 2011 - Present	Illinois Supreme Court
Mary Ellen Coghlan	July 30, 2019 - Present	Illinois Supreme Court

Former judges

Name	Appointed/Elected	Term ended
Mary Anne Mason	2013	2019
P. Scott Neville	2004	2018
James Epstein	2010	2015
Alan Greiman	1987	1991
Anne M. Burke	1995	2006
Blanche Manning	1986	1994
Charles Freeman	1976	1986
Denise O'Malley	1992	2002
Jill McNulty	1982	1990
Michael J. Murphy (Illinois)	2005	2012
John Tully	1984	2009
Leslie Elaine South	1992	2006
Mary Jane Theis	1983	2010
Michael Toomin	1984	2010
Roger Kiley	1940	1961
Sharon Coleman	1996	2010
Sheila O'Brien	1994	2011
Warren Wolfson	1975	2009
Laura C. Liu	2014	2016
Joy Cunningham	2006	2022
Daniel James Pierce	2012	2022
Robert E. Gordon	2020	2022
Sheldon Harris	2010	2022
Mathias W. Delort	2012	2023

Caseload

The following charts display caseload statistics from the First District Court.^[3]

Civil and Criminal Caseload Breakdown
Civil & Criminal Caseloads	Civil Filed	Civil Disposed	Criminal Filed	Criminal Disposed
2013	2119**	2292**	1850	1543
2012	2142**	2037**	1622	1627
2011	2095**	2338**	1683	1724
2010	2118**	2095**	1664	1727
2009	1941**	2031**	1606	1663
2008	2020	1987	1582	1697
2007	1820	1998	1715	1808
2006	1965	1989	1768	1956
2005	2153	2227	1927	1577

**Totals do not include Industrial Commission Division cases

Total Cases Pending by Year
Year	Total Pending
2013	4841*
2012	4453*
2011	6092*
2010	6157*
2009	5835*
2008	5738
2007	5589
2006	5551
2005	5358

*Totals include Industrial Commission Division cases

Judicial selection

See also: Judicial selection in Illinois

Judges on the appellate court are chosen by popular vote in partisan elections and serve 10-year terms, after which they must compete in uncontested, nonpartisan retention elections to remain on the court.^[4]

Qualifications

To serve on the appellate court, a judge must be:

a U.S. citizen;
a district resident; and
licensed to practice law in Illinois.^[4]

Presiding judge

The judges of each division select a presiding judge by peer vote to serve a one-year term.^[4]

Vacancies

In the event of a midterm vacancy, the Illinois Supreme Court is responsible for appointing an interim judge. If a judge is appointed more than 60 days before the next primary election, the judge must run in a partisan election in the next general or judicial election to remain on the court. The appointed judge's term will end on the first Monday in December after their election. If a judge is appointed less than 60 days before the next primary election, the judge will have to run in a partisan election to remain on the court in the second general election. The appointed judge's term will end on the first Monday in December after their election.^[4]

Salary

In 2023, the associate judges of the court received a salary of $255,419, according to the National Center for State Courts.^[5]

Elections

2024

See also: Illinois intermediate appellate court elections, 2024

The terms of 15 Illinois intermediate appellate court judges will expire on December 2, 2024. Nine seats are up for partisan election and six seats are up for retention election on November 5, 2024. A primary was scheduled for March 19, 2024. The filing deadline was December 4, 2023.

Judges with expiring terms

This is a list of the judges who must stand for retention election in 2024 in order to remain on the bench. Judges may choose not to stand for election. The list is subject to change if judges retire or are appointed.

■ David Ellis
■ William Holdridge
■ Thomas Hoffman
■ Susan Hutchinson
■ Robert Steigmann

Candidates and results

1st District: Connors Vacancy

General election

General election for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court

Incumbent Mary L. Mikva is running in the general election for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate
		Mary L. Mikva (D)

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court

Incumbent Mary L. Mikva advanced from the Democratic primary for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court on March 19, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Mary L. Mikva	100.0	434,524

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 434,524
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1st District: Cunningham Vacancy

General election

General election for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court

Incumbent Cynthia Cobbs is running in the general election for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate
		Cynthia Cobbs (D)

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court

Incumbent Cynthia Cobbs defeated Carolyn Gallagher in the Democratic primary for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court on March 19, 2024.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Cynthia Cobbs	70.6	335,240
	Carolyn Gallagher	29.4	139,774

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 475,014
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1st District: Delort Vacancy

General election

General election for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court

Celia Gamrath is running in the general election for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate
		Celia Gamrath (D)

	There are no incumbents in this race.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court

Celia Gamrath defeated Leonard Murray in the Democratic primary for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court on March 19, 2024.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Celia Gamrath	72.3	338,217
	Leonard Murray	27.7	129,259

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 467,476
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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1st District: O'Neill Burke Vacancy

General election

General election for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court

Incumbent Carl A. Walker is running in the general election for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate
		Carl A. Walker (D)

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court

Incumbent Carl A. Walker advanced from the Democratic primary for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court on March 19, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Carl A. Walker	100.0	419,709

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 419,709
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3rd District: Lytton Vacancy

General election

General election for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court

John C. Anderson and Kenton Skarin are running in the general election for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate
		John C. Anderson (D)
		Kenton Skarin (R)

	There are no incumbents in this race.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court

John C. Anderson defeated incumbent Joseph P. Hettel in the Democratic primary for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court on March 19, 2024.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	John C. Anderson	64.3	68,214
	Joseph P. Hettel	35.7	37,955

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 106,169
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court

Kenton Skarin advanced from the Republican primary for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court on March 19, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Kenton Skarin	100.0	92,612

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 92,612
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3rd District: O'Brien Vacancy

General election

General election for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court

Incumbent Linda E. Davenport and Jason Helland are running in the general election for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate
		Linda E. Davenport (D)
		Jason Helland (R)

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court

Incumbent Linda E. Davenport advanced from the Democratic primary for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court on March 19, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Linda E. Davenport	100.0	104,138

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 104,138
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court

Jason Helland advanced from the Republican primary for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court on March 19, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Jason Helland	100.0	92,426

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 92,426
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3rd District: Schmidt Vacancy

General election

General election for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court

Incumbent Lance R. Peterson and John F. Costello Jr. are running in the general election for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate
		Lance R. Peterson (D)
		John F. Costello Jr. (R)

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court

Incumbent Lance R. Peterson advanced from the Democratic primary for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court on March 19, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Lance R. Peterson	100.0	102,552

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 102,552
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court

John F. Costello Jr. advanced from the Republican primary for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court on March 19, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		John F. Costello Jr.	100.0	92,389

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 92,389
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4th District: Holder White Vacancy

General election

General election for Illinois 4th District Appellate Court

Incumbent Eugene G. Doherty is running in the general election for Illinois 4th District Appellate Court on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate
		Eugene G. Doherty (R)

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Illinois 4th District Appellate Court

Incumbent Eugene G. Doherty advanced from the Republican primary for Illinois 4th District Appellate Court on March 19, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Eugene G. Doherty	100.0	119,401

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 119,401
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4th District: Turner Vacancy

General election

General election for Illinois 4th District Appellate Court

Incumbent Amy Lannerd is running in the general election for Illinois 4th District Appellate Court on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate
		Amy Lannerd (R)

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Illinois 4th District Appellate Court

Incumbent Amy Lannerd advanced from the Republican primary for Illinois 4th District Appellate Court on March 19, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Amy Lannerd	100.0	119,441

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 119,441
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Judges not on the ballot

Mary Ellen Coghlan

2022

See also: Illinois intermediate appellate court elections, 2022

The terms of 12 Illinois intermediate appellate court judges expired on December 4, 2022, and one seat was up for special election. The 13 seats were up for partisan election or retention election on November 8, 2022. A primary was scheduled for June 28, 2022. The filing deadline for the partisan races were March 14, 2022. The filing deadline for the seat up for special election was April 4, 2022. The filing deadline for judicial retention was May 8, 2022.

Judges with expiring terms

Candidates and results

Partisan election

1st District: Hall Vacancy

General election

General election for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court

Debra B. Walker won election in the general election for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Debra B. Walker (D)	100.0	1,082,856

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,082,856
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court

Debra B. Walker defeated Dominique C. Ross and Russell Hartigan in the Democratic primary for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court on June 28, 2022.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Debra B. Walker	44.8	204,270
	Dominique C. Ross	34.3	156,240
	Russell Hartigan	20.9	95,243

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 455,753
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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1st District: Harris Vacancy

General election

Special general election for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court

Raymond W. Mitchell won election in the special general election for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Raymond W. Mitchell (D)	100.0	1,039,770

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,039,770
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Democratic primary election

Special Democratic primary for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court

Raymond W. Mitchell defeated John H. Ehrlich and Devlin Schoop in the special Democratic primary for Illinois 1st District Appellate Court on June 28, 2022.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Raymond W. Mitchell	45.2	200,436
	John H. Ehrlich	33.5	148,383
	Devlin Schoop	21.3	94,450

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source 1 Source 2	Total votes: 443,269
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2nd District: Burke Vacancy

General election

General election for Illinois 2nd District Appellate Court

Chris Kennedy defeated Susan Clancy Boles in the general election for Illinois 2nd District Appellate Court on November 8, 2022.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Chris Kennedy (D)	52.8	302,525
	Susan Clancy Boles (R)	47.2	270,163

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 572,688
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Illinois 2nd District Appellate Court

Chris Kennedy defeated Erin Cartwright Weinstein and Mike Cortina in the Democratic primary for Illinois 2nd District Appellate Court on June 28, 2022.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Chris Kennedy	40.4	38,045
	Erin Cartwright Weinstein	39.5	37,236
	Mike Cortina	20.1	18,924

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source 1 Source 2 Source 3	Total votes: 94,205
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Illinois 2nd District Appellate Court

Susan Clancy Boles advanced from the Republican primary for Illinois 2nd District Appellate Court on June 28, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Susan Clancy Boles	100.0	99,539

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 99,539
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3rd District: Wright Vacancy

General election

General election for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court

Incumbent Liam C. Brennan defeated Sonni Williams in the general election for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court on November 8, 2022.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Liam C. Brennan (R)	52.2	351,044
	Sonni Williams (D)	47.8	321,968

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 673,012
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court

Sonni Williams defeated James Murphy in the Democratic primary for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court on June 28, 2022.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Sonni Williams	53.1	59,372
	James Murphy	46.9	52,408

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source 1 Source 2	Total votes: 111,780
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court

Incumbent Liam C. Brennan advanced from the Republican primary for Illinois 3rd District Appellate Court on June 28, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Liam C. Brennan	100.0	120,523

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 120,523
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5th District: Overstreet Vacancy

General election

General election for Illinois 5th District Appellate Court

Mike McHaney defeated Brian Roberts in the general election for Illinois 5th District Appellate Court on November 8, 2022.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Mike McHaney (R)	64.5	413,778
	Brian Roberts (D)	35.5	227,429

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 641,207
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Illinois 5th District Appellate Court

Brian Roberts advanced from the Democratic primary for Illinois 5th District Appellate Court on June 28, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Brian Roberts	100.0	60,960

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 60,960
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Illinois 5th District Appellate Court

Mike McHaney defeated incumbent Barry L. Vaughan in the Republican primary for Illinois 5th District Appellate Court on June 28, 2022.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Mike McHaney	56.6	94,115
	Barry L. Vaughan	43.4	72,129

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source 1 Source 2	Total votes: 166,244
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Thomas DeVore (R)

Retention election

1st District: Howse's seat

Illinois 1st District Appellate Court, Nathaniel R. Howse's seat

Nathaniel R. Howse was retained to the Illinois 1st District Appellate Court on November 8, 2022 with 76.6% of the vote.

	Retention Vote	%	Votes
✔	Yes	76.6	865,929
	No	23.4	264,003
	Total Votes		1,129,932

It has been certified. Source

1st District: Connors' seat

Illinois 1st District Appellate Court, Maureen Connors' seat

Maureen Connors was retained to the Illinois 1st District Appellate Court on November 8, 2022 with 78.0% of the vote.

	Retention Vote	%	Votes
✔	Yes	78.0	885,163
	No	22.0	249,676
	Total Votes		1,134,839

It has been certified. Source

1st District: Smith's seat

Illinois 1st District Appellate Court, James Fitzgerald Smith's seat

James Fitzgerald Smith was retained to the Illinois 1st District Appellate Court on November 8, 2022 with 77.2% of the vote.

	Retention Vote	%	Votes
✔	Yes	77.2	888,618
	No	22.8	262,674
	Total Votes		1,151,292

It has been certified. Source

1st District: Delort's seat

Illinois 1st District Appellate Court, Mathias W. Delort's seat

Mathias W. Delort was retained to the Illinois 1st District Appellate Court on November 8, 2022 with 75.9% of the vote.

	Retention Vote	%	Votes
✔	Yes	75.9	852,545
	No	24.1	270,456
	Total Votes		1,123,001

It has been certified. Source

1st District: Reyes' seat

Illinois 1st District Appellate Court, Jesse G. Reyes' seat

Jesse G. Reyes was retained to the Illinois 1st District Appellate Court on November 8, 2022 with 78.2% of the vote.

	Retention Vote	%	Votes
✔	Yes	78.2	885,043
	No	21.8	246,755
	Total Votes		1,131,798

It has been certified. Source

1st District: Lavin's seat

Illinois 1st District Appellate Court, Terrence J. Lavin's seat

Terrence J. Lavin was retained to the Illinois 1st District Appellate Court on November 8, 2022 with 76.6% of the vote.

	Retention Vote	%	Votes
✔	Yes	76.6	868,964
	No	23.4	265,226
	Total Votes		1,134,190

It has been certified. Source

2nd District: Birkett's seat

Illinois 2nd District Appellate Court, Joseph Birkett's seat

Joseph Birkett was retained to the Illinois 2nd District Appellate Court on November 8, 2022 with 73.8% of the vote.

	Retention Vote	%	Votes
✔	Yes	73.8	694,575
	No	26.2	246,927
	Total Votes		941,502

It has been certified. Source

3rd District: Schmidt's seat

Daniel Schmidt's retention election was canceled after he withdrew.^[6]

5th District: Cates' seat

Illinois 5th District Appellate Court, Judy Cates' seat

Judy Cates was retained to the Illinois 5th District Appellate Court on November 8, 2022 with 74.8% of the vote.

	Retention Vote	%	Votes
✔	Yes	74.8	440,124
	No	25.2	148,536
	Total Votes		588,660

It has been certified. Source

2020

See also: Illinois intermediate appellate court elections, 2020

Judges with expiring terms

This is a list of the justices who had to stand for retention or partisan election in 2020 in order to remain on the bench. Justices could choose not to stand for election.

Judges who had to stand for partisan election

■ John C. Griffin
■ Michael Hyman

Judges who had to stand for retention election

■ Shelvin Louise Marie Hall
■ Aurelia Marie Pucinski
■ Mary Katherine Rochford

2016

Candidates for partisan election

Quinn vacancy

■ Bertina E. Lampkin (D)

Epstein vacancy

■ Eileen O'Neill Burke (D)

Judges who faced retention

■ Joy Cunningham
■ Daniel James Pierce (standing for retention to his circuit court; holds appellate seat by appointment)
■ Mary L. Mikva (standing for retention to her circuit court; holds appellate seat by appointment)

Election results

November 8 general election

Incumbent Bertina E. Lampkin ran unopposed in the general election for the Illinois Appellate Court, First District, Quinn vacancy.

Illinois Appellate Court, First District, Quinn Vacancy, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Bertina E. Lampkin Incumbent (unopposed)	100.00%	1,507,691
Total Votes (100% Reporting)				1,507,691
Source: Illinois State Board of Elections Official Results

Incumbent Eileen O'Neill Burke ran unopposed in the general election for the Illinois Appellate Court, First District, Epstein vacancy.

Illinois Appellate Court, First District, Epstein Vacancy, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Eileen O'Neill Burke Incumbent (unopposed)	100.00%	1,563,233
Total Votes (100% Reporting)				1,563,233
Source: Illinois State Board of Elections Official Results

Joy Cunningham was retained in the Illinois Appellate Court, First District, Cunningham Seat election with 78.84% of the vote.

Illinois Appellate Court, First District, Cunningham Seat, 2016
Name	Yes votes
Joy Cunningham	78.84%
Source: Illinois State Board of Elections Official Results

Judges of the Illinois Circuit Court stand for retention after their first full term. To be retained, a judge must receive at least 60 percent of the vote.^[7]^[8] Daniel James Pierce was retained in the Illinois Cook Circuit Court, Daniel Pierce Retention Election with 74.88 percent of the vote.

Illinois Cook Circuit Court, Daniel Pierce Retention Election, 2016
Name	Yes votes
Daniel James Pierce	74.88%
Source: Illinois Board of Elections, "Elections Results, General Election 11/8/2016," accessed November 28, 2018

Judges of the Illinois Circuit Court stand for retention after their first full term. To be retained, a judge must receive at least 60 percent of the vote.^[9]^[10] Mary L. Mikva was retained in the Illinois Cook Circuit Court, Mary Mikva Retention Election with 75.40 percent of the vote.

Illinois Cook Circuit Court, Mary Mikva Retention Election, 2016
Name	Yes votes
Mary L. Mikva	75.40%
Source: Illinois Board of Elections, "Elections Results, General Election 11/8/2016," accessed November 28, 2018

March 15 primary election

Illinois First Appellate District Democratic Primary, Quinn Vacancy, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Bertina E. Lampkin (unopposed)	100.00%	792,641
Total Votes (100% reporting)				792,641
Source: Illinois State Board of Elections

Illinois First Appellate District Democratic Primary, Epstein Vacancy, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Eileen O'Neill Burke (unopposed)	100.00%	805,190
Total Votes (100% reporting)				805,190
Source: Illinois State Board of Elections

2014

Gordon vacancy

Candidate	Incumbency	Party	Primary Vote	Election Vote
Kennedy SullivanSusan Kennedy Sullivan	No	Democratic	27.2%
LyleFreddrenna M. Lyle	No	Democratic	35.4%
HarrisSheldon Harris A	No	Democratic	37.4%A	A

Unopposed	David Ellis (Illinois) (Murphy vacancy)

Steele vacancy

Candidate	Incumbency	Party	Primary Vote	Election Vote
Oden-JohnsonSharon Oden-Johnson	No	Democratic	45.9%
SimonJohn B. Simon A	Yes	Democratic	54.2%A	A

Retention

Judge	Election Vote
HoffmanThomas Hoffman	78.3% A

2012

Candidate	Incumbency	Party	Predecessor	Primary Vote	Election Vote
SmithJames Fitzgerald Smith A	Yes				A
ReyesJesse G. Reyes A	No	Democratic	Vacancy of Sheila O'Brien	33%A	100% A
DelortMathias W. Delort A	No	Democratic	Vacancy of Robert Cahill	25%A	100% A
ConnorsMaureen Connors A	Yes	Democratic	Vacancy of Mary Jane Theis	A	100% A
HowseNathaniel R. Howse A	No	Democratic	Vacancy of Sharon Coleman	A	100% A
NevilleP. Scott Neville A	Yes	Democratic	Vacancy of Michael Gallagher	44%A	100% A
LavinTerrence J. Lavin A	Yes	Democratic	Vacancy of John Tully	A	100% A

Ethics

The Illinois Code of Judicial Conduct sets forth ethical guidelines and principles for the conduct of judges and judicial candidates in Illinois. It consists of four canons:

Canon 1: "A judge shall uphold and promote the independence, integrity, and impartiality of the judiciary and shall avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety in all of the judge's activities."
Canon 2: "A judge shall perform the duties of judicial office impartially, competently, and diligently."
Canon 3: "A judge shall conduct the judge's personal and extrajudicial activities to minimize the risk of conflict with the obligations of judicial office."
Canon 4: "A judge or judicial candidate shall not engage in political or campaign activity that is inconsistent with the independence, integrity, or impartiality of the judiciary."^[11]

The full text of the Illinois Code of Judicial Conduct can be found here.

Removal of judges

Judges in Illinois may be removed in one of two ways:

By the Illinois Courts Commission, which may hold a hearing upon a complaint from the Illinois Judicial Inquiry Board^[12]
By a two-thirds vote of the Illinois State Senate upon a majority vote for impeachment by the Illinois House of Representatives^[13]

Redistricting

See also: Redistricting in Illinois after the 2020 census

Illinois Appellate Court Districts

New state supreme court district maps were signed into law by Governor J.B. Pritzker (D) on June 4, 2021. The Illinois Supreme Court lifted a pause order on this map on Jan. 1, 2022, resulting in its full implementation. This was the first time the state updated its judicial districts map since they were first enacted in 1964.^[14]

An image of the enacted state Supreme Court district map appears on the right. Click here for an interactive viewer of the enacted Supreme Court map.

Noteworthy cases

For all recent Court opinions see: Illinois Courts, "Recent Appellate Court Opinions"

School District sued over ballot information

Oak Park School District 97 was sued by Chicago-based Taxpayers United of America for allegedly printing misleading information on the school ballot for the election on April 5, 2011. The group claims that the school wrote the ballot in a way that did not disclose the full impact of the school property tax increase. The school noted, though, that they had consulted a law firm about the ballot language before they submitted it.^[15]

Court rules on workers compensation benefits and overtime

Tower Automotive v. Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission dealt with the issue of worker's compensation benefits, and if it was applicable for time that was spent after the 40 hours of a traditional work week, otherwise known as overtime. The court ruled that if an employee was injured during overtime hours, it was still included in their benefit plan.^[16]

State profile

Demographic data for Illinois
	Illinois	U.S.
Total population:	12,839,047	316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):	55,519	3,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:	72.3%	73.6%
Black/African American:	14.3%	12.6%
Asian:	5%	5.1%
Native American:	0.2%	0.8%
Pacific Islander:	0%	0.2%
Two or more:	2.2%	3%
Hispanic/Latino:	16.5%	17.1%
Bildung
High school graduation rate:	87.9%	86.7%
College graduation rate:	32.3%	29.8%
Income
Median household income:	$57,574	$53,889
Persons below poverty level:	16.8%	11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Illinois. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Presidential voting pattern

See also: Presidential voting trends in Illinois

Illinois voted for the Democratic candidate in all six presidential elections between 2000 and 2020.

Pivot Counties (2016)

Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, 11 are located in Illinois, accounting for 5.34 percent of the total pivot counties.^[17]

Pivot Counties (2020)

In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Illinois had 11 Retained Pivot Counties, 6.08 percent of all Retained Pivot Counties.

More Illinois coverage on Ballotpedia

External links

First District Appellate Court

Footnotes

Illinois courts

Federal courts:

Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Central District of Illinois, Northern District of Illinois, Southern District of Illinois • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Central District of Illinois, Northern District of Illinois, Southern District of Illinois

State courts:

Illinois Supreme Court • Illinois Appellate Court • Illinois Circuit Court

State resources:

Courts in Illinois • Illinois judicial elections • Judicial selection in Illinois

[general-1] 1.0 ^1.1 ^1.2 Illinois Appellate Court, "General Information"

[2] The salary of the chief judge may be higher than an associate judge.

[3] First District Appellate Court, "Criminal and Civil Caseload Statistics," accessed September 9, 2015

[ILselect-4] 4.0 ^4.1 ^4.2 ^4.3 National Center for State Courts, "Methods of Judicial Selection," accessed September 8, 2021

[5] National Center for State Courts, "2023 Salaries and Rankings," accessed December 6, 2023

[withdrew-6] Illinois State Board of Elections, "Candidate List," accessed October 18, 2022

[7] Illinois State Bar Association, "Judicial Evaluations - How it works," accessed November 19, 2019

[8] American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Illinois," archived October 2, 2014

[9] Illinois State Bar Association, "Judicial Evaluations - How it works," accessed November 19, 2019

[10] American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Illinois," archived October 2, 2014

[11] State of Illinois, "Code of Judicial Conduct," accessed July 17, 2023

[12] State of Illinois Judicial Inquiry Board, "Frequently Asked Questions," accessed July 17, 2023

[13] Constitution of the State of Illinois, "ARTICLE IV," accessed July 17, 2023

[14] Daily Herald, "Illinois Supreme Court lifts hold on judicial redistricting," Dec. 8, 2021

[15] Pioneer Local, "Lawsuit filed against Oak Park school district's referendum wording," April 26, 2011

[16] JD Supra, "Towers Automotive: Illinois Court On Workers’ Compensation Benefits and Excess Hours Worked," April 8, 2011

[17] The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.

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Illinois First District Appellate Court

Court information
Judges:	24
Founded:	1877
Salary:	Associates: $255,419^[2]
Judicial selection
Method:	Partisan election of judges
Term:	10 years

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