Audrey Victoria Cosgrove: In her own words

Audrey Victoria Cosgrove is a candidate for the O'Brien vacancy in the 10th Judicial Subcircuit. Her punch number is 237.

My name is Audrey Victoria Cosgrove and I am a Democrat running for Judge in the Cook County 10th Judicial Subcircuit, O’Brien vacancy. I am a first generation American and I cannot overstate the influence this has had on my career and ultimately on my decision to become a judge. I was raised with a deep appreciation for the law and our legal system. My family considers it a privilege to serve as a juror and to vote. You cannot imagine how heartbreaking it is for me to hear people disparage the court and try to avoid serving as jurors. I want to run for judge because I want to restore faith in the legal system. I know, from my experience as a trial lawyer and as an administrative law judge, that when both sides feel heard and respected, they feel justice occurred, regardless of the outcome. Therefore, my approach as a judge is to respect the individuals who appear before me, listen completely and deliver my decision clearly.

I am deeply involved in my community in the 10th Subcircuit. I am a wife, a mother of two and have been a foster mother of four. I was President of the school advisory board at St. Benedict Preparatory Schools, President of the Pulaski Elston Business Association, served as a member of the Board on the Independence Park Advisory Council and a volunteer at the Independence Park Farmers Market. I was the PTA liaison at the newly created Disney II Magnet HS and I support area students with the North River Commission where I give an annual presentation to local parents on organizing a “Friends of” group. I have served on other boards, like Thousand Waves Martial Arts and Self Defense NFP in Lakeview and volunteer in further, countless ways.

I have used my legal skills to serve the community as a volunteer attorney with the National Immigrant Justice Clinic where I received DACA protection for young Chicagoans and Special Juvenile Immigrant Status for minors in Chicago who could not safely return to their home country, including a boy who was being physically abused and medically neglected by his family because he was gay. I have also worked to promote diversity on the bench through my participation in Women Everywhere, a group of women attorneys and judges who organize an annual day in court for H.S. girls from Chicago Public Schools. I am a member of the Board of the Advocates Society, an association of Polish American attorneys.

I have been practicing law for nearly 30 years. While I started my career as a public defender, over the years I have represented clients in many different areas of law. In my career I have tried hundreds of cases and many jury trials including a capital case as a member of the Illinois Capital Trial Bar. I have the experience needed to be a judge. I know the law and the rules of evidence. I worked in high volume settings, as a Cook County Assistant Public Defender and as an administrative law judge for the Department of Employment Security and Illinois Tollway. This experience is significant because it has trained me to manage a busy court call and maintain professionalism while working in a high pressure setting.

I have been rated Qualified, Recommended or Highly Recommended by all the rating bar associations. Of course, I am very proud of this, but I am most proud when I read the evaluators comments that my peers all say that I have the temperament needed to be a judge.

To learn more about me please visit my website at audreyforjudge.com or follow my Facebook page @AudreyforJudge.

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