Advocates Society hosts dinner, meeting, and appellate advocacy CLE on March 9

The Advocates Society, the association of Polish-American attorneys, is holding its regular meeting on Thursday, March 9, at 7:00 p.m., at the Annex at Copernicus Hall, 5216 W. Lawrence Ave. Dinner will be served.

And that's not the half of it.

Dinner will be preceded by cocktails and networking at 6:30 p.m.

And, then, at 7:30 p.m., four Appellate Court justices will offer a CLE program on the Do's and Don'ts of Appellate Advocacy.

(In strict alphabetical order) Justices Mathias W. Delort, Mary L. Mikva, Aurelia M. Pucinski, and Jesse G. Reyes will address a number of topics, including:

• When does an appeal makes sense?
• How should the parties formulate a strategies for an appeal?
• Does the Illinois Appellate Court have jurisdiction for the appeal?
• How should you preserve the best record on Appeal?
• What are some strategies for preparing the necessary parts of the appellate briefs and appendix?
• If granted an oral argument, how should one prepare?
• What are some effective ways to orally argue before the panel?

Attorney Alon Stein will serve as moderator for the program.

Advocates members can attend this event for free (although members will be asked to voluntarily contribute $15 each to defray the costs of the dinner). Tickets for non-members are $30 apiece. To register for this event, click here.

CCBA Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony and Geraldine Simmons Prayer Breakfast set for March 11

The Cook County Bar Association will hold its 2023 Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony and Geraldine Simmons Prayer Breakfast on Saturday, March 11, from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., at the Metropolitan Club, 233 South Wacker, 67th Floor. Live music will be provided at the breakfast by the award-winning New Direction Choir. A champagne reception will follow.

Tickets for this event are $100 apiece ($1,000 per table). Tickets can be obtained at this link.

Sponsorships are also available:

• Silver Sponsor - $2,500
  Includes one table at the HOF Breakfast; recognition at the HOF and advertisement with logo on all HOF signage and on the CCBA website including, but not limited to, the electronic newsletter and emails through June 30; and a quarter-page advertisement in the HOF program;


• Gold Sponsor - $5,000
  Includes one table at the HOF Breakfast; recognition and personal acknowledgment at the HOF and advertisement with logo on all HOF signage and on the CCBA website including, but not limited to, the electronic newsletter and emails through June 30; and a half-page advertisement in the HOF program;


• Platinum Sponsor - $10,000
  Includes one table at the HOF Breakfast; recognition and personal acknowledgment during the President's remarks at the HOF and advertisement with logo on all HOF signage and on the CCBA website including, but not limited to, the electronic newsletter and emails through June 30; and back inside cover advertisement in the HOF program;


• Diamond Sponsor - $15,000
  Includes two tables at the HOF Breakfast; recognition and personal acknowledgment at the highest level during the President's remarks at the HOF and advertisement with logo on all HOF signage and on the CCBA website including, but not limited to, the electronic newsletter and emails through June 30; and front inside cover advertisement in the HOF program.

Sponsorships can be obtained at this link.

ISBA hosts Women and the Law Afternoon Tea on March 9

As part of its celebration of Women's History Month, the Illinois State Bar Association's Women and the Law Committee are presenting an Afternoon Tea on Thursday, March 9, from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m., at the Loews Chicago Hotel, 455 N. Park Drive.

This will come as no surprise to anyone who's ever met me, but I have never been to an Afternoon Tea. I did sometimes put on another pot of coffee in the afternoon, back in the day, but I gather that's not the same thing. The sponsors of this event say their Afternoon Tea will have "tea, savory bites, and great conversation." Also, DuPage County Judge Chantelle Porter will be the keynote speaker at this event.

Tickets for the event are $50 apiece. The registration page on the ISBA website (yes, that's where you'd go to get tickets) suggests that the deadline to register is March 3. On the other hand, a post on the ISBA's Instagram page says that tickets will be available at the door for $55 each.

March 1 reception for Judge Bhandari

We've had a number of posts here on FWIW about bar groups hosting receptions for as many judges as they can coax into stopping by -- it's the promised presence of judges that sells tickets to these affairs, and brings out the deep-pocketed sponsors.

Judicial wannabes in particular -- like so many FWIW readers -- will fork over hard-earned dough for the opportunity to chit chat with judges who may some day, somehow help them ascend to the bench, or even vote for them, should they ever make the associate judge short list. As was said so often in Angels in the Outfield, it could happen. There's nothing wrong with any of this -- it's called networking -- and it's something people often have to do in order to get ahead in the world.

But scouring the web this morning for items of potential interest, I came across an announcement of a reception for just one judge, and a newly-elected one at that: The South Asian Bar Association of Chicago, the Asian American Bar Association of Greater Chicago, and the Filipino American Lawyers Association of Chicago are jointly hosting a reception in honor of Judge Aileen Bhandari, on Wednesday, March 1, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., at the Illinois State Bar Association's Chicago office, 20 S. Clark St., Suite 900.

Judge Bhandari, who was elected to an 11th Subcircuit vacancy just last year, is a former President of SABA Chicago. (And, I suppose, given the current short list excitement, it may also be germane to note that Bhandari was a short list finalist in 2019.) But, at this stage of her judicial career, and I don't say this to be unkind, Bhandari can't do a whole heck of a lot for the sponsoring groups or their members -- so the commercial element that may, at least in part, animate other receptions is probably absent here. These groups are simply celebrating a colleague's achievement. Which seems kind of nice.

Members of the sponsoring bar groups and sitting judges will be admitted free, gratis, and for nothing. Non-members can purchase tickets for $25 apiece. Registration can be accomplished by clicking on this page of the SABA Chicago website.

Decalogue Society of Lawyers hosts Judicial Reception on March 15

The Decalogue Society of Lawyers will host its annual judicial reception on Wednesday, March 15, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m., at Hinshaw & Culbertson, 151 N. Franklin St.

Tickets for Decalogue members are $100 each; non-member tickets cost $125 apiece. Law students will be admitted for $18 each; that discounted price nevertheless includes one year of Decalogue membership. Judges will be admitted free, gratis, and for nothing -- but all attendees must purchase tickets and/or register. To accomplish this task, start by clicking on this link.

The graphic above suggests the host of sponsorship opportunities available for this event. A Facebook post last evening notes that Bob Blinick, Scott Clewis, Steven R. Decker, Associate Judge candidate Debjani D. Desai, Decalogue President Judge Myron Mackoff, Sylvie Manaster, Curtis Bennett Ross, Michael Rothmann, Associate Judge candidate Natosha Cuyler Toller, and The Law Office of Erin M. Wilson LLC have all purchased Bronze Sponsorships. Bronze Sponsorships are available for $250 and include one event ticket and digital program recognition. Review of the Decalogue website this morning indicates that the Hot Dog Sponsorship has been claimed.

But, the loss of the coveted Hot Dog Sponsorship notwithstanding, and in addition to the Bronze Sponsorship, these sponsorship opportunities remain available:

• Silver Sponsorship - $500
  Includes 2 event tickets, digital program recognition, and a quarter-page ad in the digital program,
• Gold Sponsorship - $1,000
  Includes 6 event tickets, verbal recognition at the event, a half-page ad in the digital program, and social media publicity,
• Platinum Sponsor - $2,500
  Includes 8 tickets, sponsor's logo on invitation, sponsor's logo on name tags for the sponsor's guests, verbal recognition at the event, a full page ad in the digital program, social media publicity, recognition in the Spring Tablets (the Decalogue newsletter), and reserved seating at the event, and
• Diamond Sponsor - $3,600
  (one available)
  Includes 12 tickets, sponsor's logo on invitation, sponsor's logo on name tags for the sponsor's guests, verbal recognition at the event, a full page ad in the digital program, social media publicity, recognition in the Spring Tablets (the Decalogue newsletter), reserved seating at the event, an opportunity to speak at the program, and 4 tickets to the Decalogue's July 12 Installation Dinner at the Union League Club.

To register for one of these sponsorships, click here and follow the prompts.

WBAI Judicial Reception set for March 9

The Women's Bar Association of Illinois will hold its 24th Annual Judicial Reception on Thursday, March 9, from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m., at the Chicago Cultural Center, 78 E. Washington St.

At the event, the WBAI will present its Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Judicial Achievement Award to the following present or former justices of the Illinois Supreme Court:

• Chief Justice Mary Jane Theis, First District,
• Justice Joy V. Cunningham, First District,
• Justice Elizabeth M. Rochford, Second District,
• Justice Mary K. O’Brien, Third District,
• Justice Lisa Holder White, Fourth District,
• Justice Anne M. Burke (Ret.), and
• Justice Rita B. Garman (Ret.)

Tickets for this event are $125 apiece for WBAI members ($175 for nonmembers). Government lawyers, law students, and newly admitted lawyers (defined here as those admitted for less than two years) can purchase tickets for $95 each. Judges are admitted free, gratis, and for nothing, but all attendees must register, starting at this page.

The event has already attracted a host of sponsors (yes, that link will take you to a lengthy list of names and logos) but there are apparently additional oppotunities, starting at $2,000 (for a Bronze sponsorship). Click here for a sponsorship registration form. Questions about the continued or additional availability of sponsorships should be directed to wbai@wbaillinois.org.

Lawyers Rock for the Illinois Bar Foundation on March 16

The Illinois Bar Foundation will hold its "Lawyers Rock" fundraiser on Thursday, March 16 at Bottom Lounge, 1375 W. Lake Street. Doors open at 5:30 p.m.; the show starts at 6:00 p.m.

This year's performers are:

• ICY BEE,
• The Motions (making their Lawyers Rock debut), and
• The Thornes.

Pete Hoste of Leahy Hoste Alkaraki will emcee.

Limited edition unisex t-shirts (with a wholly new design, according to event promoters) are available as well. The cost is $25 -- and those who want the shirt to impress their neighbors but can't tear themselves away from their desks on a weeknight can make arrangements with jreeves@illinoisbarfoundation.org. Neither one of us will tell.

For those who wish to attend live and in person, general admission tickets are $50 apiece ($75 with the t-shirt -- select the 'GA with merch' option). General admission includes food and two beverage tickets. VIP tickets are $100 each ($125 with a t-shirt) and include unlimited beverages. Tickets are available at this link.

And, of course, sponsorships are available:

• Sound Check Sponsor - $250
  Includes 2 GA tickets and sponsor recognition on promotional matierals;
• Amped Up Sponsor - $250
  Also includes 2 GA tickets and sponsor recognition on promotional materials;
• Instrument Sponsor - $500
  Includes 2 VIP tickets and sponsor recognition on promotional materials;
• Judges Sponsor - $500
  Also includes 2 VIP tickets and sponsor recognition on promotional materials;
• Coat Check Sponsor - $1,000
  Includes 4 VIP tickets, name or logo on all promotional materials, special signage on coat check;
• Valet Sponsor - $1,500
  Includes 6 VIP tickets, name or logo on all promotional materials, special signage at valet pickup;
• Food Sponsor - $1,500
  Includes 6 VIP tickets, name or logo on all promotional materials, special signage at food buffet;
• Champions Sponsor - $1,500
  Includes 6 VIP tickets, name or logo on all promotional materials, special signage at Champions information table;
• License to Rock Sponsor - $4,000
  Includes 12 VIP tickets, name or logo on all promotional materials, opportunity to introduce band on stage, framed gold record for office display

To register for any of these sponsorship opportunities, visit this page of the IBF website. For any questions about sponsorships, contact jreeves@illinoisbarfoundation.org.

Proceeds of this event will benefit the statewide programs of the Illinois Bar Foundation as well as the juvenile justice causes supported by the IBF’s M. Denny Hassakis Fund.

Lots of new judges needed!

Oh, dear. I suppose, looking at it now, that is something of a 'clickbait' headline, isn't it? Especially for a lot of FWIW readers.

However -- since you've read this far anyway -- perhaps you will continue....

The American Association of Justice Law Student Committee is seeking lawyers and judges to volunteer as judges or jurors for the 2023 AAJ Student Trial Competition.

The competition will feature 650 students competing on 160 teams across 10 regions. The Chicago area is in the Midwest 2 Region. All regional rounds will held via Zoom from March 2 through March 5. Some 1400 judges and attorney jurors will be needed.

Participating Illinois attorneys will be eligible for CLE credit. AAJ will not be providing CLE credit but will provide a certificate of attendance for those who attend its judges' training sessions and a free voluntary webinar on implicit bias.

Persons interested in being one of these should click here.

For any questions about volunteering for this competition, email navarrok@uic.edu, jennifer.rafter@justice.org, or dloverde@powerrogers.com.

Looking more closely at the 2023 Short List candidates - Part 4

In this final part of a four part series, FWIW continues its look at each individual Associate Judge finalist. Updates to this post may be published as new information becomes available. For Part 1 of this series, click here; for Part 2, click here. Part 3 is available at this link.

Federico Martin Rodriguez practices with the Rodriguez Legal Group in the West Loop. His firm bio notes that Rodriguez, while in undergrad, worked full-time as a Spanish-language interpreter for the Circuit Court of Cook County. He has been licensed to practice law in Illinois since 1998, according to ARDC.

A former president of the Hispanic Lawyers Association of Illinois (2012-2013), Rodriguez has served on the Illinois Supreme Court’s Character and Fitness Committee since 2015.

Parle M. Roe-Taylor is a Deputy Public Defender on the Executive Team to the Public Defender. She worked her way up from a courtroom attorney trying cases from misdemeanors to murder and then joined management. She now focuses on policy, protocols and represents the Office on various committees at the County and State levels. She has been licensed to practice law in Illinois since 1990, according to ARDC.

Roe-Taylor serves on the Oversight Board of Adult Redeploy Illinois. She was recently the recipient of the Rosa Parks Award 2023 from Pilsen Neighbors Community Council.

Roe-Taylor was a Short List finalist in 2021.

Anthony Ruffin is an Assistant Public Defender based in Bridgeview. He has been licensed to practice law in Illinois since 1994, according to ARDC.

Pamela Saindon has been a Principal Attorney for the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago since 2012. Since 2018 she has been assigned to the User Change and Ordinance Enforcement Division.

Licensed to practice in Illinois since 1995, according to ARDC, Saindon began her legal career as a law clerk for Appellate Court Justice William Cousins, Jr. and, later, for Supreme Court Justice Charles Freeman. She has taught legal writing at what is now UIC School of Law for several years.

Saindon was a Short List finalist in 2021. She was also the fifth alternate 'pre-slated' for a countywide vacancy by the Cook County Democratic Party for the 2022 election cycle.

David Lawrence Studenroth practices criminal and civil law with StudenrothLaw in Park Ridge.

Licensed as an attorney in Illinois since 1987, according to ARDC, Studenroth spent the first 11 years of his legal career as a Cook County Assistant State's Attorney, serving in the Gang Prosecution Unit and the Felony Trial Division during his tenure there. His firm bio notes that he has coached football in the Glenview Jr. Titans program and boys and girls basketball with the Glenview Park District.

Studenroth was a candidate for a 12th Subcircuit vacancy in the 2018 election cycle.

Natosha Cuyler Toller was appointed Deputy Director of the Judicial Inquiry Board in March 2022.

Before that, Toller served as a Cook County Assistant State's Attorney, rising to the position of Chief of the Criminal Prosecutions Bureau. She has been licensed to practice law in Illinois since 2005, according to ARDC.

Toller has been an international instructor and subject matter expert with emphasis in Caribbean countries with the National Center for State Courts. Toller has serves as a Board Member of Bright Star Community Outreach and Friends of Recovery United. A member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Toller has also served as President of the John Marshall Law School Alumni Association.

John J. Tully practices with the Chicago firm of Tully & Associates. He has been licensed as an attorney in Illinois since 1994, according to ARDC.

Tully joined his present firm after 16 years at Winston & Strawn LLP, where he rose to a partnership, according to his LinkedIn profile. His firm bio notes that his practice is focused in commercial and appellate matters. He has provided serviceas general counsel for Landmarks Illinois and served as a mentor for Big Brothers Big Sisters.

Scott William Tzinberg practices with the Law Offices of Scott Tzinberg, the family law firm he founded in 1996 when, according to ARDC, he was first licensed to practice law in Illinois.

Tzinberg volunteers with SHALVA, representing victims of domestic violence. He also volunteers in the mentoring program at his alma mater, the law school now known as UIC Law School and serves on the Board of Managers of the Decalogue Society.

Tzinberg was a Short List finalist in 2021.

Michael James Vines is a family lawyer currently practicing in Countryside as Vines Law LLC. He has been licensed to practice law in Illinois since 2003, according to ARDC. He has also served as an Administrative Law Judge for the Village of Orland Park, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Torrick Alan Ward is Deputy Director of the Cook County Labor Relations Office, a title he assumed in 2019 after roughly seven years of service as Senior Labor Counsel.

Licensed as an attorney in Illinois since 1998, according to ARDC, Ward did spend five years in private practice, from 2010 to 2015, after beginning his legal career in various capacities with the City of Chicago, ultimately rising to Deputy Director of the Office of Compliance. His LinkedIn profile notes that he has served as a Director of the Rogers Park Business Alliance. Ward has also served as an adjunct professor at DePaul University Law School.

Ward was a candidate for a 9th Subcircuit vacancy during the 2022 election cycle.

John Wellington Wilson is the only former judge on this year's Short List.

Wilson served, pursuant to appointment by the Illinois Supreme Court, in a 1st Subcircuit vacancy between August 2021 and December 2022. He was a candidate for that vacancy in the 2022 election cycle.

Licensed as an attorney since 1996, according to ARDC, was serving as the acting Chief of the Public Defender's Office in the Sixth Municipal District – Markham Division at the time of his bench appointment. Previously Wilson the homicide and felony supervisor in the Public Defender’s Markham Division.

Before attending law school, Wilson worked as an administrator for the City Colleges of Chicago. He was also an Assistant Men's Basketball Coach at Wilbur Wright Community College. He has also served as an adjunct professor at UIC Law School’s Summer College to Assess Legal Education Skills (SCALES) program.

Looking more closely at the 2023 Short List candidates - Part 3

Updated March 2, 2023

In this third part of a four part series, FWIW continues its look at each individual Associate Judge finalist. Updates to this post may be published as new information becomes available. Part 4 of this series is in preparation and will appear as soon as possible. For Part 1 of this series, click here; for Part 2, click here.

Sharon Arnold Kanter is a career prosecutor, having served as a Cook County Assistant State's Attorney for over 28 years. Licensed to practice law in Illinois in 1994, according to ARDC, Kanter is currently assigned to the Felony Trial Division of the CCSAO.

Kanter is also an Adjunct Professor at Oakton College, formerly Oakton Community College, specializing in Laws of Evidence and Criminal Procedure. In addition to being a featured speaker on child sexual abuse, in 2014, Kanter was one of only 12 prosecutors from across the state to receive a Moxie Award from the Illinois Coalition Against Sexual Assault.

A frequent blood donor, Kanter also reports volunteering for organizations addressing food insecurity and being a reader for the Blind Service Association.

James John Knibbs is of counsel to the firm of Foran Glennon Palandech Ponzi & Rudloff PC.

Licensed to practice law in Illinois since 1985, according to ARDC, Knibbs' firm bio notes his long experience as a Cook County Assistant State's Attorney, ultimately "heading the white-collar crime unit and prosecuting complex financial crimes." It also notes that Knibbs was an adjunct at Loyola University Chicago Law School for several years.

Knibbs was a candidate for a 3rd Subcircuit vacancy in the 2020 election cycle.

Edward James Maloney is a Senior Investigator in the Office of the Inspector General, Chicago Housing Authority.

Licensed to practice law in Illinois since 1989, according to ARDC, Maloney spent 31 years in the Office of the Cook County State's Attorney (including 11 years in the Special Prosecutions Bureau) before moving to the CHA.

Maloney was a Short List finalist in both 2019 and 2021. In 2016 and 2017, according to his LinkedIn profile, Maloney tought a course in criminal law and procedure for Loyola's Criminal Justice Department.

Tisa Lynne Morris is Executive Director of Community Engagement at Cook County Sheriff's Department.

Licensed to practice law in Illinois since 1991, according to ARDC, Morris was Chief Administrator of the Chicago Police Department's Office of Professional Standards from 2004 to 2007. She also served two tours of duty as a Cook County Assistant State's Attorney, from 1991 to 2004, returning in 2008 and ultimately rising to Chief of the Juvenile Justice Bureau.

Morris was a Short List finalist in 2018.

Scott Norris is an attorney with the Burnes Libman Law Group.

Licensed in Illinois since 1985, according to ARDC, Norris began his legal career as an Assistant Cook County State's Attorney, leaving that office in 1988 to set up his own practice. He joined Burnes Libman in 2001, practicing personal injury law with a concentration in premises liability, truck crashes, and other transportation negligence cases. He is also a certified mediator through the Center for Conflict Resolution.

Norris was a Short List finalist in 2021.

Michael Nando Pattarozzi is an Assistant Cook County State's Attorney currently assigned as a First Chair in the Felony Trial Division. He has been licensed to practice law in Illinois since 2002, according to ARDC.

Pattarozzi, who is hard-of-hearing, is a member of the newly formed Ability Alliance Network Employee Resource Group for the Cook County State's Attorney's Office. He also serves as the Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors for Campus Pride (a national nonprofit promoting safe spaces and leadership development for LGBTQ+ college and university students), is a founding member of the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association Prosecutor's Caucus and LGBTQ+ Employee Resource Group at the Cook County State's Attorney's Office.

Monique Leneé Patterson is an Assistant Cook County Public Defender. She has been licensed to practice law in Illinois since 1998, according to ARDC. She was a Short List finalist in 2019.

Krista Susan Peterson is a career prosecutor, currently serving as Deputy Supervisor in the Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence Division at the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office. She has been licensed to practice law in Illinois since 2002, according to ARDC.

Peterson sits on the Board of Directors for the Lesbian and Gay Bar Association of Chicago. She is a founding member of the Women’s Employee Resource Group at the State’s Attorney’s Office and has done volunteer work at for, among others, the Blind Services Association and the Chicago Food Depository. Peterson did her undergraduate work at Ball State University, which she attended on a softball scholarship.

Mary Anna Planey is a career prosecutor, having spent her legal career as a Cook County Assistant State's Attorney. She was licensed to practice law in 2001, according to ARDC. Her LinkedIn profile says she is Supervisor of the CCSAO's Human Trafficking Unit. Planey serves on the Board of Trustees of an organization called Kids Above All.

Planey was a Short List finalist in 2021.

Brian Randall Porter has been licensed to practice law in Illinois since 1996, according to ARDC.

Mariano Ricardo Reyna is a career Cook County Assistant State's Attorney. he has been licensed to practice law in Illinois since 2003, according to ARDC.

Looking more closely at the 2023 Short List candidates - Part 2

In this second part of a four part series, FWIW continues its look at each individual Associate Judge finalist. Updates to this post may be published as new information becomes available. For Part 1 of this series, click here. Part 3 is available at this link; for Part 4, click here.

Audrey Victoria Cosgrove is currently Deputy General Counsel at the Illinois Lottery. Before that, in 2018-2019, Cosgrove was Deputy Chief General Counsel for the Illinois Department of Labor.

Licensed as an attorney in Illinois since 1990, according to ARDC, Cosgrove began her legal career in the office of the Cook County Public Defender; she continued to represent criminal defendants during her nearly 19 years in private practice. She also has served as an Administrative Law Judge for the Illinois State Police Merit Board, the Illinois State Board of Education and the Illinois Tollway.

Cosgrove was a candidate for a 10th Subcircuit vacancy in the 2020 election cycle. She just completed her term as President of the Advocates Society.

Pablo F. deCastro is a Loop solo practitioner, concentrating in criminal defense.

Licensed in Illinois since 1994, according to ARDC, deCastro is a graduate of the University of Chicago and the Tulane University School of Law. He began his legal career in the Cook County Public Defender's Office, maintaining his commitment to public defender work trhough the federal public defender's panel attorney program which has, he says, constituted a large part of his practice since 2008.

Fluent in Spanish, according to his firm website, deCastro also reports experience handling civil cases.

Gabriel Joseph De Matteo is a staff attorney with the Illinois Department of Professional Regulation.

Licensed in Illinois since 1986, according to ARDC, De Matteo was in private practice, operating his own firm, from 2003 to 2021. He spent his first 17 years in practice with the Cook County State's Attorney's Office. De Matteo was a Short List finalist in 2021.

Debjani Dasgupta Desai has served as the General Counsel for the the Illinois Office of the Comptroller since 2020.

Licensed in Illinois since 2008, according to ARDC, Desai began her career as a Cook County Assistant State's Attorney. She subsequently became an administrative law judge for the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services and, thereafter, assistant general counsel in the Litigation and Eligibility Group of the department.

Desai is President of the South Asian Bar Association of Chicago’s Foundation, a SABA Advisory Council member, an Honorary Board Member of the Asian American Bar Association, and a Board Member (Director) of the Women’s Bar Association of Illinois. She was a 2022 Vanguard Award recipient.

Outside of her role as General Counsel, Desai has served as a Special Prosecutor in child protection cases in juvenile court. She has taught also Counseling and Negotiations at UIC Law. In 2021, Desai was the Cook County Democratic Party's 9th alternate for countywide slating.

Cristin Duffy is an attorney with the real estate tax law firm of Crane and Norcross.

Licensed in Illinois since 1996, according to ARDC, Duffy's firm bio notes that she spent the first 24 years of her practice as a Cook County Assistant State's Attorney. During her tenure there, Duffy moved from the criminal division, where she was a felony prosecutor, to deputy supervisor of the Real Estate Tax Division. While with the CCSAO, Duffy won a multi-million-dollar verdict against the Chicago Bears, requiring the team to pay Cook County millions in unpaid taxes.

Duffy was a candidate for a countywide vacancy in the 2020 election cycle. She is a Member (Director) of the Women's Bar Association of Illinois Board.

Lester Wolfe Finkle is a partner with the firm of Quintairos, Prieto, Wood & Boyer, P.A. As his firm biography notes, Finkle joined that firm after a 37-year career as a Cook County Assistant Public Defender. In the PD's office, among other roles, Finkle served as Chief of Staff and as as chief and attorney supervisor of the Legal Resources Division.

Licensed as an attorney in Illinois since 1982, according to ARDC, Finkle was a Short List finalist in 2012. He has served as an adjunct professor at Loyola and has served for over 25 years as an adjunct professor at what is now the University of Illinois at Chicago Law School.

Athena James Frentzas is a solo practitioner with the Park Ridge firm of Frentzas Law, LLC. She has been licensed to practice law in Illinois since 1991, according to ARDC.

Frentzas has worked in both the public and private sectors, handling plaintiff’s personal injury, criminal, CDL traffic matters and DUIs as a defense attorney and prosecutor for the Village of Niles. Before entering private practice, she worked at the Secretary of State’s Office and the Attorney General’s Office in the Industrial Commission Division.

Frentzas was a Short List finalist in 2021. She is a board member of the Hellenic Bar Association and co-chair of the Mentorship Committee. She is also involved with the Northwest Bar Association Mock Trial Invitational and the Women’s Bar Association of Illinois.

Michele Ann Gemskie is a Cook County Assistant State's Attorney, currently based in Rolling Meadows.

According to her LinkedIn profile, Gemskie has served in the CCSAO for the entirety of her legal career. She was licensed to practice law in 1994, according to ARDC.

Corinne Cantwell Heggie has practiced with her own firm, Glenview's Heggie Wochner Law Firm, since 2018. She has been licensed to practice in Illinois since 2002; she is also licensed in Missouri.

Heggie started her legal career with Hinshaw & Culbertson, rising from associate to partner before leaving to join Scharf Banks Marmor in 2016. She has been Affiliate Counsel with Scharf Banks Marmor since 2019.

A former president of the Women's Bar Association of Illinois (2019-20), Heggie has also held leadership positions in the North Suburban Bar Association. Among her many community activities, Heggie serves on the Board of the Glenview Jr. Titan Football program. She is also a member of the Glenview Park District Foundation.

Lakshmi Elkhanialy Jha is a Cook County Assistant Public Defender, currently serving (since 2013) on the Homicide Task Force. Licensed in Illinois since 2002, according to ARDC, Jha began her legal career as an Assistant Corporation Counsel for the the City of Chicago, handling administrative appeals and municipal prosecutions.

A long-time board member of the Illinois Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Jha served as President of that group in 2019-20. She has also been involved with Women Everywhere and the Daniel Murphy Scholarship Fund. She was a Short List finalist in 2021.

Sarah Rodak Johnson is a partner in the firm of Cunningham, Meyer & Verdine, P.C.. Her firm bio says her practice is focused on practice on the defense of hospitals, healthcare organizations, and medical providers against claims of medical and institutional negligence.

Licensed as an attorney in Illinois since 2006, according to ARDC, Johnson reports in excess of 50 jury trials within the First Municipal and Law Divisions.

Johnson tutors with the CBA's Lawyers-Lend-A-Hand program and co-chairs the Positive School Climate Committee for District 102. She also serves on Misericordia's Women's Board.

Looking more closely at the 2023 Short List finalists - Part 1

Updated March 6, 2023
Updated February 18, 2023

In this first of a four-part series, FWIW begins its look at each individual Associate Judge finalist. Updates to this post may be added as new information becomes available. For Part 2 of this series, click here. Part 3 is available at this link; for Part 4, click here.

Mohammad Abedelal (Moe) Ahmad practices with the Ahmad Law Firm LLC in Arlington Heights.

Licensed in Illinois since 2008, according to ARDC, Ahmad is the Immediate Past President of the Northwest Suburban Bar Association. Ahmad is also licensed in the State of Georgia.

Ahmad began his legal career as a Cook County Assistant State's Attorney, winning an award as "Prosecutor of the Year" in 2011, according to his firm biography. After moving into private practice, Ahmad was nominated for, and received, an award as one of the top "10 Best Lawyers in Illinois" from the American Institute of Criminal Law Attorneys.

A former co-chair of the Suburban Bar Coalition, Ahmad is also a member of many of the Alliance Bar Groups.

Jennifer Eun Bae has been the Director of Employee Discipline for the Cook County Sheriff's Office since 2019. She worked for the Chicago City Council Finance Committee from 2017-2019.

Before that, Bae was in private practice, handling criminal defense matters and administrative hearings from 2000 through 2017. Licensed as an attorney in Illinois since 1997, according to ARDC, Bae began her legal career as a Cook County Assistant State's Attorney. She served on the Committee on Character & Fitness for the First Judicial District from 2010 through 2018, winning an award from the Supreme Court for Outstanding Service on this committee.

Bae was a candidate for an 8th Subcircuit vacancy in the 2022 election cycle. She was also on the ballot in 2016.

Hilda Bahena is the Executive Director of the Illinois Commission on Discrimination and Hate Crimes (CDHC). Prior to joining the CDHC, from 2013 to 2022, Bahena was the Department Director at Catholic Charities Legal Assistance Department. Before that, she was a Senior Staff Attorney with Legal Aid Chicago (formerly Legal Assistance Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago). Bahena began her legal career in California providing legal aid services in Los Angeles County and in the North Bay area.

The child of immigrants, Bahena is a Chicago native, raised in the Little Village neighborhood. She has been licensed as an attorney in Illinois since 2004, according to ARDC.

Jerome Celis (Jerry) Barrido is a career Cook County Assistant Public Defender. Licensed as an attorney in Illinois since 1999, according to ARDC, Barrido has served in the PD's Traffic, First Municipal, Forensic Science, Juvenile Justice, Maywood Felony Trial Division, and Bridgeview Felony Trial Division.

Barrido has written on statement suppression cases for an Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education handbook. He and his wife, attorney Maria Barrido, have two college-age children. "In addition to his volunteer work in the community," according to his campaign bio, Barrido "has coached little league baseball, junior basketball, and FIRST robotics competitions."

Barrido was a candidate for a 4th Subcircuit vacancy in 2022.

Sunil Shashikant Bhave is currently the supervisor of the Civil Prosecutions Unit of the Illinois Attorney General's Office. This is Bhave's second stint with the AG's office. He first joined that office in 2007, in the Civil Appeals Division, before leaving, in 2011, for the City of Chicago Corporation Counsel's office, serving for one year there in the Federal Civil Rights Division.

Bhave has been licensed in Illinois since 2005, according to ARDC; he has been licensed in Missouri since 2004. In 2018, Bhave represented the Circuit Court of Cook County against the Cook County Board in a lawsuit regarding court funding. From 2015 to 2019, Bhave served as a school board member in Elk Grove Township.

A member of the executive board of the South Asian Bar Association of Chicago, Bhave was a finalist for Associate Judge in 2021.

Joell Claire Bisceglia is a career prosecutor, currently serving as Deputy Supervisor of the Preliminary Hearings Unit in the Cook County State's Attorney's Office. She has been licensed as an attorney in Illinois since 2005, according to ARDC, but in between stints at the CCSAO, in 2007-08, Bisceglia worked as a community associate in the Crimes Against Children Bureau in the Kings County District Attorney's Office in Brooklyn, New York.

Bisceglia was a First Chair in the Felony Trial Division of the CCSAO from 2018-2021. She is active is several bar associations including the Justinian Society.

Jennifer Patricia Callahan maintains a law practice, Callahan Law, P.C., in Park Ridge. She has been licensed to practice law in Illinois since 2006, according to ARDC. She was a Cook County Assistant State's Attorney from 2006 to 2017.

Callahan was a candidate for a countywide vacancy in the 2020 primary. She was not a candidate in the 2022 election cycle, but she was 'pre-slated' by the Cook County Democratic Party for a vacancy that never opened.

John P. Carroll currently serves as Deputy Chief of Staff in the Office of the Illinois Attorney General. He joined that office in 2019.

Licensed as an attorney since 1999, according to ARDC, Carroll began his legal career as a Cook County Assistant State's Attorney, ultimately rising to Executive Assistant in the State's Attorney's Legislative Unit, representing the State's Attorney on legislative and policy issues in the Illinois General Assembly between 2012 and 2019. Before that, from 2011 to 2012, Carroll was a trial specialist on the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.

Nicole Castillo is a partner in the firm of Neal & Leroy LLC. Licensed as an attorney in Illinois since 2000, according to ARDC, Castillo's practice is focused in litigation matters related to construction and property acquisition.

According to her firm bio, Castillo was counsel to the City of Chicago and the Chicago Park District for the Bloomingdale Trail Project: The 606, which transformed a railroad right of way into a public park.

Castillo currently serves as Co-Chair of the Chicago Bar Association’s Civil Practice Committee and has served on the CBA's Judicial Evaluation Committee. She has also served as a volunteer attorney for Chicago Volunteer Legal Services.

Jennifer Frances Coleman has been licensed as an attorney in Illinois since 1995, according to ARDC. She currently serves as a Senior Policy Advisor to Cook County, according to her LinkedIn page.

Coleman was previously a Cook County Assistant State's Attorney, rising to the position of First Assistant before leaving that office in 2021. She was a Short List finalist in 2019.

Torrie Luciana Corbin is a career Cook County Assistant State's Attorney, currently serving as a Suprervisor based in Markham, according to her LinkedIn profile. She has been licensed as an attorney in Illinois since 2001, according to ARDC.

Corbin has been a board member of CBA Media and Civic Education, Inc. since 2021, according to her LinkedIn profile.

Starting a closer look at this year's Associate Judge finalists

Updated February 17
Corrected February 16

The pattern is that there is no pattern.

According to conventional wisdom, those who fell short on the Short List were never heard from again: That path to the bench was effectively foreclosed and the disappointed finalists had to seek election or abandon the judicial dream.

That's certainly the perception I had, when I first started covering this beat. But, over the years, I've become more systematic:

Five of the 26 finalists on the 2016 list were carryovers from the 2014 Short List. Two of the five were selected.

Only two of the 34 finalists on the 2018 list were carryovers from the 2016 selection -- although both were selected.

But, then, in 2019, eleven of the 30 finalists were carryovers, 10 from the 2018 list and one from 2014. (Seven of these were ultimately selected, six from the 2018 list, and the carryover from 2014.)

A new trend? A pattern change?

Nope. The 44 persons who made the 2021 Short List included only four persons from the 2019 list and another from 2016. On the other hand, four of those five former finalists were selected in 2021.

Which brings us to the current list, also including 44 persons. But, this time, there are 14 finalists from former lists, 10 from the 2021 Short List. These returning finalists are Sunil Shashikant Bhave, Gabriel Joseph DeMatteo, Athena James Ferentzas, Lakshmi Elkhanialy Jha, Edward James Maloney, Scott Norris, Mary Anna Planey, Parle M. Roe-Taylor, Pamela Saindon, and Scott William Tzinberg. Maloney holds the distinction of having been a finalist in both 2021 and 2019.

Also returning from the 2019 list are Jennifer Frances Coleman and Monique Leneé Patterson. Tisa Lynn Morris was on the Short List in 2018. Lester Wolfe Finkle was a finalist in 2012.

So -- sometimes -- maybe -- falling short on the Short List is not the end of the road. But one would not have to scan very far down the 2022 applicant list to find former finalists who were passed over this time.

This new list is remarkable in another way as well: There is only one former judge among the finalists. That would be John Wellington Wilson, who came up short in his attempt to hold the 1st Subcircuit seat to which he was appointed by the Supreme Court in 2021. Wilson was a sitting judge when applications were solicited for this class; a number of his appointed colleagues fared better in last June's primary. But there are always former judges seeking to return to the bench in every class of applicants -- although perhaps not as many in this group as in past years.

Many of the persons on the current Short List have previously sought election to the bench, whether in 2022 or before. Three, however, were among the many 'pre-slated' candidates named for the 2022 primary by the Democratic Party back in December 2021. These three finalists are Jennifer Callahan, Pam Saindon, and Debjani Desai.

Over the next week or so, as time permits, I'll start rolling out brief biographical sketches of all 44 finalists. Because there are so many, I anticipated doing four of these posts, profiling 11 candidates each. My thanks to the many candidates who have already supplied current headshots and bios for my use in this regard. I will continue to accept these as they come in. (Candidates: If you haven't already done so, email your information to jackleyhane@yahoo.com.)

Guest Post: Dr. Klumpp makes deeper dive into 2022 retention returns

FWIW is pleased to present this Guest Post by Albert J. Klumpp, a generous and frequent contributor to FWIW over the years, a research analyst with a public policy PhD, and the author of several scholarly works analyzing judicial elections.

by Albert J. Klumpp

Before the 2022 election cycle gets too far in the rearview mirror, I wanted to provide FWIW with two pieces of follow-up analysis that were promised in previous posts. Family health issues pushed back anything election-related for several weeks but I finally am catching up. First up is a deeper dive into the results of the November voting on retention judges.

Overall the final numbers confirm what I reported in November using preliminary numbers:

• Roughly 1.1 million Cook County voters completed the retention part of the November 8 ballot. This number is on the surface very ordinary for Cook retentions, but in fact was produced from two extremes: the lowest voter turnout (45.7%) for any November election since the introduction of retention voting in 1964; and the highest participation rate ever (75.7%) with the smallest proportion of the electorate skipping the retention judges.


• The baseline level of support for the judges was 75.1 percent, a historically typical level for Cook retentions. Rates for the higher-court judges were roughly one point higher, in part because of the small proportion of voters who start but don’t finish the retention section of the ballot and who almost always vote to retain.

Among the 80 wards and townships, these are the ones with the highest and lowest baseline levels:

• Name cues, which are highly influential in primaries, are of little value in retention voting and were of little value this time. Female candidates got a boost of just under two percentage points, and none of the major name categories (Irish, Black, Hispanic) were statistically detectable. Within certain wards and townships, though, there was detectable support for each of the categories. The highest estimates:

• For every election going back to 1976 I’ve been able to estimate the combined influence of bar associations and newspapers. The 2022 estimate, 15.0 percent, is historically typical in magnitude but singularly remarkable because it includes nothing from newspapers. As I pointed out in November, for the first time in many years neither of the major Chicago newspapers provided any sort of guidance to retention voters, either in their own recommendations or by reporting the ratings of bar associations. The suburban Daily Herald likewise provided no guidance.

Nine of the 80 wards and townships produced estimates that exceeded 30%:

With no information provided by newspapers or their websites, many voters apparently turned to other sites, either those of the bar associations or else summary sites like VoteForJudges or Injustice Watch. But the evidence suggests that a major factor was the use of smartphones in the voting booth. This is implied by the predominance of Illinois State Bar Association ratings, which accounted for roughly 60 percent of the total use of bar ratings and which were statistically detectable in 39 wards and 27 townships. Google searches of “Cook County judicial retention” and similar terms on or before election day on mobile devices returned the ISBA’s ratings first among those of the bar groups. In addition, the ratings were presented in a mobile-friendly scroll that, while not the optimal presentation, was an improvement over the paper-formatted guides and cumbersome grids available elsewhere.

• Two social-media sources of ratings on retention judges that emerged in the two previous retention cycles together influenced just over 7 percent of the electorate. The “Girl I Guess” progressive voter guide produced a 5.3 percent estimate, up from 3.4 percent in 2018 and 4.2 percent in 2020. It was detectable in 43 of the 50 wards and 23 of the 30 townships, and had a double-digit influence in 14 wards. Interestingly, while most of those 14 wards were North and Northwest Side wards between the DePaul and Loyola campuses, they also included several Hispanic-majority wards.

In contrast, the Chicago voter “Cheat Sheet” guide prepared by city political activists saw a decline in its influence. Debuting in 2020 as a simple one-page list, it influenced an estimated 2.6 percent of the electorate and was detectable in many Black wards where none of the mainstream sources of information had ever seen success. This year it apparently was retargeted as part of a broader “Young Voters Guide,” and in so doing it influenced only 1.8 percent of a smaller electorate and lost most of its influence with Black voters.

• One final point concerns the partial set of ratings issued by the local Fraternal Order of Police. Typically I don’t examine ratings from unions or special interests because they aren’t detectable in the countywide results. This time, though, one of the judges on the retention ballot alerted me to what looked like unusual results from the 19th and 41st wards. So I added the FOP ratings to the ward and township analyses…and the judge is correct. While not detectable at the county or city-only level, roughly seven percent of the vote in the19th and 41st Wards can be linked to the FOP ratings, as well as between 2 and 3 percent in the 11th, 13th, 23rd, 38th and 45th and Lemont Township.

Overall, the biggest takeaway from this election is the lessening influence of candidate ratings from traditional, established sources and the continued increasing influence of smartphones and social media. As a result of this shift, for the first time ever city voters were more likely than suburban voters to complete the retention part of the ballot (75.7% to 75.6%) and more likely to distinguish among judges with mixed yes and no votes rather than voting unanimously all-yes or all-no. The absence of newspaper guidance clearly was felt more strongly in the suburbs, while voters in the city (where the median age is more than five years younger than in the suburbs) were more receptive to both the content and distribution of social media guides aimed at a younger and more progressive audience.

Finally, the usual qualifier: all of the estimates cited here are just that, estimates, and have margins of error. But all are considered statistically significant and nearly all are highly so.

Next up is a review of campaign spending by 2022 judicial candidates, including a new all-time record set for spending on a circuit court campaign.

Forty four names on today's not-so-short Associate Judge short list

This may be the last list for awhile. It will likely be the longest list for some years.

The Circuit Court of Cook County has today announced that 44 persons, 21 men and 23 women, have made the coveted associate judge "short list." It is from this list of names that the full judges of the Cook County will select 22 new colleagues.

Here is the list of the finalists:

• AHMAD, Mohammad Abedelal
• BAE, Jennifer Eun
• BAHENA, Hilda
• BARRIDO, Jerome Celis
• BHAVE, Sunil Shashikant
• BISCEGLIA, Joell Claire
• CALLAHAN, Jennifer Patricia
• CARROLL, John P.
• CASTILLO, Nicole
• COLEMAN, Jennifer Frances
• CORBIN, Torrie Luciana
• COSGROVE, Audrey Victoria
• deCASTRO, Pablo F.
• DE MATTEO, Gabriel Joseph
• DESAI, Debjani Dasgupta
• DUFFY, Cristin
• FINKLE, Lester Wolfe
• FRENTZAS, Athena James
• GEMSKIE, Michele Ann
• HEGGIE, Corinne Cantwell
• JHA, Lakshmi Elkhanialy
• JOHNSON, Sarah Rodak
• KANTER, Sharon Arnold
• KNIBBS, James John
• MALONEY, Edward James
• MORRIS, Tisa Lynne
• NORRIS, Scott
• PATTAROZZI, Michael Nando
• PATTERSON, Monique Leneé
• PETERSON, Krista Susan
• PLANEY, Mary Anna
• PORTER, Brian Randall
• REYNA, Mariano Ricardo
• RODRIGUEZ, Federico Martin
• ROE-TAYLOR, Parle M.
• RUFFIN, Anthony
• SAINDON, Pamela
• STUDENROTH, David Lawrence
• TOLLER, Natosha Cuyler
• TULLY, John J.
• TZINBERG, Scott William
• VINES, Michael James
• WARD, Torrick Alan
• WILSON, John Wellington

A lot of these names will look familiar to FWIW readers, or they should. In the coming weeks, I'll be putting up roundup posts, providing brief biographical sketches for each of the finalists (candidates are invited to email information, including a head shot that I can crop square, in .jpg or .png format, to jackleyhane@yahoo.com).

Within the next couple of weeks every circuit judge will receive a ballot from the Director of the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts. Judges will have just two weeks thereafter to make their choices and return the ballots to the Director.

There were a total of 212 applicants for these vacancies. According to the press release issued today by the Office of Cook County Chief Judge Timothy C. Evans, 176 of these applicants were interviewed individually by the Circuit Court's nominating committee. Thirty-six candidates withdrew their names from consideration including (for those of you checking my math) two who had already been interviewed.

The Nominating Committee consisted of the following judges:

• Honorable Timothy C. Evans, Chief Judge,
• Honorable Erica L. Reddick, Presiding Judge, Criminal Division,
• Honorable James P. Flannery, Jr., Presiding Judge, Law Division,
• Honorable Sophia H. Hall, Administrative Presiding Judge, Juvenile Justice and Child Protection Resource Section and Interim Acting Presiding Judge, Chancery Division,
• Honorable Sanjay T. Tailor, Justice, Illinois 1st District Appellate Court,
• Honorable Jill C. Marisie, Presiding Judge, Third Municipal District,
• Honorable Shelley Sutker-Dermer, Presiding Judge, Second Municipal District, and
• Honorable E. Kenneth Wright, Jr., Presiding Judge, First Municipal District.

As to why this may be the largest class for some time, and perhaps the last class for some time as well, see January post.)