Supreme Court Justice Joy V. Cunningham announces formation of a standing judicial selection committee

Catching up on things that happened during my hiatus...

Illinois Supreme Court Justice Joy V. Cunningham has announced the formation of a standing Judicial Selection Committee. The committee has been formed for the purpose of assessing the qualifications of those who apply for appointment to vacancies in the Supreme Court’s First District (i.e., Cook County).

The committee, which will be chaired by attorney Tim Tomasik of of Tomasik Kotin Kasserman LLC (pictured at right), consists of both non-lawyers and lawyers who reside in Cook County. The non-lawyer members of the committee are Dr. Byron Brazier of the Apostolic Church of God and former Equality Illinois Board Chair Dalila Fridi. The other attorneys on the committee are (in alphabetical order) Suyash Agrawal of Massey & Gail LLP; Edward Austin of Edward J. Austin PC; Terri Mascherin of Jenner & Block LLP; Kerry Peck of Peck Ritchey LLC; Patricia Rangel of Rangel Rangel & Associates; Larry Rogers Jr. of Power Rogers LLP; Eirene Salvi of Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard P.C.; and Andrea Zopp of Cleveland Avenue LLC.

Pursuant to the Illinois Constitution, judicial vacancies on the Circuit and Appellate Courts are filled on an interim basis by Supreme Court appointment. According to long-standing custom and practice, the three justices elected from the First Judicial District divide the availble Cook County appointments amongst themselves. The exact mechanism or manner of distribution has never been made public, but, generally speaking, each justice could fill one-third of the available vacancies -- if they so choose. Some vacancies go unfilled in every election cycle.

Justices can fill 'their' vacancies one-by-one or in groups, as Chief Justice Theis is now doing.

Regardless of the Cook County justice making the appointment, appointed individuals have to run in the next election in order to hold their seats. All interim appointments expire on the first Monday in December of the year that the vacancy is filled by election.