ISBA resolution extols career of Justice McMorrow

The ISBA Board of Governors recently adopted a resolution in appreciation of the career achievements and positive influence of retired Illinois Supreme Court Justice Mary Ann G. McMorrow. It was presented to her by President Irene F. Bahr during the July 21 board meeting in Chicago (see photo on page 3).

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WHEREAS, Mary Ann Grohwin McMorrow has been a pillar of the Illinois legal profession and a role model for women attorneys since she graduated from the Loyola University School of Law in 1953 as the only woman in her class; and

WHEREAS, Mary Ann McMorrow paved the way for many to follow her as the first woman to prosecute felony cases in Cook County, as a judge of the Cook County Circuit Court presiding in complex trials, and as a justice of the Illinois Appellate Court; and

WHEREAS, Justice McMorrow capped her distinguished career with election as the first woman to serve on the Illinois Supreme Court, and to be elected by her colleagues as chief justice; and

WHEREAS, Justice McMorrow began her tenure as chief justice by speaking eloquently during the ISBA Future of the Courts Conference and promising that “we are listening” to recommendations of the bar for improvements in the state's legal system; and

WHEREAS, the endowments made by the Supreme Court to the practice of law in Illinois during Justice McMorrow's leadership were of unprecedented benefit to the bench, the bar, and the citizens of the state who depend on access to justice; and

WHEREAS, on her watch the court adopted the state bar association's proposal to permit the transfer or sale of a law practice so that a career practitioner who retires or becomes disabled, or the spouse of a deceased lawyer, could have something of value left to account for decades of dedication to the law; and

WHEREAS, the McMorrow Court provided stable funding for legal assistance for disadvantaged individuals and families across the state who cannot afford to pay for the services of lawyers; and

WHEREAS, the McMorrow Court established ongoing support for the Lawyers' Assistance Program, an initiative of the Illinois State Bar and Chicago Bar that for many years, with no stable source of revenue, tried to help lawyers, judges and law students whose careers were impaired by addictions and mental problems; and

WHEREAS, Justice McMorrow has made good on her promise by seeing that many recommendations gleaned from discussions during the ISBA Conference on the Future of the Courts have been adopted, or are under study by the Supreme Court; and

WHEREAS, after forty years as a jurist – with an enviable record of influence at the Circuit, Appellate and Supreme Court levels – Mary Ann McMorrow leaves behind a tradition of cooperation among the bench and bar for the betterment of society;

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the members of the Illinois State Bar Association express their gratitude and appreciation to Justice Mary Ann McMorrow for challenging the bench and bar “to create a new world that will reflect our justice as well as our genius, and will reflect our togetherness,” and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the ISBA extends its best wishes to Justice McMorrow on her retirement from the judiciary, its hopes that her contributions to the practice of law will continue for many years, and its prayers that she will always enjoy good health and great happiness.