Candidates for election next spring to ISBA offices may begin filing nomination petitions on Tuesday, Jan. 16, at either the Illinois Bar Center in Springfield or the Chicago Regional Office.

An ISBA third vice president will be elected from one of the four judicial districts outside of Cook County, and will become ISBA president in 2010.

Seven members of the ISBA Board of Governors will be elected; 38 Assembly seats in Cook County will be filled, plus a total of 88 in all 22 other circuits. A law student member of the Assembly may be nominated and elected from each of the 13 affiliated law schools.

Petitions may be obtained from the office of executive director by calling (800) 252-8908 or sending an e-mail to jhibbs@isba.org.

See the election notice on pages 12 and 13 of this issue of the ISBA Bar News for the list of incumbents and complete details of the election process.

For purposes of running for ISBA office or voting in the election, an individual's designated primary legal office is considered his or her official geographical location.

Three of the contested board seats are now held by members who have served maximum terms and may not be re-elected. That includes Area 2 (17th, 19th and 22nd Circuits), Area 5 (5th, 6th and 11th Circuits), and downstate under age 37. All four Cook County incumbents are eligible for re-election.

Elections for all 88 Assembly seats outside of Cook County are held every three years. Many current members have served six years and are not eligible for re-election.

The current 19th Circuit has 13 Assembly members – seven from Lake County and six from McHenry County. The 2007 allocation, based on population, will be 10 for the 19th Circuit and three for the new 22nd Circuit.

Petitions containing original signatures may be filed no later than 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 15, E-mailed or faxed petitions will not be accepted.

Election ballots will be distributed by April 1 to ISBA members in good standing, whose dues are current on March 1. Completed ballots must be returned by May 10.