The Illinois State Bar Association’s Lawyer Finder Service provides referrals to local lawyers Mondays through Fridays. The Service makes referrals in a number of areas of law. For the month of December, 2025, the ISBA helped 614 people in need of legal services find lawyers.
The names of the 11 Fellows selected to participate in the 2025 Rural Practice Fellowship Program, which is designed to meet the critical need of providing access to justice for those living in rural areas with a declining lawyer population, have been announced.
Chief Justice P. Scott Neville, Jr. and the Supreme Court of Illinois announced today the recall and assignment of seven retired circuit court judges from Cook, Will, and Pope counties to address a shortage of judges in the Circuit Court of Cook County.
The need to obtain school student records may arise in everything from dissolution of marriage proceedings to general civil litigation and administrative proceedings, such as grievance proceedings involving school staff, observes Christian Ketter in his December Illinois Bar Journal article, “What’s in the File?”
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January 5, 2026 |
Member Services | ISBA News
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January 5, 2026 | Practice News
The Illinois Bar Journal’s January cover story, “Help Is on the Way,” dives deep into the ARDC’s new guide for attorneys interested in implementing artificial intelligence in their practice. The IBJ interviews the guide’s author as well as other attorneys who see the fast-evolving technology as a key tool for attorneys in the new year. That said, the IBJ also explores the caveats the ARDC’s guide lays out for using AI ethically and accurately. Read the "Help Is on the Way" in the January Illinois Bar Journal. -
January 5, 2026 | CLE
Workers' Compensation Update - Spring 2026 -
January 5, 2026 | Practice News
Justice Lisa Holder White and the Illinois Supreme Court have announced the appointment of Erin C. Hannigan as Resident Circuit Judge for the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, Subcircuit 1, Winnebago County. Ms. Hannigan is being appointed to fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Chief Judge John Lowry. The appointment of Ms. Hannigan is effective January 20, 2026, and will conclude on December 7, 2026. -
January 5, 2026 | Practice NewsJustice Lisa Holder White and the Supreme Court of Illinois announced today the appointment of retired Judge Richard H. Gambrell in the Ninth Judicial Circuit. Judge Gambrell is being appointed to the vacancy created by the retirement of Fulton County Resident Circuit Judge Thomas B. Ewing on Jan. 2, 2026. The appointment is effective Jan. 19, 2026, and concludes on Dec. 4, 2028.
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January 5, 2026 | Practice NewsMarcia M. Meis, Director of the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts, announced today that the Fourteenth Judicial Circuit judges voted to select Jonathan C. Ruud as an associate judge of the Fourteenth Judicial Circuit. Mr. Ruud received his undergraduate degree in 1999 from Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington, Illinois, and his Juris Doctor in 2004 from Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Illinois. Mr. Ruud is currently affiliated with Hanna & Ruud, LLC in Moline, Illinois.
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January 5, 2026 | Practice NewsJustice Elizabeth M. Rochford of the Supreme Court of Illinois seeks public comment on the 11 applicants for an At-Large Circuit Judge vacancy in the Sixteenth Judicial Circuit, Kane County. The vacancy will result from the retirement of the Honorable Kevin T. Busch effective January 29, 2026. Under the Illinois Constitution, the vacancy will be filled by Supreme Court appointment. Applicants being considered for appointment to the judgeship are:
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January 1, 2026 | ISBA News
The names of the 11 Fellows selected to participate in the 2026 Rural Practice Fellowship Program, which is designed to meet the critical need of providing access to justice for those living in rural areas with a declining lawyer population, have been announced. -
December 22, 2025 | People | ISBA News
On December 12, the Hon. April G. Troemper received the Presidential Commendation from ISBA Immediate Past President Sonni Choi Williams in recognition of her outstanding service on the Standing Committee of Judicial Advisory Polls. Judge Troemper was honored for her leadership of the Committee, including guiding the drafting of revised poll questions that were unanimously approved by the ISBA Board of Governors. She currently serves as the Committee’s Ex-Officio. -
December 22, 2025 | Practice News
Effective January 1st, trial clerks will no longer be required to file a Notice of Appeal in criminal cases where the defendant is represented by counsel. Instead, defense attorneys will be responsible for filing timely Notices of Appeal.