Justice Elizabeth Rochford Seeks Comment on Applicants for Sixteenth Circuit Vacancy
Justice 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:
- Junaid Mustafa Afeef, Administrative Law Judge, IDPH
- Nicholas Catizone, Supervising Assistant State’s Attorney, DuPage County SAO
- Alan Garrow, Nealis & Garrow, P.C. • Randy K. Johnson, Sole Practitioner
- Timothy Martin, DCFS Senior Regional Counsel
- Jamie L. Mosser, Kane County State’s Attorney
- Julie M. Pirtle, Partner, Peskind Law Firm, P.C.
- Christopher Solfa, Partner, Cunningham, Meyer & Vedrine, P.C.
- Frederick John Steffen, Jr., Attorney, Steffen & Kelly, P.C.
- Julia Ann Yetter, Associate Judge, 16th Judicial Circuit
- Andrea Zenker, Attorney/Partner, Higgins, Zenker & Coyle, P.C.
Members of the public are invited to submit written comments concerning the applicants to Stacie Ryan at sryan@illinoiscourts.gov. Comments must be received no later than 4 p.m. on Friday, January 9, 2026. Anonymous letters will not be accepted. All comments will be held in the strictest confidence.
(FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT: James Brunner, Public Information Officer of the Illinois Supreme Court at 217.208.3354 or jbrunner@illinoiscourts.gov)