State courts have increasingly become the default system for addressing the needs of those with behavioral health issues. Commonly cited statistics show that 64 percent of people in local jails suffer from mental illness. The rate of serious mental illness is four to six times higher in jail than in the general population, and the rate of substance use disorders is seven times higher among those in jail than in the general population.  Following up on its recent call to action, the Illinois Supreme Court Mental Health Task Force (Task Force) is hosting a series of judicially led, multidisciplinary Regional Councils and Resource Mapping Workshops that will meet monthly throughout the state from January-June 2022.  

While some protective orders have existed statutorily in Illinois for at least a decade and hearing and issuing these types of protective orders has become part of the normal course of business in most courthouses, in 2017, the Illinois legislature passed House Bill 3718, which went into effect on Jan. 1, 2018, creating a new statutory framework for issuing protective orders in conjunction with criminal charges.

Volunteers are needed for the 2022 ISBA High School Mock Trial Invitational, which will be held virtually on March 11 to 13, 2022, via Zoom.    This program provides an opportunity for students to learn what it is like to prepare and present a legal case before the Illinois courts. Participating students gain a better understanding of the justice system and improve their knowledge, skills, and ability to articulate in a reasoned, thoughtful manner.  

The Illinois Judicial Ethics Committee (IJEC), a joint committee of the Illinois State Bar Association, the Chicago Bar Association, and the Illinois Judges Association, has issued a new opinion: 2021-4: Judge's Use of Photographs with Colleagues for Campaign Purposes.