Practice News

The Illinois Supreme Court announced the filing of lawyer disciplinary orders on November 20, 2024. Sanctions were imposed because the lawyers engaged in professional misconduct by violating state ethics law.

The Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Access to Justice (ATJ Commission) announced today the winners of two awards, the Jeffrey D. Colman Access to Justice Award and The Hon. Thomas L. Kilbride (Ret.) Judicial Access to Justice Award. The 2024 recipients are Tiffany Schicker and Judge Thomas More Donnelly. These awards are designed to recognize and celebrate exceptional contributions to increasing access to the court system by improving the experience of litigants. 

The Judicial Conference of the United States has authorized the appointment of a full-time United States magistrate judge for the Central District of Illinois at Peoria. The annual salary is $223,836. The eight-year term begins upon appointment. A court’s essential function is to dispense justice. A community’s belief that a court dispenses justice is heightened when the court reflects the community’s racial, ethnic, and gender diversity.

Hannah Brenner Johnson, professor of law and vice dean for academic affairs at California Western School of Law, will become the next dean of the Southern Illinois University Simmons Law School.

Sheryl Tucker, provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs, today (Nov. 14) announced Brenner Johnson's appointment, effective July 1, subject to approval by the SIU Board of Trustees.

The national search for dean included a “very competitive pool of highly qualified candidates,” said Tucker, adding that Brenner Johnson “was the desired candidate across all constituents.”