Posted inJudicial Elections
Ask an expert: Bar association ratings, explained
Judicial bar ratings are complex and important. We asked an expert to explain them.
Malcolm Rich
Posted inHousing
Failure to record Cook County eviction court hearings leaves tenants vulnerable
State court officials plan to install equipment that will record eviction court hearings. But timing is not certain. In the meantime, tenants remain without record of what occurred, making appeals difficult.
Posted in2018 Primary, Associate Judges, Judicial Elections
Eight appointed judges get second chances at judicial vacancies
Eight appointed Cook County judges who lost their primary electoral bids for longer-term seats on the bench last March may get another chance at one of 17 vacant judicial seats this spring. They have been named finalists for associate judge vacancies.
Posted in2018 Primary
Cook County judicial voters reject old habits, disfavor poorly rated candidates
It was not business-as-usual in the Cook County judicial primaries last week. Candidates with blemishes on their record were disfavored by voters. Judges already serving by appointment, or candidates who came out of the prosecutors’ office, found those perceived advantages did not sway voters. And Latinos seemed to gain strength at the expense of the traditional dominance of Irish names.
Posted in2018 Primary
Voter conundrum: Bar groups send mixed messages about some judicial hopefuls
Bar association evaluations are one of the few independent sources of information about Cook County judicial candidates, but at times they send voters mixed messages.
Posted in2016 Primary
Past blemishes no bar to seeking Cook County judicial seat
If history is a guide, the principal attributes of the winners in Cook County’s judicial races will not be their qualifications — their legal experience, education, and temperament — but rather the ethnicity of their names, their skin color, gender, campaign financing, and ballot position.
