Latest News
A Major Victory in the Fight to End Money Bail
Yesterday marked a major victory in the fight to end money bail in Cook County: Chief Judge Tim Evans has issued General Order No. 18.8a that instructs judges to set money bonds only in amounts that people can [...]
Join Us at Our Annual Luncheon Event
Save the Date! 2017 marks the 20th anniversary of our partner organization, Chicago Appleseed. Join us in celebrating the occasion at our Annual Luncheon, co-hosted by the Chicago Council of Lawyers. The event will take place [...]
Changes in the Cook County Domestic Relations Courts
The Cook County court recently took bold steps to modernize the Domestic Relations Division and improve the system for all families moving through the divorce, paternity and child support process. Consolidation of the divorce court [...]
Cook County State’s Attorney Announces New Policy for Bond Recommendations
State's Attorney Kimberly M. Foxx, courtesy of her Twitter account. The Chicago Council of Lawyers (CCL) commends Cook County State's Attorney Kimberly M. Foxx for taking a progressive step towards reducing Cook County’s [...]
Illinois Takes Small First Step Toward Bail Reform
On June 9, 2017, Governor Rauner signed SB 2034 into law. SB 2034 covers two distinct areas of criminal law: the state RICO law and bail. First, effective immediately, it extends state RICO Act (“Illinois [...]
New NJDC Report Documents States’ Failure to Protect Children’s Right to Counsel
The National Juvenile Defender Center (“NJDC”) has issued new report that examines a serious failure in our justice system: the systematic denial of children’s constitutional right to a public defense. As NJDC’s troubling new report, [...]
Immigration Court Access
On April 5, 2017, Steven Schulman, Pro Bono Partner at Akin Gump and principal author of the Appleseed Immigration Court Practice Guide, led a training for attorneys on overcoming obstacles in immigration court. The event [...]
Chicago Council of Lawyers Releases Judicial Evaluations
The Chicago Council of Lawyers has released its judicial evaluations for the November 2016 election. The Council provides a written report providing short biographies and the reasons for its findings, both for judges seeking retention and for candidates [...]
Chicago Council Responds to Mayor’s Proposed Police Accountability Ordinance
On August 30, Mayor Rahm Emanuel released a statement on police accountability and a draft ordinance to replace the Independent Police Review Authority with a new agency. The Chicago Council of Lawyers offers its thoughts below. [...]
Statement on PATF Report
In April 2016, the Police Accountability Task Force issued their 190-page report: Recommendations for Reform: Restoring Trust between the Chicago Police and the Communities They Serve. The Report addresses many subjects, ranging from how to [...]
