{"id":327,"date":"2012-06-06T00:57:18","date_gmt":"2012-06-06T00:57:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dev\/chicagoappleseed\/?page_id=327"},"modified":"2026-03-02T09:37:57","modified_gmt":"2026-03-02T15:37:57","slug":"about-us","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/chicagocouncil.org\/staging\/1601\/about-us\/","title":{"rendered":"About Us"},"content":{"rendered":"

About The Chicago Council of Lawyers<\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

The Chicago Council of Lawyers is not a traditional bar association. The Council is a member-based organization whose focus is on the benefit of non-members, particularly poor and disadvantaged populations who often have unequal access to the legal system. Volunteers from the Council work on non-litigation pro bono projects meant to promote systemic reform, including increased access to justice, immigration court reform, criminal justice reform, children and family law, and projects on the federal courts. In addition, the Council provides well-respected evaluations of state judicial candidates and sitting judges, and evaluations of nominees to the federal bench in Chicago.<\/p>\n

The Council is a well-respected, non-partisan entity with the ear of important stakeholders in Cook County and Illinois at large, and has done a tremendous amount to ameliorate hidden injustices that don\u2019t always make headlines or present themselves in everyday law practice. It is also a home for lawyers who lack the time or capacity to work on pro bono projects, but want to add their voices and monetary support to a message that gets things done for good government, fairness, and equal treatment for all.<\/p>\n

The Council is headed by an Executive Director who reports to an elected Board and is a place for attorneys who want to give back to their communities through projects that promote social justice.<\/p>\n

If you are looking to give back and support our mission, we not only welcome your membership\u00a0but also your active engagement.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

<\/i><\/i><\/span>Follow Us<\/span><\/a><\/h4><\/div>
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The Chicago Council of Lawyers is regularly featured for its timely legal analysis, public statements, and policy positions, with coverage highlighting its role in shaping public conversation on issues ranging from judicial conduct to criminal justice reform.<\/p>\n

In addition to checking out our Latest News<\/a> page, follow us across social media on LinkedIn<\/a>,\u00a0YouTube<\/a>,\u00a0Instagram<\/a>,\u00a0Facebook<\/a>, and\u00a0Bluesky<\/a> to stay informed.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

<\/i><\/i><\/span>History of the Council<\/span><\/a><\/h4><\/div>
The Chicago Council of Lawyers was created in 1969 to give a voice to lawyers demanding fairness and effectiveness in our justice system.<\/p>\n

When the Council was founded, there was a basic lack of trust in our government and corporate sectors all throughout the country. Fundamentally unfair policies and practices were prevailing. It was a time when great organizations were being formed to combat it all. But lawyers, specifically, needed a place where they could collectively speak out about those injustices and advocate for the systemic reforms necessary to do something about them. In Chicago, the Council was that organization.<\/div><\/div><\/div>

<\/i><\/i><\/span>Board of Governors<\/span><\/a><\/h4><\/div>
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