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Photo credit: Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Access to Justice
The Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Access to Justice (ATJ Commission) is requesting nominations for two awards recognizing exceptional contributions to improving access to justice in Illinois courts:
  • The Jeffrey D. Colman Access to Justice Award
  • The Hon. Thomas L. Kilbride (Ret.) Judicial Access to Justice Award

    • These awards recognize members of the judiciary, lawyers, paralegals, and court employees whose work has improved access to the courts and the experience of litigants.
    Nominations for both awards are open through November 2, 2026.
    The Jeffrey D. Colman Access to Justice Award

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    Continue Reading ATJ Commission Seeks Nominations for Two Access to Justice Awards

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    The National Celebration of Pro Bono, held annually in October, recognizes the importance of pro bono work and honors the attorneys who dedicate their time and talent to serving their communities.

    The 2026 Pro Bono Week theme is “Serving Justice, Strengthening Democracy.” The theme “recognizes the essential role pro bono attorneys play in ensuring that legal problems do not prevent people from participating fully in civic life,” according to the ABA.

    The ARDC reported that Illinois lawyers put that commitment into action in 2025, providing 1,720,775 hours of pro bono service.

    Connect with your local pro bono

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    Continue Reading Celebrate 2026 Pro Bono Week in Illinois

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    Photo credit: iStock.com
    Key points:
    • Study of roughly 37,000 U.S. lawyers finds 47.5% screen high for work-related burnout; 41.1% said legal profession has been detrimental to their mental health
    • Many lawyers reported experiencing depression (21.6%), anxiety (20.4%), stress (18.9%), hazardous drinking (42%), and work-life conflict (35.9%)
    • Respondents call for profession to do more, saying barriers like confidentiality concerns (53.3%) and fear of reputational/career harm (49.2%) prevent them from seeking help
    • Study says it is the largest multi-jurisdiction lawyer mental health survey to date, updating 10-year benchmark data from ABA/Hazelden-Betty Ford Foundation

    A recent study of roughly 37,000 licensed lawyers across

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    Continue Reading Study Finds More Than 40% of Lawyers Say Legal Profession Has Been ‘Detrimental to Their Mental Health’

    For two decades, the Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism has collaborated with Illinois’ law schools to lead professionalism orientations for first-year law students.
    The professionalism orientations, which are held annually at the beginning of law school, introduce 1L students to the principles of legal professionalism and emphasize the importance of these principles in their careers.
    Illinois Supreme Court and Appellate Court Justices, federal judges, Illinois circuit court judges, local lawyers, Commissioners, and Commission staff participate in the orientations.
    This includes leading students in the Pledge of Professionalism, during which students commit to upholding the principles of professionalism in law

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    Continue Reading Commission, Illinois Justices and Judges Partner with Illinois Law Schools on 20th Annual Professionalism Orientations for 1Ls (Photos)

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    Key points
    • ABA’s Mental Wellbeing in the Legal Profession study found women lawyers reported higher levels of stress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms and lower overall well-being than men lawyers
    • Women also reported high stressors like sleep disturbances, family member issues, and loneliness
    • The report found that the way women experience stress varies across race, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, and other characteristics
    • Women tied stressors to workplace systems and practices, as well as personal responsibilities, and noted a distrust in workplace well-being resources
    • To support employee well-being, the report recommends reviewing workloads and billable hour requirements, providing protected

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    Continue Reading ABA Research Finds Women Lawyers Report Higher Mental Health Risks Than Men

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    Photo credit: Mark Palmer
    Next month, I’ll be speaking at the Illinois State Bar Association’s 8th Annual Abraham Lincoln’s Legal Legacy seminar, which explores Lincoln’s legal philosophy and the ways it animated his career in the law and his presidency.
    In preparing for this seminar, which is being co-presented by the Illinois Supreme Court Historic Preservation Commission, I have spent time researching and contemplating what historian Doris Kearns Goodwin described in her book “Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln” as Lincoln’s “lifelong tendency to consider all sides of a troubled situation.”[i]
    Whether it was nominating rivals to

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    Continue Reading How to Engage on Polarizing Issues This National Civility Month

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    Photo credit: Carla Bender
    Our Professionalism Spotlight series highlights Illinois legal professionals who demonstrate the ideals of professionalism in their careers.
    In this Professionalism Spotlight, we spoke to Carla Bender, Fourth District Appellate Court Clerk.
    In this role, Carla oversees the court’s administrative operations, including case processing, records management, scheduling, and case assignments, and serves as a liaison between the justices, attorneys, and the public. She manages the full lifecycle of civil and criminal appeals.
    Earlier in her career, Carla was a paralegal, probation officer and later a field coordinator in the Probation Division of the Administrative Office of Illinois Courts, before

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    Continue Reading Professionalism Spotlight: Carla Bender, Fourth District Appellate Court Clerk

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    From August 4 – 6, 2026, the Commission on Professionalism was thrilled to once again coordinate the annual Jumpstart Orientation, a pre-law school preparation program designed to support first-generation students at Illinois law schools.

    The program was created by Judge Ann Claire Williams (Ret.), who served in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. All nine Illinois law schools select students to participate in Jumpstart. In 2026, 90 students attended.

    During the three-day program, students explore the key components of academic success (including class preparation, note-taking, outlining, and exam-writing), learn the interpersonal skills needed to navigate law

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    Continue Reading Commission on Professionalism Welcomes 90 First-Generation Law Students to Annual Jumpstart Orientation, a Pre-Law School Preparation Program

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    Photo credit: iStock.com
    Key points
    • To thrive, legal teams need lawyers with a variety of personality types, but often don’t understand the differences between introverts, extroverts, and everyone in between.
    • Personality differences are primarily related to how you manage your energy, not confidence.
    • Many law school practices and legal workplaces are designed to support the preferences of extroverts.
    • Becoming aware of colleagues’ personality types can create healthier and more effective workplaces that support individual strengths.
    • Although personalities exist on a spectrum, lawyers can benefit from considering specific techniques when working with colleagues with different personality types.

    Picture this: You are

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    Continue Reading Extroverted, Introverted, or in Between? How Lawyers Function Differently in Workplaces

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    Photo credit: iStock.com
    Key points
    • To thrive, legal teams need lawyers with a variety of personality types, but often don’t understand the differences between introverts, extroverts, and everyone in between.
    • Personality differences are primarily related to how you manage your energy, not confidence.
    • Many law school practices and legal workplaces are designed to support the preferences of extroverts.
    • Becoming aware of colleagues’ personality types can create healthier and more effective workplaces that support individual strengths.
    • Although personalities exist on a spectrum, lawyers can benefit from considering specific techniques when working with colleagues with different personality types.

    Picture this: You are

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    Continue Reading Misunderstood Extrovert, Undervalued Introvert, or Exhausted Ambivert? What Personality Really Means in Legal Workplaces

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    Photo credit: iStock.com
    Key takeaways
    • Active listening helps lawyers build trust and better understand clients, witnesses, and colleagues.
    • Questioning assumptions improves decision-making and helps avoid misunderstandings.
    • Creative problem-solving improves when judgment is suspended and ideas are explored before being evaluated.
    • Adaptability and communication help lawyers navigate uncertainty, difficult conversations, and changing circumstances.
    • Human skills like listening, collaboration, creativity, and resilience are essential to effective legal practice.

    The skills that help improv performers set the scene and command a stage can also be used by lawyers to serve clients, work with colleagues, and navigate difficult conversations.
    A recent Chicago Bar Association

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    Continue Reading Five Improv Techniques Lawyers Should Use in Their Practices

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    Photo credit: Illinois Supreme Court
    How would you rate your most recent interaction with the Illinois court system? The Illinois Supreme Court and the Illinois Judicial Conference want to know.
    The Illinois Judicial Branch is requesting feedback from lawyers, their clients, and members of the public about their recent court experiences through the Illinois Circuit Court User Experience Survey.
    The survey is designed for all in-person and remote circuit court users. Users are encouraged to complete the survey each time they visit a courthouse in person or remotely during the survey period. Responses can be recorded regarding experiences in multiple Illinois

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    Continue Reading Lawyers and Court Users – Share Your Feedback About the Illinois Court System!

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    Photo credit: Howard Ankin
    Our Professionalism Spotlight series highlights Illinois legal professionals who demonstrate the ideals of professionalism in their careers.
    In this Professionalism Spotlight, we spoke with Howard Ankin, a partner at Ankin Law, the Chicago-based firm he owns with his father and fellow partner, Paul B. Ankin.
    Howard focuses his practice on plaintiff’s personal injury and petitioner’s workers’ compensation matters.
    Beyond his legal work, he serves on the Board of Directors of Chicago Volunteer Legal Services and is actively involved with the American Association for Justice, Illinois Bar Foundation, Illinois Trial Lawyers Association, and his alma mater, University

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    Continue Reading Professionalism Spotlight: Howard Ankin, Ankin Law

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    Igor Omilaev, Unsplash
    Photo credit: iStock.com
    Key points:
    • AI can now be used to perform many rudimentary legal tasks that lawyers have traditionally performed.
    • Human skills such as relationship building, problem-solving, leadership, and collaboration — which have always been at the heart of good lawyering — are, therefore, becoming increasingly important.
    • While many of these human skills do not come naturally to lawyers, there are steps law students, lawyers, and legal organizations can take to build these skills.
    • To thrive in an AI-equipped legal profession, lawyers must learn to thoughtfully harness the capabilities of AI while ensuring the human dimensions of lawyering are

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    Continue Reading Thriving with AI: Why the Future of Law Is Still Deeply Human