Illinois Supreme Court justice vacancy (July 2022)
| Illinois Supreme Court |
|---|
 |
| Garman vacancy |
| Date: July 7, 2022 |
| Status: Seat filled |
| Nomination |
| Nominee: Lisa Holder White |
| Date: May 10, 2022 |
The Illinois Supreme Court selected Lisa Holder White to the supreme court on May 10, 2022. She assumed office on July 7, 2022.[1] Holder White succeeded Justice Rita Garman, who retired on July 7, 2022.[2]
As of Garman's retirement, the Illinois Supreme Court was responsible for appointing an interim judge in the event of a midterm vacancy under Illinois law. The law stated that the interim judge was to serve until the next primary election occurring at least 60 days after their appointment, at which point the judge must run in a partisan election to remain on the court. Because Garman's vacancy was set to occur after the 2022 primary election, Holder White will serve until the 2024 election.
Ballotpedia has compiled the following resources on the process to fill the Illinois Supreme Court vacancy:
- An overview of the appointee.
- An overview of the selection process.
- An overview of the court following the vacancy.
- An overview of the justice who left office.
- A list of other state supreme court appointments in 2022.
The appointee
- See also: Lisa Holder White
The Illinois Supreme Court selected Lisa Holder White to replace Justice Garman on May 10, 2022. Upon commencing her term on July 7, Holder White became the first Black woman to serve on the Illinois Supreme Court.
Holder White served as an appellate judge on the Illinois Appellate Court, Fourth District, and an associate judge and circuit judge on the Sixth Judicial Circuit. Before becoming a judge, she worked as an assistant state's attorney for Macon County and was in private practice.[3]
She earned a bachelor's degree in political science, magna cum laude, from Lewis University in 1990 and a J.D. from the University of Illinois College of Law in 1993.[3]
The selection process
- See also: Judicial selection in Illinois
As of May 2022, Illinois used the following judicial selection process:
The Illinois Supreme Court was responsible for appointing an interim judge in the event of a midterm vacancy. The interim judge served until the next primary election occurring at least 60 days after their appointment, at which point the judge had to run in a partisan election to remain on the court.[4]
Illinois Supreme Court justices were selected by popular vote in partisan elections and served 10-year terms, after which they had to stand for reelection in uncontested, nonpartisan retention elections to remain on the court.[4]
Unlike most states, supreme court justices in Illinois were elected to represent specific districts. The seven justices were divided among five districts (three allocated to Cook County and the others divided evenly among the other four districts) and were voted into office by the residents of their respective regions. The only other states that used a similar system were Kentucky, Louisiana, and Mississippi.[4]
Makeup of the court
- See also: Illinois Supreme Court
Justices
Following Garman's retirement, the Illinois Supreme Court included the following members:
| ■ P. Scott Neville (D) | Appointed by the Illinois Supreme Court in 2018 | |
| ■ Mary Jane Theis (D) | Appointed by the Illinois Supreme Court in 2010 | |
| ■ Anne M. Burke (D) | Appointed by the Illinois Supreme Court in 2006 | |
| ■ David K. Overstreet (R) | Elected in 2020 | |
| ■ Michael Burke (R) | Appointed by the Illinois Supreme Court in 2020 | |
| ■ Robert Carter (D) | Appointed by the Illinois Supreme Court in 2020 |
About the court
Founded in 1818, the Illinois Supreme Court is the state's highest court and has seven judgeships. The current chief of the court is Mary Jane Theis.
As of December 2022, five judges on the court were Democrats and two judges were Republicans.
The court meets in the Illinois Supreme Court Building in Springfield, Illinois on the second Monday in September, November, January, March, and May.[5]
In Illinois, state supreme court justices are elected in partisan elections. There are eight states that use this selection method. To read more about the partisan election of judges, click here.
About Justice Garman
- See also: Rita Garman
The Illinois Supreme Court appointed Justice Garman to the court on February 1, 2001, to replace retiring Justice Ben Miller. Garman was elected to the court in 2002 and retained in 2012.
Prior to her appointment to the supreme court, Garman was a judge on the Illinois Appellate Court, Fourth Circuit, from 1995 to 2001. She also served as an associate circuit judge and circuit judge in the Fifth Judicial Circuit. Before becoming a judge, Garman worked as an assistant state's attorney and was in private practice with Sebat, Swanson, Banks, Lessen & Garman.[6]
Garman earned a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Illinois in 1965 and a J.D. from the University of Iowa College of Law in 1968.[6]
Other state supreme court appointments in 2022
- See also: State supreme court vacancies, 2022
The following table lists vacancies on state supreme courts that opened in 2022. Click the link under the Court column for a particular vacancy for more information on that vacancy.
Click here for vacancies that opened in 2021.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Chicago Sun Times, "Lisa Holder White sworn in as first Black woman on state Supreme Court: ‘We need not limit our dreams or settle for less’," July 7, 2022
- ↑ Commercial-News, "Garman to retire from state Supreme Court," May 9, 2022
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Illinois Courts, "Holder White, Lisa," accessed May 11, 2022
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Illinois," archived October 2, 2014
- ↑ Illinois Courts, "Supreme Court," accessed September 8, 2021
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Illinois Courts, "Meet the Illinois Supreme Court Justices," archived May 9, 2022
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Federal courts:
Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Central District of Illinois, Northern District of Illinois, Southern District of Illinois • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Central District of Illinois, Northern District of Illinois, Southern District of Illinois
State courts:
Illinois Supreme Court • Illinois Appellate Court • Illinois Circuit Court
State resources:
Courts in Illinois • Illinois judicial elections • Judicial selection in Illinois
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