Kristen Marie Lyons
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Kristen Marie Lyons (Democratic Party) ran for election for the 7th Subcircuit judge of the Cook County Judicial Circuit Court in Illinois. She lost in the Democratic primary on March 17, 2020.
Lyons completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Kristen Marie Lyons was born in Chicago, Illinois. She earned a bachelor’s degree from St. Mary's University in 2000 and a law degree from the John Marshall Law School in 2004. Lyons’s career experience includes working as an attorney, including as the owner and principal of the Law Office of Kristen M. Kozlowski. Lyons has served as President, Vice President, and Treasurer of the Advocates Society, which describes itself as “an association of Polish-American attorneys” in Chicago.[1][2]
Elections
2020
See also: Municipal elections in Cook County, Illinois (2020)
General election
Democratic primary election
2020
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Kristen Marie Lyons completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Lyons' responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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Kristen Marie Lyons is a "qualified" judge candidate per the Chicago Bar Association has practiced law for over 15 years and is ready to bring her diverse experience to the bench. An attorney for both the plaintiff and defendant, private practice and municipalities, large and small law firms, LYONS has done numerous bench trials, over 35 jury trials, over 200 arbitrations and thousands of court proceedings. At some point in her career LYONS has been in every Cook County courthouse practicing as an attorney and numerous other counties all across Illinois. LYONS has daily interaction with judges, fellow lawyers, clients and the public all while maintaining an excellent demeanor of respect.
- When cases come before judges they should be treated like the only case they have at that moment because to that litigant and at that time, that is their only case
- Legal ability, experiance, compassion and common sense are qualities that need to be present in our judiciary
- Decisions made by judges effect not only the litigant but their families, friends and communities and that is why it matters who wears the robe.
As a lawyer running for judge to comment on public policy is not appropriate but I can declare that elected as a judge I promise to be fair, non bias, and listen to the people who appear before me and what they say about their particular case and details of their case.
As a child I always looked up to famous sports figures or movie stars with the wealth and glamour. As I got older and wiser, I realized all that fame and fortune did not matter and simple humble people like my dad and his family are the real role models and citizens to look up to. Born in 1939, the second youngest out of nine kids, my dad had to work most of his life and did not have much, but he had faith, a love for country and family. My dad enlisted in the Navy and he tells stories of his adventures in the Pacific bulding roads, runways and bridges for our military. He then returned to Chicago where he got a job as a Chicago Police Officer and worked the walking beat on Wabash AVenue on the southside. He then was a "wagon man" for CPD and his responsibilites were picking up dead bodies, transporting large numbers of prisoners and other tasks most did not want to do. My dad never complained, he did his job and did it well. He was never caught up in the quest for glamour or fame, he was a simple man. I see now that life is not about fame and fortune but about what he always had, faith, family and knowing that if you do a job well you can go home each night proud of what you did, not matter what your job is. I try to follow my dad's example, do the job well, be faithful and do not boast and that will be enough to sustain you each day.
"To Kill a Mockingbird" is a novel that has two major themes, judgment and justice and how to navigate the world to have both seen in our society. Set in 1930's Alabama, some may say that the injustice shown in the book is no longer in our society, but I disagree. Injustice, bias, being judgmential and racism is still a major part of society and I am aware of these unfortunate bias which I feel will make me a better judge because I am aware.
Anything worthwhile is achieved only by hard work.
I am intitled to nothing and the world owes me nothing.
These are two statements I identify with greatly, I work hard and do not look to others to do what I can do myself. This attitude will serve me well in life and career and taking this outlook into office/bench will make me successful. I had just turned 7 years old and was excited like many school children to watch the Challenger go into space with a teacher and the others. In 1986 when this occured it was the first devistation, pain, and historicial event that occured all at the same time. Even at that young age, I really felt sorrow for the students of the teacher, the parents, the community, my classmates who witnessed such a horrible event and our country as a whole. Even at that young age I understood the gravity of the situation and the ripple effect it would cause, and still view how each decision, each events effects people. I am always aware of the "ripple" effect.
The summer before 5th grade and only 10 years old I was asked by a neighbor to babysit her daughter a few hours each day. Her daughter was 5 years old and spoke no English. Babysitting for a young child and the inability to communicate was a challenge. By the end of summer I had taught the young neighbor enough English and she was ready to start kindergarden. This very first job I was given great responsibility and had the chance to use my talents and skills to help another, since then I still enjoy this type of work using my talents and skills to help others and improve not only myself but the world around me.
To Kill a Mockingbird - see prior answer
As a Judge you have immense power and influence and the decisions made effect the individual but greater society as a whole. Besides the basic decision making power on law and how they are applied, most people do not realize that judges have the ability to vote for and elect others as an "Associate Judge" in Cook County. 1/3 of the Cook County Judges are selected by this process and the other judges are the only ones who get to vote. So when you elect a Judge not only are you electing them but also giving them power to select future judges as well.
The law is established by legislation and the Court's job is to apply and interpret that law. My philosophy on law is that laws are established to be interpreted but not changed by the Courts.
I admire all the judges that I encounter that say "good morning" when they appear on the bench, have a warm smile on their face when they walk in a courtroom, treat their court staff with respect and take time to listen to the attorneys and litigants who stand before them. You would think this is simple and easy tasks to do on a daily basis, but it is not. Even when someone is having internal struggles and a bad day, when they still do not let those issues effect their interactions with others, that is a judge whom I admire.
YES - Empathy is the ability to sense other people's emotions and coupled with the ability to imagine what someone else might be thinking or feeling. As a Judge you need to be able to identify and understand other people's emotions and feelings and thought process because it then will make you better understand why people make the decisions they make. A judge with no empathy is like a garden with flowers that have no smell, it appears nice but there is nothing behind it.
Yes the Chicago Bar Association (CBA) has found me "qualified" and the Advocates Soceity Bar Association has endorsed me and found me highly qualified
I have been a person of service my whole life and that is why I entered the legal field, to serve others. As a jusge you are a servant to the people on a daily basis. I make a huge impact in my clients lives now as an attorney, as a judge I would be doing this but in an even greater capacity.
No. As a judge your politicial view should not sway you on the bench, your job is to follow the law and interpret the law. Having experiance in government could help but is not necessary. In my campaign I have stated I am a lawyer running for judge, not a politician running for judge.
I have been and now that I am running, my concern is that the average voter does not know who the names are and people running for judge on the ballot. So much attention is given to the national and larger races, but judges, who have a daily impact on the community are an after-thought or just not voted on. This lack of knowledge then puts some persons not qualified into office and on the bench and this inturn effects the legal system. I would support if judge races were done on "off" election cycles and the only considerations for the voters so we have a more informed voter base.
No - I am seeking a Circuit Court position and the higher Courts are not a consideration at this time.
The bar association review process is very detailed and does a good reflection of a persons ability. I did not agree with the review of "not recommended" if the person does not go through the process of review, the final determination should be "not reviewed".
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