In
this e-Newsletter:
A Statement to the Members of the
Chicago Council of Lawyers and Friends of
Chicago Appleseed Fund for
Justice
By Executive Director, Malcolm C.
Rich
I know that you are as
disappointed as I am that judges found unqualified to remain on the
bench by so many bar associations were nonetheless retained in the
November 2006 election. Many people did seek out information about these
judges – voteforjudges.org alone received 900,000 hits and 90,000 pages
were downloaded from the site, and the Council website received about
200,000 hits. However, removing a sitting judge is a daunting task in
light of voter confusion about how to get information about judges,
voter indecision in light of the sheer number of judicial evaluation
results, and the well-funded “vote yes” campaigns sponsored by the
political parties and by the judges themselves.
It is a tradition in
Cook
County to see calls
for changing the way judges are selected – after the election is over
and all the judges have been retained. Yet a recent poll shows that 70%
of the people in
Illinois favor electing
judges, even thought they recognize the problems inherent in a system
that puts hundreds of names on the judicial ballot.
However judges are selected, we need to improve the quality of their
performance once they take the bench. Tens of thousands of people each
year are impacted when their cases are decided by a single judge who
lacks ability and civility. As Executive Director of the Chicago Council
of Lawyers and the Chicago Appleseed Fund for Justice, I suggest we work
on the following goals:
• Convincing Chief Judge Evans to appoint mentors for those judges found
Not Recommended for retention by at least 50% of the bar associations
and newspapers that evaluate judges. This mentoring must be substantial
in terms of time and must be tailored to the weaknesses of the judges.
• Emphasizing that the judges should take to heart the constructive
criticisms were offered, or the compliments they received, in the
evaluation process.
• Urging the administration of the Circuit Court to take judicial
evaluation results into consideration when deciding upon judicial
assignments.
• Having the Chicago Council of Lawyers and Chicago Appleseed develop a
specific proposal for a performance commission that will conduct
professional investigations of judges seeking retention and put the
resulting information before the voters. This will bring more
objectivity, credibility, and professionalism to the process and – we
hope – eventually rid the bench of the worst judges. The performance
commission can either serve as an advisory group – providing the public
with the results of professionally conducted evaluations – or be given
the responsibility of deciding which judges will face the voters (with
only those judges found not recommended for retention placed on the
ballot).
The debate over how to select our judges will continue. We cannot afford
to wait for this debate to resolve itself before attacking a problem
that affects us all, lawyers and non-lawyers alike: how to prevent bad
judges from undermining public confidence in the rule of law. The
Council has convened a Judicial Selection Committee and the Board of
Directors of Chicago Appleseed has begun to discuss alternatives to the
current system of judicial selection and retention.
I invite Council members and friends of Chicago Appleseed to contact me
about how you think we should proceed.
Malcolm C. Rich
Direct Phone: 312-988-6552
Email: malcolmrich@chicagoappleseed.org
The people have spoken: www.voteforjudges.org earns rave
reviews!
www.voteforjudges.org received over 900,000 hits and over
90,000 downloaded pages for the November judicial retention elections.
We’d like to thank the community groups, voter education organizations,
public interest research groups and most of all, the concerned voters of
Cook
County, for their
support in making this happen.
The positive feedback for
www.voteforjudges.org
has been overwhelming! One
Cook
County resident
wrote, “Just a note of thanks for your website. I always feel lost when
I come to the judges portion of the election ballot. Being able to cross
reference recommendations on your website makes me feel more confident
that I am voting according to my values. Your website rocks!”
With the click of a button, visitors to
www.voteforjudges.org found the judicial evaluations and
recommendations of all bar associations and area newspapers in usable,
understandable, and downloadable form. “This site has been very useful.
Thanks again,” stated a
Chicago resident.
The
www.voteforjudges.org
website discusses the rights and responsibilities of voters, with
special emphasis placed on the importance of being knowledgeable about
and participating in the judicial election process, since judges make
rulings that affect all of us. ”I've always been a bit baffled on
Election Day concerning the judges. Not any more! Thanks!” wrote one
concerned voter.
“Thank you--I want to make informed votes,” stated another visitor to
www.voteforjudges.org.
Chicago Appleseed Fund for Justice thanks the voters of
Cook
County for making
www.voteforjudges.org
a huge success for another election season. Chicago Appleseed will
continue this important work in future elections to ensure the voters of
Cook
County have the
information they want and need to make informed decisions and protect
our courts.
20 Years of Service for Executive Director Malcolm C. Rich
Happy Anniversary, Malcolm!
On December 1, Malcolm
C. Rich reached a landmark: twenty years of service as Executive
Director of the Chicago Council of Lawyers and the Fund for Justice (now
Chicago Appleseed Fund for Justice).
"The past twenty years with the Council and the Fund have been a
rewarding challenge," stated Malcolm. "We have seen tremendous growth
and change in both organizations, but our missions remain the same:
striving for the highest possible standards in the administration of
justice, in government effectiveness and in social justice issues. The
two organizations sometimes work together and sometimes work
independently. Both are always seeking systemic reform. I'm proud to be
part of the Council and Chicago Appleseed, and I am inspired as we
continue our work in the years to come."
Congratulations, Malcolm! On behalf of the Council and Chicago Appleseed,
we thank you for your continued hard work, and proudly join in continued
partnership for the future. Here's to twenty more years!