2008 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE ILLINOIS COURTS Administrative Summary 2008 admin report_14dec.indd 1 12/14/2009 5:54:23 PM THE JUSTICES OF THE SUPREME COURT OF ILLINOIS Left to Right: Justice Lloyd A. Karmeier, Justice Thomas L. Kilbride, Justice Charles E. Freeman, Chief Justice Thomas R. Fitzgerald, Justice Robert R. Thomas, Justice Rita B. Garman, Justice Anne M. Burke. 2008 admin report_14dec.indd 2 12/14/2009 5:54:29 PM TABLE OF CONTENTS LetterTABLE of Transmittal ....................................................................................................OF CONTENTS 1 A Message from the Chief Justice ............................................................................. 2-3 Letter of Transmittal.....................................................................................1 Centennial Celebration .............................................................................................. 4-5 A Message from the Chief Justice ..............................................................2-3 Annual Report of the Chief Justice Annual Report of the Chief Justice to the Ninety-Sixth General Assembly ........................................................... 6-11 to the Ninety-Fifth General Assembly ....................................................4-9 CourtCourt Funding Funding.......................................................................................10-11 ....................................................................................................... 12-13 CourtCourt Operations Operations. ................................................................................................... ..................................................................................12-1314-15 The TheJustices Justices of the of Supreme the Supreme Court Court.........................................................14-15 ........................................................................ 16-17 Supreme Court Support Staff .....................................................................16 Supreme Court Support Staff ..................................................................................... 18 Supreme Court Committees ........................................................................17 Supreme Court Committees........................................................................................ 19 Judicial Conference Committee Activities ...............................................18-19 Judicial Conference Committee Activities .............................................................. 20-21 Appellate Court.....................................................................................20-25 AppellateCircuit Court Courts .................................................................................................... .......................................................................................26-4522-27 CircuitAdministrative Courts ....................................................................................................... Office .............................................................................46-5228-47 Administrative Office ............................................................................................. 48-53 The 2007 census population estimates were not available for this publication. Therefore, the 2006 estimates were used. The 2008 Census population estimates were not available for this publication. Therefore, the 2007 estimates were used. Cover Design: Inside the Illinois Supreme Court, Springfield, Illinois. The murals within the courtroom were completed in 1911 by Albert H. Krehbiel and depict the “Origin, Function, and Continuity of Law” using allegorical and mythological figures. Mr.W. Carby Zimmerman, architect of the Supreme Court Building, considered the work to be an “example of the best mural painting ever executed in the West.” (information source: www.krehbielart.com) Cover photos provided by Daniels-Ackerman Photography. Contents PrintedPrinted by by Authority Authority of of the the State State of Illinois 12-09/300/PR09-181806-08/300/PO081722 of Table of Contents 2007 Annual Report � SUPREME COURT OF ILLINOIS � Administrative Summary Table 2008 Annual Report • SUPREME COURT OF ILLINOIS • Administrative Summary 2008 admin report_14dec.indd 3 12/14/2009 5:54:30 PM 2008 admin report_14dec.indd 4 12/14/2009 5:54:32 PM LETTERDirector’s OF Letter TRANSMI of Transmittal TTAL I am pleased to offer the 2008 Annual Report of the Illinois Courts. The Report includes the 2008 projects of the Illinois Judicial Branch, including the Annual Meeting of the Illinois Judicial Conference; the work and activities of the Supreme Court’s various Committees; and the initiatives pursued by the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts. In an era of heightened public expectations for transparency in government, the Annual Report includes an overview of 2008 state andam local pleased funding to offersources the for 2008 the AnnualIllinois judicialReport branchof the Illinois as well Courts. as court-by-court caseload statistics. ThisThe annual Report report includes provides the an 2008 informative projects and of useful the Illinoissnapshot Judicial of Illinois' court system. We striveI to Branch, make theincluding judicial thebranch Annual of government Meeting ofaccountable the Illinois and Judicial visible to the citizens of Illinois. Conference;Providing information the work onand the activities work of of every the Supremelevel of our Court’s court various system is an important componentCommittees; of that goal. and the initiatives pursued by the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts. The Administrative Office gratefully acknowledges the clerks of the supreme, appellate, and circuit In an era of heightened public expectations for transparency in courts for their invaluable assistance in the compilation of the statistical data and information government, the Annual Report includes an overview of 2008 state contained herein. I wish to expressand localgratitude funding to my sources staff andfor theto allIllinois who judicialcontributed branch to theas well as development of the Annual Report.court-by-court As you will caseloadsee by the statistics. quality and This content Annual contained Report in providesthis an report, the Illinois Judiciary remainsinformative steadfast in and its commitment useful snapshot to justice of Illinois’ and service court to system.the citizens We strive of Illinois. to make the judicial branch of government accountable and visible to the citizens of Illinois. Providing information on the work of every In closing, I invite you to visit the levelCourt's of websiteour court at systemwww.state.il.us/court is an important for component further information of that goal. about the Illinois courts and the Administrative Office. The website is an ever expanding resource for Illinois and for our court constituents.The Administrative Office gratefully acknowledges the clerks of the Cynthia Y. Cobbs supreme, appellate, and circuit courts for their invaluable assistance Director in the compilation of the statistical data and information contained herein. I wish to express gratitude to my staff and to all who Sincerely,contributed to the development of the Annual Report. As you will see by the quality and content contained in this Report, the Illinois Judiciary remains steadfast in its commitment to justice and service to the citizens of Illinois. In closing, I invite you to visit the Court’s website at www.state.il.us/court for further information about the Illinois courts and the Administrative Office. The website is an ever expanding resource Cynthiafor Illinois Y. Cobbs, and for Director our court constituents. Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts Sincerely, Cynthia Y. Cobbs, Director Transmittal Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts of Letter 2008 Annual Report • SUPREME COURT OF ILLINOIS • Administrative Summary 2008 admin report_14dec.indd 1 12/14/2009 5:54:34 PM A MESSAGE FROM CHIEF JUSTICE THOMAS R. FITZGERALD he judicial branch of government is a vital and and social policy makers agree that while students’ essential component of our constitutionally competence in math and science should be encouraged, T created democracy. In order that our way of so too should an understanding of the function of government is strengthened and sustained, we must government in a democratic society. The duty to teach be vigilant in our efforts to ensure the public’s trust students about government rests not exclusively with and confidence in our courts and in our legal system. the schools, but is a shared responsibility which should Reflected on the pages that follow is a brief summary include, most particularly, those institutions which are of the work undertaken by the Illinois courts in our the symbols of that government. continuing interest to achieve that goal. On behalf of In April, in conjunction with the commemoration the Supreme Court of Illinois, I am pleased to present of Law Day 2008, the Court announced a new feature the 2008 Annual Report of the Illinois Courts. on its website, the Student Learning Center, designed to In 2008 we improved upon some of our ongoing increase awareness of how Illinois government works and initiatives and brought to life some others which had to demonstrate the interrelationship between the three been in the planning stages. Eight years ago, in 2000, and branches. The Center features an animated character, in every two years after, the