• Source: Illinois State Bar Association

The Illinois State Bar Association (ISBA) is among the largest voluntary state bar associations in the United States. Approximately 28,000 lawyers are members of the ISBA. Unlike some state bar associations, in which membership is mandatory, ISBA membership is not required of lawyers licensed to practice in Illinois and ISBA membership is completely voluntary. The ISBA is headquartered in Springfield, Illinois. It also has an office in Chicago, Illinois.




History


The ISBA was founded on January 4, 1877, at a meeting held in the Sangamon County Courthouse in Springfield, Illinois, attended by 88 lawyers from 37 counties. According to the association’s constitution adopted at that time, the purpose of the association is: [T]o cultivate the science of jurisprudence, to promote reform in the law, to facilitate the administration of justice, to elevate the standard of integrity, honor and courtesy in the legal profession, to encourage a thorough and liberal education, and to cherish a spirit of brotherhood among the members thereof.
This first meeting elected Anthony Thornton as first president of the ISBA. In 1879, the ISBA gained notoriety after it granted honorary membership to Myra Bradwell and Ada Kepley after they were denied admission to the bar on the grounds that they were women. Responding to a request from the Supreme Court of Illinois on how to improve the quality of Illinois lawyers, in 1897 the ISBA and the Chicago Bar Association recommended that the court require lawyers to have at least a high school education; they also recommended creating what would become the Illinois Board of Admissions to the Bar. The Illinois Supreme Court accepted both recommendations.
The ISBA would later lead a crusade against the unauthorized practice of law; in 1931, they brought a suit against People’s Stock Yards State Bank in which they persuaded the Illinois Supreme Court to declare that it had the inherent authority to punish anyone who practiced law without a law license. The ISBA spent decades lobbying for reform of Illinois' civil procedure, and this ultimately paid off in 1933, when the Illinois General Assembly passed the Civil Practice Act of 1933. In 1962, the ISBA led a campaign to change the judicial article of the Illinois Constitution. The ISBA also played a large role in developing the current Illinois Criminal Code (1961) and Illinois Code of Criminal Procedure (1963). In the 1970s and 1980s, the ISBA lobbied successfully to have Illinois adopt a regime of no-fault divorce and for independent administration of decedents' estates. The ISBA also played a role in creating the Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, the Client Security Fund of the Bar of Illinois, the Lawyers’ Assistance Program, and the Lawyers Trust Fund.




Organization and activities


The ISBA is currently divided into 40 substantive law divisions, allowing ISBA members the opportunity to meet other lawyers who practice in the same field. Each section publishes a newsletter to keep its members aware of substantive changes in the field of law. The sections also offer continuing legal education services for members. One of these sections, the Young Lawyers Division, is for lawyers 36 years old and younger, and is designed to give young lawyers an opportunity to meet and discuss issues peculiar to younger practitioners.
The ISBA operates 26 standing committees and several special committees, councils, and task forces created by either the Assembly or the Board of Governors (see below for more information about the Assembly and Board of Governors). Each committee consists mainly of members appointed by the ISBA president. These committees study issues facing the legal community and make recommendations to the ISBA Assembly. The association sponsors a number of online and print publications, including: the Illinois Bar Journal, dozens of section newsletters, the Illinois Courts Bulletin, and its blog Illinois Lawyer Now. Members also receive E-Clips, a daily email newsletter summarizing legal news and case updates.
Other ISBA highlights include:

Member benefits, including: Fastcase online legal research service, On-Demand online CLE courses, automated legal form builder IllinoisBarDocs, an online Career Center, an online Lawyer Referral Service, meeting space in its Chicago and Springfield offices, and the ability to purchase malpractice insurance through the ISBA Mutual Insurance Company.
Legal resources for the public, including: consumer guides covering dozens of legal issues and an online lawyer search tool called IllinoisLawyerFinder.
Awards recognizing professional achievement in the legal profession, the most prestigious of which is the ISBA Laureate Award. The Illinois State Bar Association’s Academy of Illinois Lawyers was founded in 1999 to recognize those who personify excellence in the legal profession. The Laureate Award, the Academy’s highest honor, is awarded to those deemed to exemplify the highest ideals of the profession.
Its charitable wing, the Illinois Bar Foundation that promotes pro bono work and other legal work in the public interest. The association also administers the annual ISBA High School Mock Trial Invitational, a mock trial tournament for high school students, with the winning team representing Illinois at the National High School Mock Trial Championship.
The ISBA's supreme policy making body is the ISBA Assembly. The Assembly has 203 lawyer members elected on a pro rata basis from the judicial circuits. The Assembly routinely meets twice a year. It has taken positions on a number of important matters, including repeal of the death penalty in Illinois, support of civil unions, and support of U.S. ratification of the convention to Eliminate All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). Between meetings of the Assembly, the ISBA is governed by a 27-member Board of Governors, which oversees the operations and management of ISBA and is subject to policies set by the 203-member Assembly. The Board of Governors is headed by the president of the ISBA. The president is elected by the Assembly.




List of presidents of the ISBA



Anthony Thornton, Shelbyville, 1877-1879
David McCulloch, Peoria, 1880
Orville Hickman Browning, Quincy, 1881
Elijah B. Sherman, Chicago 1881
Charles C. Bonney, Chicago, 1882
William L. Gross, Springfield, 1883
David Davis, Bloomington, 1884
Benjamin S. Edwards, Springfield, 1885
Melville Fuller, Chicago, 1886
E. B. Green, Mount Carmel, 1887
Thomas Dent, Chicago, 1888
Ethelbert Callahan, Robinson, 1889
James B. Bradwell, Chicago, 1890
James M. Riggs, Winchester, 1891
Lyman Trumbull, Chicago, 1892
Samuel P. Wheeler, Springfield, 1893
Elliott Anthony, Chicago, 1894
Oliver H. Harker, Carbondale, 1895
John H. Hamline, Chicago, 1896-1897
Alfred Orendorff, Springfield, 1897-1898
Harvey B. Hurd, Chicago, 1898-1899
Benson Wood, Effingham, 1899-1900
Jessie Holdom, Chicago, 1900-1901
John Sanborn Stevens, Peoria, 1901-1902
Murray F. Tuley, Chicago, 1902-1903
Charles L. Capen, Bloomington, 1903-1904
Stephen S. Gregory, Chicago, 1904-1905
George True Page, Peoria, 1905-1906
Harrison Musgrave, Chicago, 1906-1907
James H. Matheny, Springfield, 1907-1908
E. P. Williams, Galesburg, 1908-1909
Edgar A. Bancroft, Chicago, 1909-1910
William R. Curran, Pekin, 1910-1911
Horace K. Tenney, Chicago, 1911-1912
Harry Higbee, Pittsfield, 1912-1913
Robert McMurdy, Chicago, 1913-1914
Edward C. Kramer, East St. Louis, 1914-1915
Nathan William MacChesney, Chicago, 1915-1916
Albert D. Early, Rockford, 1916-1917
Edgar Bronson Tolman, Chicago, 1917-1918
Walter M. Provine, Taylorville, 1918-1919
Frederick A. Brown, Chicago, 1919-1920
Logan Hay, Springfield, 1920-1921
Silas H. Strawn, Chicago, 1921-1922
Bruce A. Campbell, East St. Louis, 1922-1923
Roger Sherman, Chicago, 1923-1924
C.M. Clay Buntain, Kankakee, 1924-1925
John R. Montgomery, Chicago, 1925-1926
George H. Wilson, Quincy, 1926-1927
Rush C. Butler, Chicago, 1927-1928
Franklin L. Velde, Pekin, 1928-1929
John D. Black, Chicago, 1929-1930
Clarence W. Heyl, Peoria, 1930-1931
Amos C. Miller, Chicago, 1931-1932
June C. Smith, Centralia, 1932-1933
Floyd E. Thompson, Chicago, 1933-1934
James S. Baldwin, Decatur, 1934-1935
Charles P. Megan, Chicago, 1935-1936
Cairo A. Trimble, Princeton, 1936-1937
John F. Voigt, Chicago, 1937-1938
William D. Knight, Rockford, 1938-1939
Charles O. Rundall, Chicago, 1939-1940
Albert J. Harno, Urbana, 1940-1941
Benjamin Wham, Chicago, 1941-1942
Clarence W. Diver, Waukegan, 1942-1943
Warren B. Buckley, Chicago, 1943-1944
Henry C. Warner, Dixon, 1944-1945
Tappan Gregory, Chicago, 1945-1946
Kaywin Kennedy, Bloomington, 1946-1947
William M. James, Chicago, 1947-1948
Amos H. Robillard, Kankakee, 1948-1949
Albert E. Jenner, Jr., Chicago, 1949-1950
Aubrey L. Yantis, Shelbyville, 1950-1951
Joseph H. Hinshaw, Chicago, 1951-1952
Thomas J. Welch, Kewanee, 1952-1953
Timothy I. McKnight, Chicago, 1953-1954
Karl C. Williams, Rockford, 1954-1955
Thomas S. Edmonds, Chicago, 1955-1956
James G. Thomas, Champaign, 1956-1957
Barnabas F. Sears, Chicago, 1957-1958
Timothy W. Swain, Peoria, 1958-1959
David J. A. Hayes, Chicago, 1959 (died in office)
Gerald C. Snyder, Waukegan, 1959-1960
Edward B. Love, Monmouth, 1960-1961
Owen Rall, Chicago, 1961-1962
Mason Bull, Morrison, 1962-1963
Horace A. Young, Chicago, 1963-1964
Stanford S. Meyer, Belleville, 1964-1965
Peter Fitzpatrick, Chicago, 1965-1966
Russell N. Sullivan, Champaign, 1966-1967
Stanton L. Ehrlich, Chicago, 1967-1968
Alfred Younges Kirkland, Sr., Elgin, 1968-1969
Henry L. Pitts, Chicago, 1969-1970
H. Ogden Brainard, Charleston, 1970-1971
Morton John Barnard, Chicago, 1971-1972
Lyle W. Allen, Peoria, 1972-1973
William P. Sutter, Chicago, 1973-1974
John R. Mackay, Wheaton, 1974-1975
Lawrence X. Pusateri, Chicago, 1975-1976 (resigned Jan. 2, 1976 to run for Supreme Court of Illinois)
Francis J. Householter, Kankakee, 1976-1977 (served as president pro tem for remainder of Pusateri's term before being elected to his own term)
Carole Bellows, Chicago, 1977-1978
Lloyd J. Tyler, Aurora, 1978-1979
John C. Mullen, Chicago, 1979-1980
Robert G. Heckenkamp, Springfield, 1980-1981
Michel A. Coccia, Chicago, 1981-1982
John C. Feirich, Carbondale, 1982-1983
Al Hofeld, Chicago, 1983-1984
Jon W. DeMoss, Springfield, 1984-1985
Fred Lane, Chicago, 1985-1986
Richard L. Thies, Urbana, 1986-1987
Donald C. Schiller, Chicago, 1987-1988
Jerome Mirza, Chicago/Bloomington, 1983-1989
Leonard F. Amari, Chicago, 1989-1990
Maurice E. Bone, Belleville, 1990-1991
Thomas A. Clancy, Chicago, 1991-1992
Peter H. Lousberg, Rock Island, 1992-1993
Tom Leahy, Chicago, 1993-1994
David A. Decker, Waukegan, 1994-1995
Terrence K. Hegarty, Chicago, 1995-1996
Ralph A. Gabric, Wheaton, 1996-1997
Todd A. Smith, Chicago, 1997-1998
Timothy L. Bertschy, Peoria, 1998-1999
Cheryl Niro, Chicago, 1999-2000
Herbert H. Franks, Marengo, 2000-2001
J. Timothy Eaton, Chicago, 2001-2002
Loren S. Golden, Elgin, 2002-2003
Terrance J. Lavin, Chicago, 2003-2004
Ole Bly Pace, Sterling, 2004-2005
Robert K. Downs, Chicago, 2005-2006
Irene F. Bahr, Wheaton, 2006-2007
Joseph G. Bisceglia, Chicago, 2007-2008
Jack C. Carey, Belleville, 2008-2009
John G. O'Brien, Arlington Heights, 2009-2010
Mark D. Hassakis, Mt. Vernon, 2010-2011
John G. Locallo, Chicago, 2011-2012
John E. Thies, Urbana, 2012-2013
Paula H. Holderman, Chicago, 2013–2014
Richard D. Felice, Wheaton, 2014–2015
Umberto S. Davi, Western Springs, 2015–2016
Vincent F. Cornelius, Wheaton, 2016–2017
Hon. Russell W. Hartigan, Western Springs, 2017–2018
Hon. James F. McCluskey, Lisle, 2018–2019
David B. Sosin, Orland Park, 2019-2020
Dennis J. Orsey, Granite City, 2020-2021
Anna P. Krolikowska, Northbrook, 2021-2022
Rory T. Weiler, St. Charles, 2022-2023
Shawn S. Kasserman, Chicago, 2023-2024
Sonni Choi Williams, Lockport, 2024-2025




References



General
Illinois State Bar Association website
Illinois Bar Foundation website
ISBA Laureate Award
Illinois Lawyer Now blog
ISBA’s consumer website

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