Appellate Lawyers Association of Illinois

06/01/2026

Such a strong turnout last week at our 5th District Appellate Roundtable Luncheon! Thank you to everyone who joined us and contributed to the thoughtful discussions.

05/11/2026

The Appellate Lawyers Association of Illinois Cordially Invites You to Attend Its:

Annual Meeting and Installation Program Installation Luncheon of Kimberly Glasford as ALA President

The Appellate Lawyers Association is pleased to announce its in-person Installation Ceremony of Kimberly Glasford as the 59th President of the Association. The ALA’s Nominating Committee will also present the following slate of officers and directors for election at the meeting:

Officers (2026-2027):
Vice President: Amanda Hamilton
Secretary: Brad Jarka
Treasurer: John Gabala

Directors (2026-2028)
Director (1st Dist.): Nancy Jack
Director (1st Dist.): Maggie Heim
Director (1st Dist.): Garson Fischer
Director (1st Dist.): Adam Decker

Location: Union League Club of Chicago, 65 West Jackson Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois. Please note the Union League Club enforces a dress code, which can be accessed here.

Cost: $50 for public-sector ALA members; $60 for private-sector ALA members; $65 for public-sector nonmembers; and $75 for private-sector nonmembers. Lunch is included.

Questions? Call (630) 599-7103 or email [email protected].

Register: https://applawyers.org/event-6661291

Cancellations/Refunds: Cancellations must be received two business days prior to the event in order to receive a full refund. No refunds will be processed after this time. Cancellations must be in writing and may be submitted to [email protected]. Additionally, payment is expected from no-shows.

©2019 by Appellate Lawyers Association. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

04/27/2026

Our Moot Court Committee would like to welcome ALA members to join in the planning and preparation for the 2026 Donald C. Hudson Memorial Moot Court Competition. Committee membership includes brainstorming and drafting the problem and bench memorandum, working with venues and sponsors, and attending the competition on November 6 and 7 to make sure it runs smoothly.
If you are interested in joining (or just interested in coming to a committee meeting to see if you're interested) please fill out the following Google Form by Monday, May 4, 2026:

04/26/2026

The Appellate Lawyers Association of Illinois (ALA) Cordially Invites You to Attend our Virtual Program:

Trends in the Supreme Court

Please join us to hear experienced Supreme Court advocate and legal scholar Neal Katyal discuss recent trends in the United States Supreme Court’s decisions. Mr. Katyal is a partner at Milbank LLP and serves as the Paul and Patricia Saunders Professor of National Security Law at Georgetown University Law Center. Previously, he served as Principal Deputy Solicitor General of the United States and Acting Solicitor General of the United States.

Co-sponsored by: Ottosen DiNolfo Hasenbalg & Castaldo, Ltd. / Court Surety Bond Agency

Location: Zoom

Cost: $25 for ALA members; $50 for nonmembers

CLE Credit: Participants will earn 1.0 credit for this event. The ALA is an approved MCLE provider.

Questions? Call Christine Kowal at (630) 599-7103 or email [email protected]

Register: https://applawyers.org/event-6539910

Questions? Call (630) 599-7103 or email [email protected].

Cancellations/Refunds: Cancellations must be received within two business days prior to the program in order to receive a full refund. No refunds will be processed after this time. Cancellations must be in writing and may be submitted to [email protected]. Additionally, payment is expected from no-shows.

©2019 by Appellate Lawyers Association. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

04/22/2026

The Appellate Lawyers Association of Illinois Cordially Invites You to Attend our: Fifth District Roundtable Appellate Court Luncheon

Please join us for our annual roundtable luncheon with the Justices of the Illinois Appellate Court, Fifth Judicial District. Following the lunch, the ALA will present a panel with the Justices of the Fifth District.

Sponsored by: Counsel Press

Date: Thursday, May 28, 2026

Time: 12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Location: Mitchell Museum at Cedarhurst, 2600 E. Richview Rd, Mount Vernon, IL

Cost: $50 for public-sector ALA members; $60 for private-sector ALA members; $65 for public-sector nonmembers; $75 for private-sector nonmembers. Lunch is included.

CLE Credit: Participants will earn 1.0 credit for this event. The ALA is an approved MCLE provider.

Questions? Contact Christine Kowal at [email protected]

Register: https://applawyers.org/event-6647496

Cancellations/Refunds: Cancellations must be received two business days prior to the event in order to receive a full refund. No refunds will be processed after this time. Cancellations must be in writing and may be submitted to [email protected]. Additionally, payment is expected from no-shows.

©2019 by Appellate Lawyers Association. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

04/13/2026

Last week, the Appellate Lawyers Association of Illinois hosted our annual Justices of the Illinois Supreme Court Roundtable at the Union League Club.
Thank you to the Justices and our members for candid, thoughtful, and engaging discussions.

04/06/2026

The Appellate Lawyers Association of Illinois (ALA)
Cordially Invites You to Attend our:

Judges of the United States Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit Roundtable

Please join us for our annual in-person, roundtable luncheon with the Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit at the Union League Club of Chicago. Numbers permitting, the ALA will seat at least one judge at each table.

Sponsored by: COUNSEL PRESS / PROCEED

Date: Tuesday, April 21, 2026

Time: 12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Location: Union League Club of Chicago, 65 West Jackson Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois. Please note the Union League Club enforces a dress code, which can be accessed here.

Cost: $50 for public-sector ALA members; $60 for private-sector ALA members; $65 for public-sector nonmembers; and $75 for private-sector nonmembers. Lunch is included.

CLE Credit: Participants will earn 1.0 credit for this event. The ALA is an approved MCLE provider.

Register: https://applawyers.org/event-6536257

Questions? Call (630) 599-7103 or email [email protected].

©2019 by Appellate Lawyers Association. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

03/16/2026

The Appellate Lawyers Association of Illinois (ALA) Cordially Invites You to Attend our:

Justices of the Illinois Supreme Court Roundtable

Please join us for our annual roundtable luncheon with the Justices of the Supreme Court of Illinois, at the Union League Club of Chicago. We will open with remarks by ALA President Seth Horvath and Illinois Supreme Court Chief Justice Scott P. Neville, Jr., followed by lunch and conversation with and among the justices and other ALA members. Numbers permitting, the ALA will seat at least one justice at each table.

Please note that registration is required, and attendance is limited. Table and justice assignments will be random.

Date: Friday, April 10, 2026

Time: 12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Location: Union League Club of Chicago, 65 West Jackson Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois. Please note the Union League Club enforces a dress code, which can be accessed here.

Cost: $50 for public-sector ALA members; $60 for private-sector ALA members; $65 for public-sector nonmembers; and $75 for private-sector nonmembers. Lunch is included.

CLE Credit: Participants will earn 1.0 credit for this event. The ALA is an approved MCLE provider.

Register: https://applawyers.org/event-6498847

Questions? Call (630) 599-7103 or email [email protected].

Cancellations/Refunds: Cancellations must be received within two business days prior to the program in order to receive a full refund. No refunds will be processed after this time. Cancellations must be in writing and may be submitted to [email protected]. Additionally, payment is expected from no-shows.

©2019 by Appellate Lawyers Association. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

02/27/2026

The Appellate Lawyers Association of Illinois (ALA) Cordially Invites You to Attend our Virtual Program on:

The Shadow Docket: How the Supreme Court Uses Stealth Rulings to Amass Power and Undermine the Republic

The Supreme Court has always had the authority to issue emergency rulings in exceptional circumstances. But since 2017, the Court has dramatically expanded its use of the behind-the-scenes “shadow docket” to resolve certain issues, on an accelerated time frame, without full briefing, oral arguments, or signed majority opinions.

Join us for an engaging event featuring Stephen I. Vladeck, Agnes Williams Sesquicentennial Professor of Federal Courts at Georgetown Law, as he shares his insights on the Court’s increasingly frequent use of this practice.

Date: Wednesday, March 25, 2026

Time: 12:00 to 1:00 p.m.

Location: Online. You will receive a Microsoft Teams link via email after registering for this event. (Please note only speakers will be visible, so participants need not dress formally for this event.)

Cost: Free for ALA members and $25 for non-members.

CLE Credit: Participants will earn 1.0 hour of credit for this event. The ALA is an approved MCLE provider.

Questions? Email Christine Kowal at [email protected].

Register: https://applawyers.org/event-6534392

02/26/2026

🚨 Fresh Insights on Illinois Appellate Practice 🚨
The Appellate Lawyers Association of Illinois has a blog highlighting timely issues, developments, and perspectives shaping practice in the courts of review. Whether you’re a seasoned appellate lawyer, a trial attorney handling appeals, or simply interested in how Illinois law continues to evolve, our blog is worth your time.
👉 Read the latest post here:

The Appellate Court is normally a court of review. But in some limited instances, the law requires parties to go straight to the Appellate Court, skipping the Circuit Court altogether. See Ill. Const. art. VI, § 6 (“The Appellate Court may exercise original jurisdiction when necessary to the comp...