The Judicial Performance Commission of Cook County

The Chicago Appleseed Fund for Justice provides an independent research team of paid staff, interns and volunteers to collect and present data to the Commission for use in evaluating the judges. The Judicial Performance Commission is an independent body of Chicago-area professionals committed to improving the quality of Cook County’s courts by combining objective data with constructive feedback.  Commission members are drawn from various legal, educational and social institutions in Cook County. They serve as a board of directors, overseeing and governing the operations, but not influencing the research results.

Chicago Appleseed, with the cooperation of the Chief Judge and the Clerk of the Court, uses docket information to identify attorneys with recent experience in the courtrooms of judicial retention candidates and distribute anonymous web-based survey to those attorneys. Chicago Appleseed also conducts confidential interviews with attorneys, as well as supervising judges. Court-watching and research into local news media rounds out the data collection.

Although the reports of the JPC are timed to the retention election cycle, the JPC is not primarily a voter education body. Rather the JPC functions as citizen oversight to the court system, presenting reports about the performance of sitting judges to the judges themselves, as well as their presiding judges, supervising judges and the Chief Judge. The JPC releases the reports to the public in advance of the election as well, but the goal of the JPC is not to influence the retention election as much as it is to spur the judiciary toward self-improvement by identifying  issues reported by attorneys practicing in their courtrooms. Rather than issue voter recommendations, the JPC will release evaluations that list strengths and weaknesses reported in interviews and surveys. After the evaluations are shared with each judge, his or her presiding/supervising judge and the Chief Judge, the evaluations will be made available to the public.

The goal of the research team is to provide comprehensive, objective data in a neutral tone to the Commission. Chicago Appleseed’s primary concern is objectivity in the data. To that end, we maintain a cooperative relationship with the Office of the Chief Judge and Clerk of the Court to identify attorneys with recent experience before the retention candidates.  Appearance data is neutral with regard to the relationships of the attorneys to the retention candidates. It is further neutral with regard to the contentiousness, complexity or resolution of the case. Any attorney who has appeared before the judge, whether the case was settled, withdrawn, or later handled by another attorney, is included on the list of potential contacts. To further promote objectivity in the data, survey questions are outcome neutral. Rather than focusing on who benefits from the judge’s ruling, the surveys investigate how the judge reaches a ruling. Chicago Appleseed attempts to determine if a judge is properly applying rules of law and evidence and reaching consistent, appropriate results. We also examine whether the judge maintains an efficient, effective courtroom, and treats all parties with respect and dignity.

Additional information about the research process is available. Please contact the project manager, Elizabeth Monkus, or Chicago Appleseed’s director, Malcolm Rich, if you have questions or wish to be involved in the project.