Illinois Northern District Made Three Improvements Motivated by Feedback from the Trial Bar

Dear Members of the Northern District of Illinois Trial Bar:

In October 2015, many of you provided excellent feedback to our court in a survey of the Northern District of Illinois Trial Bar.  I am pleased to announce three recent improvements made in the Northern District of Illinois that were in direct response to your feedback.

We are hopeful that these initial changes will enhance the important work you do.

Reimbursement limits for pro bono expenses have increased.

The District Court in the Northern District of Illinois has increased reimbursement expense limits in cases where an attorney is recruited for pro bono representation.  In such cases filed on or after February 1, 2016, the judge to whom a pro bono case is assigned is now authorized to approve reimbursements up to $2500, not including expenses related to hiring a court interpreter. If non-interpreter expenses exceed $2500, the judge will forward the request to the chief district judge, who may approve expenses up to $5000. 

If a case involves difficult or complex matters, prior to incurring expenses over $5000, the pro bono attorney may petition the Executive Committee of the district court to approve additional expenses by submitting a written request for preapproval to the assigned judge, who upon approval will forward to the chief district judge. With the approval of the chief district judge, the request will be forwarded to the Executive Committee for review and approval.

Attorney workspace is now available in both Dirksen and Roszkowski Courthouses.

Dirksen Courthouse Room 2302B now serves as an attorney workroom.  The room contains desk space, a television, lounge chairs, a water cooler, electrical outlets, and WiFi available for attorneys to use between 7 am and 6 pm. 

A similar attorney workroom is also available in the Roszkowski Courthouse in Room 2500.  The room contains computer desks, lounge chairs, electrical outlets, and a water cooler in the hallway just outside the room.  The workroom is available to attorneys from 8:30 am until 4:30 pm. Please contact the Clerk’s Office in Rockford when you wish to gain access to Room 2500.

Video-conferencing facilities are now available to pro bono attorneys in both Dirksen and Roszkowski Courthouses.

Dirksen Courthouse Room 1554 is now available to attorneys for video conferencing.  Attorneys recruited by the court for pro bono representation may arrange to use the video conference room to appear via video conference at proceedings at the Roszkowski Courthouse in Rockford.  To schedule use of the video conference unit, contact the courtroom deputy of the judge that is presiding over the case. 

The Magistrate Judge Mahoney Mediation Room 5402 at Roszkowski Courthouse is now available to attorneys who have been recruited by the court for pro bono representation and wish to appear in proceedings in the Dirksen Courthouse via videoconference.  The assigned judge must first approve the video appearance.  To schedule use of the video conference facilities, please contact the Clerk’s office in Rockford.

As we indicated when we undertook the trial bar survey, we take the trial bar’s feedback seriously and are continuing to take action to make further improvements.  These three changes are the first of many to come in the upcoming months.

Thank you to the Northern District of Illinois Pro Bono Advisory Committee and Chair Bob Glaves for their work on this project. 

Thank you for working with us to lead the Northern District of Illinois into the future.

Sincerely,

Honorable Rubén Castillo, Chief Judge
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois