On October 19, the Illinois Judicial Conference (IJC) unveiled its Strategic Agenda for the Illinois Judicial Branch (Branch) through the year 2025 entitled “Charting the Course: Innovations and Transformations within the Illinois Judicial Branch.”
The new Strategic Agenda will serve as a guide for the future of the Branch and is designed to embrace change in order to improve the system of justice and to actualize each strategic goal of the Branch. The first three-year Strategic Agenda was released in October 2019.
“Although the past three years have presented some unique challenges for the administration of justice in Illinois, it is because of the dedicated people who served on the Task Forces and initiatives that we were able to overcome those many challenges. Together we created a stronger, more robust system of justice in the Land of Lincoln,” Illinois Supreme Court Chief Justice Anne
M. Burke said. “Now we unveil a new Strategic Agenda. It contains ambitious goals. Yet, I know they can be achieved with the same dedication and commitment to the Judicial Branch that has already been demonstrated by our Task Force members. I look forward to seeing all that will be accomplished as the work continues with the 2022-2025 Strategic Agenda.”
The full strategic agenda and IJC roster are available here.
Photos from the unveiling are available here. Video from the unveiling is available here.
The mission of the Branch is “to protect the rights and liberties of all by providing equal access to justice, resolving disputes, and upholding the rule of law pursuant to the powers and duties entrusted to us by the Illinois Constitution.”
The vision of the Branch is “to be trusted and open to all by being fair, innovative, diverse, and responsive to changing needs.”
The core values of the Branch are:
Fairness – impartial in our actions, decisions, and treatment of all.
Accountability– responsible and answerable for our conduct and performance, and transparent in the use of public resources.
Integrity – honest, trustworthy, and committed to the highest ethical and professional standards.
Respect– treat all with dignity, courtesy, and understanding.
The IJC, which crafted the strategic agenda, is comprised of 29 voting members: 15 judges and 14 non-judges, with the Chief Justice serving as Chair. The judicial members include a second member of the Supreme Court, as well as judges from all levels and geographic areas of the state appointed either by nature of their position or individually selected by the Supreme Court. The IJC non-judicial members include the Director of the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts and 13 other justice partners selected by the Court from the following categories: court clerks, court administrators, attorneys and public members.