Justice Mary K. O’Brien and the Supreme Court of Illinois have announced the appointment of Chantelle A. Porter as a Circuit Court Judge in the Eighteenth Judicial Circuit for DuPage County. She will be the first African American woman to serve as a judge in the Eighteenth Judicial Circuit.
“Chantelle Porter is a highly skilled attorney who has earned the respect of the legal community in DuPage and throughout the 3rd District for her commitment to her clients and to improving the legal profession,” Justice O’Brien said. “Ms. Porter will be an excellent addition to the bench and has received the support of the entire Supreme Court.”
Ms. Porter is being appointed to fill the vacancy created by the election of Justice C. Liam Brennan to the Third District Appellate Court. The appointment of Ms. Porter takes effect on December 12, 2022, and will conclude December 2, 2024, following the November 2024 general election.
“I am grateful for this opportunity to serve and strive to be a fair judge for all of DuPage,” Porter said. “I am honored to be a part of this historic moment for our county.”
Ms. Porter is currently a partner at A. Traub and Associates and practices in all areas of Family Law, Juvenile, DCFS Abuse and Neglect, Domestic Violence, and Orders of Protection. She is a court approved Guardian ad litem and represents minors in DuPage, Cook, and Will counties. She previously had served as Assistant Public Defender in the DuPage County Public Defender Juvenile Division and as Assistant Public Guardian in the Cook County Office of the Public Guardian.
She is a board member of the Illinois Association of Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) and a member of the Illinois Children’s Justice Task Force, a multidisciplinary, legislatively mandated advisory group that is charged with making recommendations to the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS).
Ms. Porter earned her Bachelor of Arts from The Ohio State University and earned her Juris Doctor from the DePaul University College of Law.
Her professional affiliations include the Illinois State Bar Association, where she has served on the Board of Governors, the DuPage Association of Women Lawyers, where she is a past President, the DuPage County Bar Foundation, where she served as a board member, and the DuPage County Bar Association. She is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. and the DuPage County branch of the NAACP, and was selected for inclusion in the Super Lawyers– Rising Stars Edition from 2012-2021.
The Eighteenth Judicial Circuit is located in DuPage County.