Illinois Appellate Court
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The Illinois Appellate Court is the intermediate appellate court in Illinois. First established in 1877, it hears appeals from verdicts reached at the trial level (the circuit courts in the state), and its decisions, in turn, can be appealed to the Illinois Supreme Court.[1]
Each district represents a particular geographical region. Judges are elected to the courts to renewable 10-year terms in partisan elections.[2]
The appellate court districts review transcripts of the trial and briefs filed by interested parties and consider oral arguments from lawyers to determine if the law was correctly applied by the trial court. In addition to resolving the specific case before it, rulings by each appellate district set precedent for the circuit courts in their geographic region on the proper way to apply Illinois law.[3]
Districts[edit]
The court is divided into five judicial districts.[2]
- Illinois First District Appellate Court
- Illinois Second District Appellate Court
- Illinois Third District Appellate Court
- Illinois Fourth District Appellate Court
- Illinois Fifth District Appellate Court
Redistricting[edit]
| Illinois Appellate Court Districts |
|---|
 |
New state supreme court district maps were signed into law by Governor J.B. Pritzker (D) on June 4, 2021. The Illinois Supreme Court lifted a pause order on this map on Jan. 1, 2022, resulting in its full implementation. This was the first time the state updated its judicial districts map since they were first enacted in 1964.[4]
An image of the enacted state Supreme Court district map appears on the right. Click here for an interactive viewer of the enacted Supreme Court map.
Judges[edit]
Cook County, the First District, has 24 appellate judges. The remaining 101 counties are divided into four districts that elect six judges each. Additional judges are assigned by the Supreme Court to the Appellate Court, temporarily, on a showing of need. Elgin is the seat of the Second District; Ottawa, the Third; Springfield, the Fourth; and Mount Vernon, the Fifth.[2][5]
Salary[edit]
- See also: Illinois court salaries and budgets
In 2025, the associate judges of the court received a salary of $281,331, according to the National Center for State Courts.[6]
Judicial selection[edit]
- See also: Judicial selection in Illinois
Judges on the appellate court are chosen by popular vote in partisan elections and serve 10-year terms, after which they must compete in uncontested, nonpartisan retention elections to remain on the court.[7]
Qualifications[edit]
To serve on the appellate court, a judge must be:
Presiding judge[edit]
The judges of each division select a presiding judge by peer vote to serve a one-year term.[7]
Vacancies[edit]
In the event of a midterm vacancy, the Illinois Supreme Court is responsible for appointing an interim judge. If a judge is appointed more than 60 days before the next primary election, the judge must run in a partisan election in the next general or judicial election to remain on the court. The appointed judge's term will end on the first Monday in December after their election. If a judge is appointed less than 60 days before the next primary election, the judge will have to run in a partisan election to remain on the court in the second general election. The appointed judge's term will end on the first Monday in December after their election.[7]
Elections[edit]
To see results from appellate court elections, visit the individual district pages. For details about Illinois' judicial elections, click here.
- Illinois intermediate appellate court elections, 2026
- Illinois intermediate appellate court elections, 2024
- Illinois intermediate appellate court elections, 2022
- Illinois intermediate appellate court elections, 2020
- Illinois intermediate appellate court elections, 2018
Ethics[edit]
The Illinois Code of Judicial Conduct sets forth ethical guidelines and principles for the conduct of judges and judicial candidates in Illinois. It consists of four canons:
- Canon 1: "A judge shall uphold and promote the independence, integrity, and impartiality of the judiciary and shall avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety in all of the judge's activities."
- Canon 2: "A judge shall perform the duties of judicial office impartially, competently, and diligently."
- Canon 3: "A judge shall conduct the judge's personal and extrajudicial activities to minimize the risk of conflict with the obligations of judicial office."
- Canon 4: "A judge or judicial candidate shall not engage in political or campaign activity that is inconsistent with the independence, integrity, or impartiality of the judiciary."[8]
The full text of the Illinois Code of Judicial Conduct can be found here.
Removal of judges[edit]
Judges in Illinois may be removed in one of two ways:
- By the Illinois Courts Commission, which may hold a hearing upon a complaint from the Illinois Judicial Inquiry Board[9]
- By a two-thirds vote of the Illinois State Senate upon a majority vote for impeachment by the Illinois House of Representatives[10]
Caseload[edit]
| Year | Civil cases filed | Civil cases disposed | Criminal cases filed | Criminal cases disposed | Total filed | Total disposed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 4,153 | 4,370 | 3,788 | 3,384 | 8,134 | 7,954 |
| 2012 | 4,273 | 4,180 | 3,635 | 3,740 | 8,079 | 8,062 |
| 2011 | 4,067 | 4,376 | 3,614 | 3,731 | 7,826 | 8,276 |
| 2010 | 4,111 | 4,167 | 3,542 | 3,628 | 7,836 | 7,962 |
| 2009 | 4,185 | 4,207 | 3,545 | 3,605 | 7,730 | 7,812 |
| 2008* | ||||||
| 2007 | 4,000 | 4,119 | 3,631 | 3,734 | 7,631 | 7,853 |
| 2006 | 4,186 | 4,271 | 3,652 | 3,980 | 7,838 | 8,251 |
*2008 statistics are unavailable.[11]
State profile[edit]
| Demographic data for Illinois | ||
|---|---|---|
| Illinois | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 12,839,047 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 55,519 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 72.3% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 14.3% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 5% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 0.2% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 2.2% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 16.5% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 87.9% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 32.3% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $57,574 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 16.8% | 11.3% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Illinois. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
Presidential voting pattern[edit]
- See also: Presidential voting trends in Illinois
Illinois voted for the Democratic candidate in all seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.
Pivot Counties (2016)
Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, 11 are located in Illinois, accounting for 5.34 percent of the total pivot counties.[12]
Pivot Counties (2020)
In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Illinois had 11 Retained Pivot Counties, 6.08 percent of all Retained Pivot Counties.
More Illinois coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in Illinois
- United States congressional delegations from Illinois
- Public policy in Illinois
- Endorsers in Illinois
- Illinois fact checks
- More...
See also[edit]
External links[edit]
Footnotes[edit]
- ↑ Nineteenth Judicial Circuit Court, "History of the Illinois Courts," accessed July 8, 2014
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Illinois Courts, "About the Courts in Illinois," archived March 15, 2015
- ↑ Illinois Campaign for Political Reform, "Courts," archived June 11, 2009
- ↑ Daily Herald, "Illinois Supreme Court lifts hold on judicial redistricting," Dec. 8, 2021
- ↑ Illinois Courts, "First District Appellate Judges," accessed August 31, 2015
- ↑ National Center for State Courts, "2025 Salaries and Rankings," accessed October 8, 2025
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 National Center for State Courts, "Methods of Judicial Selection," accessed September 8, 2021
- ↑ State of Illinois, "Code of Judicial Conduct," accessed July 17, 2023
- ↑ State of Illinois Judicial Inquiry Board, "Frequently Asked Questions," accessed July 17, 2023
- ↑ Constitution of the State of Illinois, "ARTICLE IV," accessed July 17, 2023
- ↑ Illinois Courts, "Total All Districts of Appellate Court Criminal and Civil Caseload Statistics," accessed August 31, 2015
- ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.
Federal courts:
Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Central District of Illinois, Northern District of Illinois, Southern District of Illinois • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Central District of Illinois, Northern District of Illinois, Southern District of Illinois
State courts:
Illinois Supreme Court • Illinois Appellate Court • Illinois Circuit Court
State resources:
Courts in Illinois • Illinois judicial elections • Judicial selection in Illinois
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