United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois

The United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois (in case citations, N.D. Ill.) is the federal trial court with jurisdiction over the northern counties of Illinois. It is one of the busiest federal trial courts in the United States, with famous cases including those of Al Capone and the Chicago Eight.^[1]

United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
(N.D. Ill.)
Map indicating the changing Districts of Illinois
Location	Everett McKinley Dirksen U.S. Courthouse (Chicago) More locations Rockford Wheaton Freeport
Appeals to	Seventh Circuit
Established	February 13, 1855
Judges	23
Chief Judge	Virginia Mary Kendall
Officers of the court
U.S. Attorney	Andrew S. Boutros (acting)
U.S. Marshal	LaDon A. Reynolds
www.ilnd.uscourts.gov

Appeals from the Northern District of Illinois are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appealed to the Federal Circuit).

The acting United States attorney for the district, representing the United States in litigation in the court, is Andrew S. Boutros since April 7, 2025.^[2]

Organization

The court's jurisdiction is split into an eastern division, including Cook, DuPage, McHenry, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, LaSalle, Lake, and Will counties, with its sessions held in Chicago and Wheaton; and a western division, including Boone, Carroll, DeKalb, Jo Daviess, Lee, Ogle, Stephenson, Whiteside, and Winnebago counties, with its sessions held in Freeport and Rockford.

History

The Dirksen Federal Building in Chicago, one of four locations where the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois holds sessions.

The United States District Court for the District of Illinois was established by a statute passed by the United States Congress on March 3, 1819, 3 Stat. 502.^[3][4] The act established a single office for a judge to preside over the court. Initially, the court was not within any existing judicial circuit, and appeals from the court were taken directly to the United States Supreme Court. In 1837, Congress created the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, placing it in Chicago, Illinois and giving it jurisdiction over the District of Illinois, 5 Stat. 176.^[4]

The Northern District itself was created by a statute passed on February 13, 1855, 10 Stat. 606, which subdivided the District of Illinois into the Northern and the Southern Districts.^[4] The boundaries of the District and the seats of the courts were set forth in the statute:

The counties of Hancock, McDonough, Peoria, Woodford, Livingston, and Iroquois, and all the counties in the said State north of them, shall compose one district, to be called the northern district of Illinois, and courts shall be held for the said district at the city of Chicago; and the residue of the counties of the said State shall compose another district, to be called the southern district of Illinois, and courts shall be held for the same at the city of Springfield.

The district has since been re-organized several times. The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Illinois was created on March 3, 1905, by 33 Stat. 992,^[4] by splitting counties out of the Northern and Southern Districts. It was later eliminated in a reorganization on October 2, 1978, which replaced it with a Central District, 92 Stat. 883,^[4] formed primarily from parts of the Southern District, and returning some counties to the Northern District.

The Northern District of Illinois, which contains the entire Chicago metropolitan area, accounts for 1,531 of the 1,828 public corruption convictions in the state between 1976 and 2012, almost 84%, also making it the federal district with the most public corruption convictions in the nation between 1976 and 2012.^[5]

Current judges

As of November 20, 2024^[update]:

#	Title	Judge	Duty station	Born	Term of service			Appointed by
					Active	Chief	Senior
80	Chief Judge	Virginia Mary Kendall	Chicago	1962	2006–present	2024–present	—	G.W. Bush
82	District Judge	Robert Michael Dow Jr.	Chicago	1965	2007–present	—	—	G.W. Bush
84	District Judge	Sharon Johnson Coleman	Chicago	1960	2010–present	—	—	Obama
85	District Judge	Edmond E. Chang	Chicago	1970	2010–present	—	—	Obama
87	District Judge	John Tharp	Chicago	1960	2012–present	—	—	Obama
89	District Judge	Sara L. Ellis	Chicago	1969	2013–present	—	—	Obama
90	District Judge	Andrea Wood	Chicago	1973	2013–present	—	—	Obama
91	District Judge	Manish S. Shah	Chicago	1972	2014–present	—	—	Obama
92	District Judge	Jorge L. Alonso	Chicago	1966	2014–present	—	—	Obama
93	District Judge	John Robert Blakey	Chicago	1965	2014–present	—	—	Obama
94	District Judge	Martha M. Pacold	Chicago	1979	2019–present	—	—	Trump
95	District Judge	Mary M. Rowland	Chicago	1961	2019–present	—	—	Trump
96	District Judge	Steven C. Seeger	Chicago	1971	2019–present	—	—	Trump
97	District Judge	John F. Kness	Chicago	1969	2020–present	—	—	Trump
98	District Judge	Franklin U. Valderrama	Chicago	1962	2020–present	—	—	Trump
99	District Judge	Iain D. Johnston	Rockford	1965	2020–present	—	—	Trump
101	District Judge	Lindsay C. Jenkins	Chicago	1977	2023–present	—	—	Biden
102	District Judge	LaShonda A. Hunt	Chicago	1970	2023–present	—	—	Biden
103	District Judge	Jeremy C. Daniel	Chicago	1978	2023–present	—	—	Biden
104	District Judge	Jeffrey Cummings	Chicago	1962	2023–present	—	—	Biden
105	District Judge	Sunil Harjani	Chicago	1974	2024–present	—	—	Biden
106	District Judge	Georgia N. Alexakis	Chicago	1978	2024–present	—	—	Biden
107	District Judge	April Perry	Chicago	1979	2024–present	—	—	Biden
45	Senior Judge	Marvin Aspen	Chicago	1934	1979–2002	1995–2002	2002–present	Carter
47	Senior Judge	Charles P. Kocoras	Chicago	1938	1980–2006	2002–2006	2006–present	Carter
53	Senior Judge	Charles Ronald Norgle Sr.	inactive	1937	1984–2022	—	2022–present	Reagan
60	Senior Judge	Suzanne B. Conlon	inactive	1939	1988–2004	—	2004–present	Reagan
61	Senior Judge	George M. Marovich	inactive	1931	1988–2000	—	2000–present	Reagan
64	Senior Judge	Philip Godfrey Reinhard	Rockford	1941	1992–2007	—	2007–present	G.H.W. Bush
68	Senior Judge	Robert Gettleman	Chicago	1943	1994–2009	—	2009–present	Clinton
69	Senior Judge	Elaine E. Bucklo	Chicago	1944	1994–2009	—	2009–present	Clinton
70	Senior Judge	Joan B. Gottschall	Chicago	1947	1996–2012	—	2012–present	Clinton
71	Senior Judge	Rebecca R. Pallmeyer	Chicago	1954	1998–2024	2019–2024	2024–present	Clinton
73	Senior Judge	Matthew Kennelly	Chicago	1956	1999–2021	—	2021–present	Clinton
74	Senior Judge	Ronald A. Guzman	Chicago	1948	1999–2014	—	2014–present	Clinton
75	Senior Judge	Joan Lefkow	Chicago	1944	2000–2012	—	2012–present	Clinton
81	Senior Judge	Frederick J. Kapala	inactive	1950	2007–2019	—	2019–present	G.W. Bush
88	Senior Judge	Thomas M. Durkin	Chicago	1953	2012–2023	—	2023–present	Obama

Former judges

#	Judge	State	Born–died	Active service	Chief Judge	Senior status	Appointed by	Reason for termination
1	Thomas Drummond	IL	1809–1890	1855–1869[Note 1]	—	—	Taylor/Operation of law	elevation
2	Henry Williams Blodgett	IL	1821–1905	1870–1892	—	—	Grant	retirement
3	Peter S. Grosscup	IL	1852–1921	1892–1899	—	—	B. Harrison	elevation
4	Christian Cecil Kohlsaat	IL	1844–1918	1899–1905	—	—	McKinley	elevation
5	Solomon Hicks Bethea	IL	1852–1909	1905–1909	—	—	T. Roosevelt	death
6	Kenesaw Mountain Landis	IL	1866–1944	1905–1922	—	—	T. Roosevelt	resignation
7	George Albert Carpenter	IL	1867–1944	1910–1933	—	—	Taft	resignation
8	James Herbert Wilkerson	IL	1869–1948	1922–1940	—	1940–1948	Harding	death
9	Adam C. Cliffe	IL	1869–1928	1922–1928	—	—	Harding	death
10	Charles Edgar Woodward	IL	1876–1942	1929–1942	—	—	Coolidge	death
11	John P. Barnes	IL	1881–1959	1931–1957	1948–1957	1957–1958	Hoover	resignation
12	George E. Q. Johnson	IL	1874–1949	1932–1933[Note 2]	—	—	Hoover	not confirmed
13	William Harrison Holly	IL	1869–1958	1933–1943[Note 3]	—	1943–1958	F. Roosevelt	death
14	Philip Leo Sullivan	IL	1889–1960	1933–1960[Note 3]	1957–1959	—	F. Roosevelt	death
15	Michael L. Igoe	IL	1885–1967	1938–1965[Note 4]	—	1965–1967	F. Roosevelt	death
16	William Joseph Campbell	IL	1905–1988	1940–1970	1959–1970	1970–1988	F. Roosevelt	death
17	Walter J. LaBuy	IL	1888–1967	1944–1961	—	1961–1967	F. Roosevelt	death
18	Elwyn Riley Shaw	IL	1888–1950	1944–1950	—	—	F. Roosevelt	death
19	Joseph Sam Perry	IL	1896–1984	1951–1971	—	1971–1984	Truman	death
20	Julius Hoffman	IL	1895–1983	1953–1972	—	1972–1983	Eisenhower	death
21	Winfred George Knoch	IL	1895–1983	1953–1958	—	—	Eisenhower	elevation
22	Julius Howard Miner	IL	1896–1963	1958–1963	—	—	Eisenhower	death
23	Edwin Albert Robson	IL	1905–1986	1958–1975[Note 5]	1970–1975	1975–1986	Eisenhower	death
24	Richard Bevan Austin	IL	1901–1977	1961–1975	—	1975–1977	Kennedy	death
25	James Benton Parsons	IL	1911–1993	1961–1981	1975–1981	1981–1993	Kennedy	death
26	Hubert Louis Will	IL	1914–1995	1961–1979	—	1979–1995	Kennedy	death
27	Bernard Martin Decker	IL	1904–1993	1962–1980[Note 6]	—	1980–1993	Kennedy	death
28	Abraham Lincoln Marovitz	IL	1905–2001	1963–1975	—	1975–2001	Kennedy	death
29	William Joseph Lynch	IL	1908–1976	1966–1976	—	—	L. Johnson	death
30	Alexander J. Napoli	IL	1905–1972	1966–1972	—	—	L. Johnson	death
31	Frank James McGarr	IL	1921–2012	1970–1986	1981–1986	1986–1988	Nixon	retirement
32	Thomas Roberts McMillen	IL	1916–2002	1971–1984	—	1984–1985	Nixon	retirement
33	William J. Bauer	IL	1926–present	1971–1975	—	—	Nixon	elevation
34	Richard Wellington McLaren	IL	1918–1976	1972–1976	—	—	Nixon	death
35	Philip Willis Tone	IL	1923–2001	1972–1974	—	—	Nixon	elevation
36	Prentice Marshall	IL	1926–2004	1973–1988	—	1988–1996	Nixon	retirement
37	Joel Flaum	IL	1936–2024	1974–1983	—	—	Ford	elevation
38	Alfred Younges Kirkland Sr.	IL	1917–2004	1974–1979	—	1979–2004	Ford	death
39	John F. Grady	IL	1929–2019	1975–1994	1986–1990	1994–2019	Ford	death
40	George N. Leighton	IL	1912–2018	1976–1986	—	1986–1987	Ford	retirement
41	John Powers Crowley	IL	1936–1989	1976–1981	—	—	Ford	resignation
42	Stanley Julian Roszkowski	IL	1923–2014	1977–1991	—	1991–1998	Carter	retirement
43	Nicholas John Bua	IL	1925–2002	1977–1991	—	—	Carter	retirement
44	James Byron Moran	IL	1930–2009	1979–1995	1990–1995	1995–2009	Carter	death
46	Milton Shadur	IL	1924–2018	1980–1992	—	1992–2018	Carter	death
48	Susan Christine O'Meara Getzendanner	IL	1939–present	1980–1987	—	—	Carter	resignation
49	John Albert Nordberg	IL	1926–2021	1982–1994	—	1994–2021	Reagan	death
50	William Thomas Hart	IL	1929–2023	1982–1996	—	1996–2023	Reagan	death
51	Paul Edward Plunkett	IL	1935–2018	1982–1998	—	1998–2018	Reagan	death
52	Ilana Rovner	IL	1938–present	1984–1992	—	—	Reagan	elevation
54	James F. Holderman	IL	1946–present	1985–2013	2006–2013	2013–2015	Reagan	retirement
55	Ann Claire Williams	IL	1949–present	1985–1999	—	—	Reagan	elevation
56	Brian Barnett Duff	IL	1930–2016	1985–1996	—	1996–2016	Reagan	death
57	Harry Leinenweber	IL	1937–2024	1985–2002	—	2002–2024	Reagan	death
58	James Zagel	IL	1941–2023	1987–2016	—	2016–2023	Reagan	death
59	James Henry Alesia	IL	1934–2003	1987–1998	—	1998–2003	Reagan	death
62	George W. Lindberg	IL	1932–2019	1989–2001	—	2001–2019	G.H.W. Bush	death
63	Wayne Andersen	IL	1945–present	1991–2010	—	—	G.H.W. Bush	retirement
65	Rubén Castillo	IL	1954–present	1994–2019	2013–2019	—	Clinton	retirement
66	Blanche M. Manning	IL	1934–2020	1994–2010	—	2010–2020	Clinton	death
67	David H. Coar	IL	1943–present	1994–2009	—	2009–2010	Clinton	retirement
72	William J. Hibbler	IL	1946–2012	1999–2012	—	—	Clinton	death
76	John W. Darrah	IL	1938–2017	2000–2017	—	2017	Clinton	death
77	Amy St. Eve	IL	1965–present	2002–2018	—	—	G.W. Bush	elevation
78	Samuel Der-Yeghiayan	IL	1952–present	2003–2018	—	—	G.W. Bush	retirement
79	Mark Filip	IL	1966–present	2004–2008	—	—	G.W. Bush	resignation
83	Gary Feinerman	IL	1965–present	2010–2022	—	—	Obama	resignation
86	John Z. Lee	IL	1968–present	2012–2022	—	—	Obama	elevation
100	Nancy L. Maldonado	IL	1975–present	2022–2024	—	—	Biden	elevation

1. Reassigned from the District of Illinois.
2. Recess appointment; the United States Senate later rejected the appointment.
3. Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 8, 1934, confirmed by the Senate on February 20, 1934, and received commission on March 1, 1934.
4. Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 5, 1939, confirmed by the Senate on February 9, 1939, and received commission on March 4, 1939.
5. Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 17, 1959, confirmed by the Senate on April 29, 1959, and received commission on April 30, 1959.
6. Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 15, 1963, confirmed by the Senate on March 28, 1963, and received commission on April 2, 1963.

Chief judges

Chief judges have administrative responsibilities with respect to their district court. Unlike the Supreme Court, where one justice is specifically nominated to be chief, the office of chief judge rotates among the district court judges. To be chief, a judge must have been in active service on the court for at least one year, be under the age of 65, and have not previously served as chief judge.

A vacancy is filled by the judge highest in seniority among the group of qualified judges. The chief judge serves for a term of seven years, or until age 70, whichever occurs first. The age restrictions are waived if no members of the court would otherwise be qualified for the position.

When the office was created in 1948, the chief judge was the longest-serving judge who had not elected to retire, on what has since 1958 been known as senior status, or declined to serve as chief judge. After August 6, 1959, judges could not become or remain chief after turning 70 years old. The current rules have been in operation since October 1, 1982.

Succession of seats

Seat 1 Seat reassigned from the District of Illinois on February 13, 1855 by 10 Stat. 606 Drummond 1855–1869 Blodgett 1870–1892 Grosscup 1892–1899 Kohlsaat 1899–1905 Bethea 1905–1909 Carpenter 1910–1933 Holly 1934–1943 LaBuy 1944–1961 Austin 1961–1975 Crowley 1976–1981 Hart 1982–1996 Pallmeyer 1998–2024 Alexakis 2024–present

Seat 2 Seat established on March 3, 1905 by 33 Stat. 992 Landis 1905–1922 Wilkerson 1922–1940 Seat abolished on December 31, 1940 (temporary judgeship expired)

Seat 3 Seat established on September 14, 1922 by 42 Stat. 837 (temporary) Cliffe 1922–1928 Seat made permanent on May 29, 1928 by 45 Stat. 974 Woodward 1929–1942 Shaw 1944–1950 J. Perry 1951–1971 Bauer 1971–1974 Kirkland, Sr. 1974–1979 Kocoras 1980–2006 Dow, Jr. 2007–present

Seat 4 Seat established on February 25, 1931 by 46 Stat. 1417 Barnes 1931–1957 Miner 1958–1963 Marovitz 1963–1975 Leighton 1976–1987 Alesia 1987–1998 Hibbler 1999–2012 Wood 2013–present

Seat 5 Seat established on February 25, 1931 by 46 Stat. 1417 Johnson 1932–1933 Sullivan 1934–1960 Parsons 1961–1981 Plunkett 1982–1998 Kennelly 1999–2021 Maldonado 2022–2024 A. Perry 2024–present

Seat 6 Seat established on May 31, 1938 by 52 Stat. 584 Igoe 1938–1965 Lynch 1966–1976 Bua 1977–1991 Castillo 1994–2019 Valderrama 2020–present

Seat 7 Seat established on May 24, 1940 by 54 Stat. 219 (temporary) Seat became permanent upon the abolition of Seat 2 on December 31, 1940 Campbell 1940–1970 McMillen 1971–1984 Conlon 1988–2004 Kendall 2006–present

Seat 8 Seat established on August 14, 1950 by 64 Stat. 443 Hoffman 1953–1972 McLaren 1972–1976 Roszkowski 1977–1991 Andersen 1991–2010 Durkin 2012–2023 Harjani 2024–present

Seat 9 Seat established on August 14, 1950 by 64 Stat. 443 Knoch 1953–1958 Robson 1959–1975 Grady 1975–1994 Gettleman 1994–2009 Feinerman 2010–2022 Daniel 2023–present

Seat 10 Seat established on May 19, 1961 by 75 Stat. 80 Will 1961–1979 Shadur 1980–1992 Manning 1994–2010 Tharp, Jr. 2011–present

Seat 11 Seat established on May 19, 1961 by 75 Stat. 80 Decker 1963–1980 Nordberg 1982–1994 Bucklo 1994–2009 Chang 2010–present

Seat 12 Seat established on March 18, 1966 by 80 Stat. 75 Napoli 1966–1972 Marshall 1973–1988 Lindberg 1989–2001 St. Eve 2002–2018 Rowland 2019–present

Seat 13 Seat established on June 2, 1970 by 84 Stat. 294 McGarr 1970–1986 Zagel 1987–2016 Seeger 2019–present

Seat 14 Seat established on June 2, 1970 by 84 Stat. 294 Tone 1972–1974 Flaum 1974–1983 Rovner 1984–1992 Coar 1994–2009 Lee 2012–2022 Jenkins 2023–present

Seat 15 Seat established on October 20, 1978 by 92 Stat. 1629 Moran 1979–1995 Gottschall 1996–2012 Ellis 2013–present

Seat 16 Seat established on October 20, 1978 by 92 Stat. 1629 Aspen 1979–2002 Der-Yeghiayan 2003–2018 Kness 2020–present

Seat 17 Seat established on October 20, 1978 by 92 Stat. 1629 Getzendanner 1980–1987 Marovich 1988–2000 Darrah 2000–2017 Pacold 2019–present

Seat 18 Seat established on July 10, 1984 by 98 Stat. 333 Norgle Sr. 1984–2022 Hunt 2023–present

Seat 19 Seat established on July 10, 1984 by 98 Stat. 333 Holderman 1985–2013 Blakey 2014–present

Seat 20 Seat established on July 10, 1984 by 98 Stat. 333 Williams 1985–1999 Lefkow 2000–2012 Shah 2014–present

Seat 21 Seat established on July 10, 1984 by 98 Stat. 333 Duff 1985–1996 Guzman 1999–2014 Alonso 2014–present

Seat 22 Seat established on July 10, 1984 by 98 Stat. 333 (temporary) Seat made permanent on December 1, 1990 by 104 Stat. 5089 Leinenweber 1985–2002 Filip 2004–2008 Coleman 2010–present

Seat 23 Seat established on December 1, 1990 by 104 Stat. 5089 Reinhard 1992–2007 Kapala 2007–2019 Johnston 2020–present

Seat 24 Seat established on December 5, 2022 pursuant to 104 Stat. 5089 (temporary) Cummings 2023–present

List of U.S. attorneys since 1857

• Augustus M. Herrington, 1857–1858^[6]
• Henry S. Fitch, 1858–1861
• Edwin C. Larned, 1861
• Joseph O. Glover, 1869
• Mark Bangs, 1875–1879
• Joseph B. Seake, 1879–1884
• Richard S. Tuthill, 1884–1886
• William G. Ewing, 1886–1890
• Thomas E. Milchrist, 1891–1893
• Sherwood Dixon, 1893–1894
• John C. Black, 1895–1899
• Solomon H. Bethea, 1899–1905
• Charles B. Morrison, 1905–1906
• Edwin W. Sims, 1906–1911
• James Herbert Wilkerson, 1911–1914
• Charles F. Clyne, 1914–1922
• Edwin A. Olson, 1922–1927
• George E. Q. Johnson, 1927–1931
• Dwight H. Green, 1931–1935
• Michael L. Igoe, 1935–1938
• William Joseph Campbell, 1938–1940
• J. Albert Woll, 1940–1947
• Otto Kerner Jr., 1947–1954
• Irwin N. Cohen, 1954
• Robert Tieken, 1954–1961
• James P. O'Brien, 1961–1963
• Frank E. McDonald, 1963–1964
• Edward Hanrahan, 1964–1968
• Tom Foran, 1968–1970
• William J. Bauer, 1970–1971
• James R. Thompson, 1971–1975
• Samuel K. Skinner, 1975–1977
• Thomas P. Sullivan, 1977–1981
• Gregory C. Jones, 1981
• Dan K. Webb, 1981–1985
• Anton R. Valukas, 1985–1989
• Ira A. Raphaelson, 1989–1990
• Fred Foreman, 1990–1993
• Michael J. Shepard, 1993
• Jim Burns, 1993–1997
• Scott R. Lassar, 1997–2001^[7]
• Patrick Fitzgerald, 2001–2012
• Gary S. Shapiro, 2012–2013
• Zachary T. Fardon, 2013–2017
• Joel R. Levin, 2017
• John R. Lausch Jr., 2017–2023
• Morris Pasqual, 2023–2025

See also

• Courts of Illinois
• List of current United States district judges
• List of United States federal courthouses in Illinois