25 Lake Co. Attorneys Vie For 2 Open Judge Seats

LAKE COUNTY, IL — Twenty-five attorneys are all vying for two open associate judge seats in Lake County.

The opening comes following Justice Elizabeth M. Rochford's election to the Illinois Supreme Court and after Christopher M. Kennedy's election to the Illinois Appellate Court, according to a news release.

Applicants include: Paul J. Augustyn of Lake Barrington, Caryn A. Barone of Gurnee, Kevin J. Berrill of Lake Forest, James C. Bertucci of Libertyville, Shyama P. Chauhan of Lake Forest, Gabriel J. Conroe of Highland Park, Michael J. Conway of Lake Villa, Matthew J. DeMartini of Antioch, Roderick A. Drobinski of Wauconda, Lisa L. Dunn of Deerfield, Eric J. Kalata of Lindenhurst, Karen G. Levi of Highwood, Ruth H. Lofthouse of Highland Park, Craig M. Mandell of Highland Park, Deborah J. Menas of Libertyville, Sari W. Montgomery of Riverwoods, Daniel Naranjo of Barrington, Gretchen A. Neddenriep of Third Lake, James R. M. Newman of Lake Villa, Michael J. Perillo of Grayslake, Stephen J. Rice of Libertyville, David M. Spada of Wauconda, Mary E. Stanton of Grayslake, Michael E. Starzec of Grayslake and Donald R. Tyer of Long Grove.

In the coming weeks, the applicants will be interviewed by the circuit judges and evaluated by members of the Lake County Bar Association’s Judicial Selection and Retention Committee, according to a news release.

The bar association will also conduct a poll of its membership on all candidates’ qualifications.
The public will have the opportunity to comment in writing, which should be addressed to: The Office of the Chief Judge, Lake County Courthouse, 18 N. County Street, Waukegan, IL 60085-4359.

These letters will be accepted through Feb. 10. After the review process is completed, the nominating committee of circuit judges will select the names of 4 candidates to be placed on a ballot. All circuit judges will receive individual ballots naming the finalists and they will submit their ballots to the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts in Springfield.

The ballots will be tallied by the administrative office and Chief Judge Levitt will receive the name of the two candidates who received the majority of votes cast, according to the news release.