The Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism is celebrating its 20th anniversary, marking two decades of advancing professionalism among the state’s lawyers and judges.
The Illinois Supreme Court established the Commission in 2005 under Rule 799 to serve as an educational resource on professionalism for the bench and bar, including providing guidance on issues of ethical and professional responsibility.
“With the creation of the Commission on Professionalism in 2005, the Illinois Supreme Court emphasized professionalism as foundational to the success of our legal and judicial systems, and to the public’s confidence in these systems,” said Illinois Supreme Court Chief Justice Mary Jane Theis. “The Court is proud of the Commission’s work in elevating professionalism among Illinois lawyers, judges, and law students.”
The Commission develops and approves professional responsibility continuing legal education (PR CLE) courses and initiatives to ensure high-quality professionalism education for Illinois lawyers, facilitates professionalism programming for the Illinois judiciary and in Illinois law schools, and collaborates with legal, judicial, and civic organizations on issues of ethics and professionalism, among other duties.
In 2024, the American Bar Association (ABA) Judicial Division awarded the Commission a 2024 Honorable William D. Missouri Civility Award, for exhibiting “exceptional qualities of civility, courtesy and professionalism toward colleagues, litigants and the public.”
“Under the leadership of the Illinois Supreme Court, the Commission has become one of the nation’s most influential legal professionalism organizations,” said John Kim, Chair of the Commission on Professionalism. “I am grateful for the Court’s foresight in establishing the Commission to address issues of professionalism, which underlie the effectiveness of lawyers and the culture of the legal profession.”
In honor of its anniversary, during the coming months, the Commission will highlight important milestones over the past 20 years and the people who made them happen on is social media platforms. To follow along, click here.
Fostering professionalism for two decades
Over the past 20 years, the Commission has advanced its professionalism mandate to lawyers, judges, and law students across Illinois and nationally. Some recent highlights include:
- Publishing a groundbreaking report titled “Bullying in the Legal Profession: A Study of Illinois Lawyers’ Experiences and Recommendations for Change,” featuring survey responses from more than 6,000 lawyers. This is believed to be one of the first wide-scale research projects in the U.S. on the topic. Following the release of the report, the ABA adopted Resolution 523 at its 2025 Annual Meeting, encouraging legal organizations to address bullying in the legal profession and develop studies similar to the Commission’s report.
- Helping launch a judicial training titled “Vicarious Trauma and Judges: Impact and Solutions,” which is being presented to judges across Illinois.
- Administering a statewide lawyer-to-lawyer mentoring program that utilizes the Commission’s nationally recognized professionalism curriculum. More than 115 organizations have partnered with the Commission on this mentoring program since its inception.
- Conducting multi-disciplinary courthouse professionalism trainings in courthouses throughout Illinois, providing courthouse staff the opportunity to navigate the courthouse experience from the perspective of court users, especially self-represented litigants.
- Preserving the oral history of prominent members of the Illinois bench and bar through the Profiles in Professionalism video interview series. The Commission released its most recent video in September 2025, featuring an interview with Chief Justice Mary Jane Theis.
- Hosting an annual legal professional conference, called the Future Is Now: Legal Services, focused on ethical innovation and professionalism trends. More than 700 people from around the country attended the 2025 conference, which featured sessions on the ethical use of generative AI, generational differences, workplace bullying, vicarious trauma, and client-centered lawyering.
- Developing and presenting CLE courses on professionalism topics such as navigating incivility in high-conflict cases, allyship in the legal profession, and supporting lawyers’ mental health and well-being.
- Collaborating with Illinois law schools on professionalism orientations for incoming first-year students and the Jumpstart preparatory program for incoming first-generation students.
- Raising awareness of evolving professionalism issues through an active blog and social media platforms, highlighting the work of lawyers, bar associations, and legal organizations, and providing strategies for navigating professionalism issues.
“For the past 20 years, the Commission on Professionalism has been advocating for a more civil legal profession, sharing guidance on ever-evolving professionalism issues such as addressing bullying, balancing ethics and innovation, managing well-being, and fostering inclusive workplaces,” said Illinois Supreme Court Justice Elizabeth M. Rochford, who serves as Illinois Supreme Court Liaison to the Commission. “I commend the Commissioners and staff, both past and present, for building such a strong professionalism movement in the Illinois legal profession and beyond.”
Looking forward
Moving into its third decade, the Commission will remain resolute in advancing its mission outlined in Rule 799.
This includes continuing to identify and develop evidence-based best practices for emerging professionalism issues, as well as expanding its professionalism programming for lawyers, judges, and law students across Illinois through new CLE and judicial training partnerships, collaborations with legal organizations, and modernized digital platforms.
In October, which is National Bullying Prevention Month, the Commission is encouraging lawyers, bar associations, and legal organizations to participate in its “Stand Up to Bullying Challenge,” which includes six days of actions focused on reducing and preventing workplace bullying. This Challenge is believed to be the first of its kind issued to the legal profession in the U.S.
“The Commission’s evolution and impact are a direct result of the dedication of those who have championed its mission over the past 20 years,” said Erika Harold, Executive Director of the Commission on Professionalism. “I would like to thank everyone who has collaborated and worked with the Commission throughout its history, including the Illinois Supreme Court Justices, Commissioners, and Commission staff, as well as the rich community of lawyers, judges, law schools, legal organizations, and sister organizations of the Court in Illinois and nationally.
“I am exceedingly proud of the professionalism ethos the Commission has fostered and am energized to continue to support the lawyers, judges, and law students of Illinois into the future,” Harold said.
History of the Commission on Professionalism
The Illinois Supreme Court established the Special Committee on Civility in 2001 to study incivility in the legal profession and recommend “ways to promote respectful conduct, as the norm, within [] the legal profession.”
Concerns about growing incivility among Illinois lawyers and its impact on the delivery of justice in the state precipitated the creation of this committee.
In 2002, the committee’s name was expanded to the Illinois Supreme Court Committee on Professionalism to signify its work on a broad array of professionalism issues.
From 2002 to 2004, the committee collaborated with the ISBA to hold meetings with lawyers, judges, and members of the public throughout Illinois. The meetings explored the state of incivility in Illinois’ legal and judicial systems and recommendations for change.
Based on their findings, the committee recommended the establishment of a permanent commission in Illinois.
In 2005, the Illinois Supreme Court established a permanent Commission on Professionalism under Rule 799, and adopted professional responsibility CLE requirements under Rule 794.
About the Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism
The Illinois Supreme Court established the Commission on Professionalism under Supreme Court Rule 799 to promote integrity, professionalism, and civility among the lawyers and judges of Illinois, to foster a commitment to the elimination of bias and divisiveness within the legal and judicial systems, and to ensure those systems provide equitable, effective, and efficient resolution of problems for the people of Illinois.
The Commission achieves this mission through professional responsibility CLE, lawyer-to-lawyer mentoring, legal professionalism programming, educational resources, robust communications platforms, and more. To learn more, visit 2Civility.org and follow us on LinkedIn.
Press Contact
Laura Bagby, Communications Director
312-363-6209
laura.bagby@2civility.org
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