Illinois Senate President John J. Cullerton will be the keynote speaker at a noon luncheon on Friday, December 9, during the Joint Midyear Meeting of the Illinois Judges Association (IJA) and Illinois State Bar Association (ISBA) at the Sheraton Grand Chicago, 301 E. North Water Street.

The joint meeting, to be held December 8-10, will include the annual Illinois Bar Foundation (IBF) Fellows Awards Breakfast on Friday at 7:30 a.m. IBF will honor Patrick Fitzgerald of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, LLP, with the “Honorary Fellows Award,” and Ann Hatch of Herzog Crebs LLP, with the “Distinguished Service to Law and Society Award.”

Two joint IJA/ISBA programs will be presented on Friday morning: “Protecting the Participants: Providing a Secure Justice System for Judges, Lawyers and Litigants” and “Invisible Bias Creating Racial Disparities.” Additionally, the ISBA will conduct two CLE seminars: “History on Trial: The Alton School Cases” and “Lessons in Professional Responsibility: From Abraham Lincoln's Law Practice.”

The ISBA and The Chicago Bar Association will co-host a reception and dinner Friday evening for the Illinois Supreme Court, with remarks delivered by Chief Justice Lloyd Karmeier. The ISBA Assembly, the association’s policy-making body, will convene on Saturday morning.

For further information, visit isba.org/jointmeeting. Tickets for programs and events will be available onsite subject to availability beginning Thursday, December 8.

The Illinois State Bar Association is a voluntary organization of 33,000 members that provides professional services to Illinois lawyers and education and services to the public. For more information, visit isba.org.