Shelley Bethune Appointed Executive Director and General Counsel of Illinois Courts Commission

The U.S. law firm of Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP is pleased to announce that Shelley Bethune, a Chicago-based attorney in the firm's Professional Responsibility, Professional Liability & Risk Management practice group, has been appointed the Executive Director and General Counsel of the Illinois Courts Commission (Commission). In this newly created role, Bethune will serve as the head of the agency and supervise its day-to-day operations. The appointment is effective June 1, 2022.

The Commission is the state’s judicial disciplinary body under Article VI, Section 15 of the Illinois Constitution. Containing members drawn from the Illinois Supreme Court, Appellate Court, and Circuit Court, as well as public members who are not judges, the Commission decides complaints brought by the Judicial Inquiry Board against judges alleged to have committed misconduct or to be physically or mentally unable to perform their duties.

Administrative duties for the Commission previously fell to the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts. However, an appropriation by the Illinois Legislature made it possible for the Commission to hire staff, procure office space, and become the "independent Courts Commission" intended by the Illinois Constitution.

In a Commission press release, Bethune said she was honored to serve as the Courts Commission’s first Executive Director and General Counsel. "I am excited to bring my experience in legal ethics and attorney discipline to the important work of the Commission, and I am equally eager to help maintain the integrity of the judiciary and inspire the public’s confidence in our court system through this new role."

"Shelley has been an excellent colleague and a great asset to our firm and to the legal profession," said partner Thomas McGarry, co-chair of the firm's Professional Responsibility, Professional Liability & Risk Management practice group. "We congratulate her on this appointment, and have no doubt she will be successful in ensuring a fair and robust judicial disciplinary system in Illinois."