I-LAW’s Akin: Judicial elections matter
Lawsuit abuse watchdog stresses impact of judges’ decisions
Judges matter, says Travis Akin, who is traveling the state to educate voters about the judicial races in the Nov. 2 election.
“They make important decisions that affect our daily lives,” he said. “That’s why we should care about these races.”
The Marion, Ill., resident is executive director of Illinois Lawsuit Abuse Watch, a non-partisan legal watchdog group campaigning to draw attention to the many judicial races on the ballot this fall.
“In Illinois, we have a U.S. Senate race and a gubernatorial race that are high profile,” Akin said. “We hear a lot about those races, and we’re paying attention to them. But what the I-LAW campaign is all about is to pay attention to judicial elections.”
An example of a judicial decision affecting residents throughout the state is the recent ruling by the Illinois Supreme Court that overturned the 2005 medical malpractice reform law.
In that case, four of the justices went against a bipartisan law and the will of the people. An example of why voters should not ignore the importance of judicial races on the ballot, Akin said.
“The ruling by these four justices will have an impact on the future of health care for millions of Illinois residents,” he noted.
Justices who voted to strike down the law were Thomas Kilbride of La Salle, and Charles E. Freeman, Thomas R. Fitzgerald and Anne M. Burke of Cook County.
Their decision to overturn the will of the people and vast majority of elected representatives proves that judicial elections do matter, Akin stressed.
“Four judges on the Illinois Supreme Court basically deciding the entire state,” he said. “When you think about that, it puts things into perspective that, ‘Hey, these races are important.’”
Three of the four justices are up for retention on the Nov. 2 ballot. One of the four is Kilbride, who represents the Third District on the State Supreme Court. Grundy County is in the Third District.
“He’s a local guy,” Akin said.
“Part of this message is to focus people’s attention on what did happen. This momentous bipartisan law, supported by an overwhelming number of Illinois residents, overwhelming support of both chambers of the General Assembly, a Democratic governor who signed it into law — a Republican initiative and a bi-partisan effort — and the court decided to bounce it.”
The issue is, voters take judicial races for granted, and do not take time to educate themselves, Akin noted.
“However, the judiciary does have tremendous impact on our lives,” he said. “As citizens, we have to pay attention to these things.”
What the I-LAW is seeing now, with the numbers getting involved in politics, many for the first time, is good for the system, creates dialogue, and helps wake people up.
The organization is trying to do two things.
One is to get people involved in elections and pay attention to what is going on with the civil justice system in Illinois.
I-LAW also is trying to change the culture — the policy wherein individuals look for something bad to happen as an opportunity to make money. Examples include lawsuits stemming from a crack in a sidewalk or a hair in a hamburger.
“Too often, that is the mentality,” Akin said. “I don’t believe lawsuit abuse is good for the future. We need to change our mentality.”
He knows, for one, that I-LAW will have succeeded in its message to voters when guidelines are put into place to stop many out-of-state lawsuits from being filed in Illinois, even though these suits have no connection to the state.
“We had a hearing on that in early 2009, but that’s as far as it went,” he said.
I-LAW is visiting county fairs across Illinois, handing out information on the importance of judicial elections.
For additional information about I-LAW’s grassroots efforts to restore common sense and fairness to Illinois courts, go to www.ILLawsuitAbuseWatch.org
