Joseph R. Tybor
The Illinois Supreme Court has lost its voice.
Joseph R. Tybor, a lawyer and the court’s spokesman for nearly two decades, has died after a battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 68 years old.
A former news and sports reporter who also spent years covering legal affairs, Tybor became the court’s communications director in 1998. He attended the DePaul University College of Law while still working as a journalist and was admitted to the bar in 1981.
His background in both journalism and the law made him a “logical choice” for the role of high court communications director, then-Chief Justice Charles E. Freeman said when it was announced Tybor would step into the role for retiring press secretary John Madigan.
“His ability to move comfortably in both the legal and journalistic world will better enable the court to help educate the public about its vital role in protecting the rights of citizens according to the U.S. and Illinois Constitutions and the court’s own precedent,” Freeman said at the time.
From there, Tybor spoke about any and all court-related issues, from obscure rule changes to annual budget requests from the legislature. He was also instrumental in more sweeping high court policies, such as the push to allow cameras into trial courts around the state.
“In one simple phrase, Joe did the heavy-lifting,” said Justice Thomas L. Kilbride, who worked extensively to promote the cameras in the courtroom initiative. “He really did a masterful job of researching other states and representing proposals to the Illinois Supreme Court. He was numero uno. He was the guy out in front.”
His work explaining and helping craft that policy led state government observers on the popular political blog Capitol Fax to vote him the best state government spokesman in 2012.
And while he was known and respected for what he said on behalf of the court, Tybor also got plaudits throughout his career for what he observed about courts.
Between 1982 and 1988, Tybor covered both the Illinois courts and the U.S. Supreme Court for the Chicago Tribune. He co-authored a weekly column called “On the Law” and also co-wrote a series of stories on the Cook County Circuit Court’s Domestic Relations Division.
“I think his legacy is that, here was someone who tried to educate throughout his life — tried to educate the public about our system of justice,” said 1st District Appellate Court Justice Michael B. Hyman, who said he regularly read Tybor in the newspaper and knew him throughout his time at the Supreme Court.
“That’s what he did as communications director for the Supreme Court, and his whole thing was, how do we tell the story of our legal system to the people of Illinois?” Hyman said. “And that’s what he did throughout his whole life, and I think he did it extremely well and in ways people can relate to.”
Tybor began covering the University of Notre Dame in 1989. He created an online newsletter about Fighting Irish football called “Irish Eyes” in 1993 — years before many even knew what the Internet was.
“He was absolutely right-on in the early 90s,” said Thom Serafin, who heads a communications firm in Chicago and has been friends with Tybor for decades. “A lot of people talked about the Internet. But nobody really understood it. He got it.”
Before his time at the Tribune, he worked for The Associated Press, and Serafin recalled a story in which Tybor interviewed baseball Hall of Fame slugger Hank Aaron near the end of his career.
“He was a tough AP reporter, and he asked Aaron why he took a certain pitch,” Serafin said. “And people looked at him like, ‘How could you ask Henry Aaron that?’ He was asking the home-run king a tough question that nobody else wanted to ask him at the time.”
Tybor also worked at the National Law Journal and served in the U.S. Army from 1969 to 1971.
Visitation will be Tuesday from 3 to 9 p.m. at Hallowell & James Funeral Home, 1025 W. 55th St. in Countryside.
Mass begins at 10 a.m. Wednesday at St. Cletus Parish, 600 W. 55th St. in La Grange.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to the Block Center for Integrative Cancer Treatment in Skokie or the National Pancreatic Cancer Foundation.