The Illinois Supreme Court has assigned Cook County Circuit Judge Mary Lane Mikva to the 1st District Appellate Court.

The high court’s announcement Tuesday means Mikva will fill the vacancy created when Justice Laura Liu died in April after a five-year battle with breast cancer. The assignment is effective beginning July 15.

Mikva said the news has been slightly overwhelming, but she is excited for the opportunity to sit on a bench that will allow her to hear many different kinds of cases, including those in new areas of law or ones she hasn’t visited for many years.

“I haven’t done criminal law since I was a baby lawyer 30 years ago, but I’ve missed it and the issues that come up in those kinds of cases,” she said. “I’m excited to come back to some of those.”

But preparing to leave the Chancery Division is proving to be just as jarring as preparing to join her new colleagues on the appellate bench, she said.

“I’ve been here six years, and I’m certainly not bored and certainly feel challenged but somewhat competent at it finally, but now I have to go do something I have no idea how to do,” she said. “I think it’s challenging.”

Despite that, Mikva said she is thankful to be in a position where she can draw from experiences working for a legal system she believes in.

“It’s so far from perfect, but it’s superior to any other way of resolving conflicts because people do have conflicts,” she said. “I wish it was more accessible to people, and I wish it was easier for people to utilize, but I do believe in it as a method.”

Mikva comes from an extensive legal background in terms of both her career and her family.

She’s the daughter of 90-year-old Abner J. Mikva, who has served as both a state and U.S. representative, was later appointed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit and served as former President Bill Clinton’s White House counsel from October 1994 to November 1995.

But she has a varied background of her own. She started her legal career as a law clerk in both Illinois federal court and the U.S. Supreme Court before spending the next 22 years primarily practicing labor law in state and federal courts. She was elected to a seat in Cook County’s 8th Judicial Subcircuit in 2004.

Some of Mikva’s Chancery Division colleagues said they consider their loss to be the appellate court’s gain.

“As a trial judge, it’s so important for us to have people of her caliber reviewing decisions,” Associate Judge Rita M. Novak said. “She has a real depth of knowledge in the law, both as a practitioner as a judge. She is very smart and has at the same time the practical skills to understand the implications of her decisions, and she cares. She just cares.”

Circuit Judge Moshe Jacobius, who presides over the Chancery Division, said Mikva’s deep appreciation and understanding of the law shows in the opinions she issues.

“Her decisions are analytical and well-thought out and well-reasoned, and of course that means that the litigants and the attorneys benefit from an excellent jurist who is committed to the law and committed to doing an exceptional job,” he said.

Mikva also prepares monthly reports on changes to Supreme Court rules and helps ensure her colleagues stay updated on the law.

In that regard, Associate Judge Neil H. Cohen said he considers Mikva a role model for the division.

“It’s her bearing, that she’s non-confrontational, kind and courteous to the litigants,” he said. “They’re getting a star. She can’t be replaced, but we’ll do our best.”

The 1st District has 18 seats that are directly elected by voters in Cook County for 10-year terms and six others filled by assignment from the high court. Mikva will take one of those six spots.

The high court also announced on Tuesday that it appointed Clare J. Quish as an at-large Cook County circuit judge, effective June 28 until December 2018. The Schuyler, Roche & Crisham P.C. partner’s appointment will fill the vacancy created by former circuit judge Michelle D. Jordan’s January retirement.