Jonathan Clark Green
Jonathan Clark Green

Name: Jonathan Clark Green

Age: 57

Current residence: Chicago

Current position: Assistant corporation counsel supervisor, City of Chicago

Past legal experience: Senior counsel/ACC supervisor, City of Chicago Department of Law, Federal Civil Rights Division, 2008-present; assistant corporation counsel, City of Chicago Department of Law, Federal Civil Rights Division, 2003-07; arbitrator, Cook County Arbitration Program, 1996-2003, 2012-present; principal, Law Offices of Green & Green P.C. and of counsel, Rock Fusco & Garvey Ltd., 1998-2003; of counsel, Bowles Keating Hering Matuszewich & Fiordalisi, 1997-98; assistant Illinois attorney general, Civil Rights Unit, 1991-97; technical review attorney, Illinois House of Representatives, Office of the Speaker, 1991; of counsel, Law Offices of Virginia Bucko Green, 1990-91; visiting attorney, Lafili & Van Crombrugghe, Brussels, Belgium, 1989-90; fellow, American Society of International Law, 1986-89.

Campaign funds available, July 1 to Dec. 31: $102,349.21

Campaign funds spent, July 1 to Dec. 31: $81,382.99

Law school: J.D., IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law, 1986; LL.M., Georgetown University Law Center, 1994

Campaign website: jonathanclarkgreen.com

Family: Married to wife, Monica, for 17½ years; sole guardian of developmentally disabled older brother and sister at Little City Foundation in Palatine.

Hobbies/interests: Golf, history, Chicago-Paris Sister Cities activities, international law, architecture

Have you ever run for office before?

No.

Why should voters support your candidacy?

Everyone appearing before a judge deserves respect, an opportunity to be heard, and to be treated equally, no matter what their background, traditions, culture, religion, or economic position in life.

I have siblings with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and I have learned a great deal about the need to not stereotype people and always to be kind to people, and they have made me a more compassionate person.

As a judge, I will not only bring my over 30 years of legal experience, but also I will bring this philosophy, temperament, and behavior to the bench.

Why do you want to be a judge?

I aspire to be a judge because I want to do what I have committed my life to: helping others through public service, and ensuring everybody gets their day in court, whoever they may be.

My parents, both attorneys, instilled in me not only a love for the law, but an understanding of its true meaning and importance: fairness, Justice and respect for all, no matter where you are from, and no matter what your background or economic situation. I truly aspire to be a judge because I care about the rule of law.

What was the most interesting case you handled as a lawyer?

In the Hilsen case, one of America’s largest deadbeat-dad cases, I represented a women from a homeless shelter recognizing and enforcing her underlying child support and maintenance judgment in Illinois and, in cooperation with U.S. Attorney’s Office, overseas.

This international child support case involved one of the first felony charges under the new federal deadbeat dad laws. We were able to track the wealthy former spouse through Europe, Israel and South Africa, eventually bringing him to justice and bringing justice to my client.

It was featured on an Investigation Discovery documentary, where I was interviewed.

What would you consider your greatest career accomplishment?

My greatest career accomplishment is the satisfaction of serving my clients and making a difference in their lives, and, in the public sector, making a difference for the community I serve. Throughout my years in practice, bringing justice to those unjustly accused, peace of mind to those in need, opportunity and legal security to small businesses, and needed professional support to our public sector in service of the people, are what I have considered my greatest accomplishments, and I look forward to continuing to strive for those same goals on the bench for all who appear before me.

What qualities do you plan to bring to the bench?

I believe my temperament and life experience, as well as the great legal and practical mentoring I received through the years, from both my father, the late Hon. Albert Green of the Chancery Division of the Circuit Court of Cook County, and my mother, the late Virginia Bucko Green, a pioneering attorney in her own right who helped pave the way for future generations of female attorneys in Illinois, would be great assets for the bench.

I am also able to bring not only my over 30 years of legal experience to the bench, but also my life experiences in both the public and private legal sectors, with knowledge of the special demands each of those sectors experience.

My extensive litigation practice over the years in both state and federal courts, are important experiences to offer the bench. I also seek to bring my own experiences of being raised with developmentally disabled siblings to the bench, where I can contribute my knowledge of the special needs and sensitivities involved with raising and caring for such children and adults.