Sonni Choi Williams

Name: Sonni Choi Williams

Age (as of Election Day): 53

Residence: Lockport

Current position and employer: City Attorney, City of Lockport

Past legal experience with years of each job: City Attorney for the City of Lockport, 5 years to current; Deputy Corporation Counsel/Interim Corporation Counsel/ Senior Staff Attorney/ Assistant Corporation Counsel for City of Peoria, Illinois, 17 and 1/2 years; Tazewell County Public Defender's office assigned to juvenile delinquency and abuse/neglect cases, less than a year; Williams and Associates, Associate in general practice, less than a year.

Law school, year graduated: Northern Illinois University College of Law, 1999.

Campaign website: vote4sonni.com

Family: Husband: Dick (Rich) B. Williams and two sons: Ian and Alex.

Hobbies/interests: I'm an avid runner, having run marathons, half marathons, and 5Ks. When I have time, I love to cook for my family.

Have you ever run for office before? Yes, the 2016 Primary for the Peoria County Circuit Judge-Brandt Vacancy

Why should voters support your candidacy?

I am the best candidate who will bring the 3rd District Appellate Court forward to reflect the community that it serves, especially considering the newly remapped 3rd District that includes DuPage, Will, Kankakee, Iroquois, Grundy, LaSalle, and Bureau Counties. I have a broad range of experience from being an assistant public defender, prosecutor, general practitioner, and a long career as a public servant for two municipalities, and I have handled cases from the trial court levels to the appellate court levels in state and federal courts as well as the Illinois Supreme Court. I bring humility to the bench overcoming obstacles growing up as a poor immigrant to become a successful attorney. My humble background has driven my passion to give back to the community through my service on various organizations such as Prairie State Legal Services and the Illinois Bar Foundation whose missions are to improve access to justice.

Who is/was your most important mentor and why?

As a woman lawyer in a profession that still needs more women in leadership positions including as judges, my most important mentors include Illinois Supreme Court Judge Rita Garman and U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg. Both faced and overcame obstacles of getting jobs after graduating top of their classes in their respective law schools. I have been fortunate to meet both of them in person and I was amazed at how down-to-earth and approachable both of these trailblazers were to me. I still remember meeting Justice Ginsberg (notorious RBG) after she was admitted to the U.S. Supreme Court in 2014 and how petite and frail that she seemed, but the moment that she spoke, she commanded the room.

What are your thoughts on a hybrid in-person and remote future for the courts?

I believe that hybrid in-person and remote court settings are here to stay, and such settings benefit attorneys who do not have to travel for a mere case management conference or a status call and their clients who will not be billed for such travel time. The option of remote participation on a status call could have saved the life of a young associate in a law firm in Peoria who died in a tragic weather-related vehicular accident. He was driving back from a rural county for a status call on a case that he was covering for a partner in the firm when his vehicle was hit head-on by a semi-trailer truck that lost control from the winter storm condition. Although his tragic death occurred over 17 years ago before the option of virtual hearing was readily available, the mechanics of a telephone conference was available at the time and could have been used, but the court rules did not allow for such remote participation.

What would you consider your greatest career accomplishment?

I had the opportunity to argue one of the last federal appeals cases that Judge Posner of the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals heard before he retired. The plaintiffs were seeking a multi-million dollar judgment against the city and county defendants for unjust enrichment. I knew that Judge Posner had a reputation of being intimidating, but I found him to be delightful and he actually cracked some funny comments about the opposing side’s arguments. Ultimately I ended up winning for the city and county defendants and it was a good way of ending my almost 18 years working for the City of Peoria to be appointed as the City Attorney of Lockport where I currently serve and live.

What qualities do you plan to bring to the bench?

I have a broad range of experience from being an assistant public defender, prosecutor, general practitioner, and a long career as a public servant for two municipalities, and have directly handled cases from the trial court levels to the appellate court levels in state and federal courts as well as the Illinois Supreme Court. Because I have worked mostly in the public sector and not in private practice, I often had to handle cases ranging from ordinance cases to complex federal cases alone without another attorney or even the assistance of administrative staff. I would not only try the cases before the trial court, but I would do the appellate work for those cases that were appealed. I bring my hard work ethics, the advantages of having a well-rounded experience, and the love of the law to hear appeals cases with an open-mind and patience needed to improve the public perception of a fair and impartial justice system.