Patricia M. Fallon
Patricia M. Fallon

Name: Patricia M. Fallon

Age (as of Election Day): 47

Current residence: Glenview

Current position: Cook County circuit judge, 2019-present

Past legal experience: Chief of Human Resources, Cook County Recorder of Deeds Office, 2017-19; supervisor, assistant state’s attorney, Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office, Labor and Employment Litigation Unit, 2015-17; deputy supervisor, assistant state’s attorney, Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office, Labor and Employment Litigation Unit, 2013-15; assistant state’s attorney, Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office, Labor and Employment Litigation Unit, 2004-13; contract attorney, Abbott Laboratories, 2002-04; contract attorney, Mayer Brown Rowe and Maw, 2000-02

Campaign funds available, July 1 to Dec. 31: $84,321.20

Campaign funds spent, July 1 to Dec. 31: $33,171.41

Law school: IIT Chicago Kent College of Law, 2000

Campaign website: patriciamfallon.com

Family: Married, two sons

Hobbies/interests: Spending time with family, exercising

Have you ever run for office before?

No.

Why should voters support your candidacy?

I think that the combination of my legal experience, as well as my temperament or suitability to the bench — the combination of those factors are why voters should support my candidacy.

I have extensive litigation experience, having spent the entirety of my career essentially in court with jury experience and also supervisory experience with the state’s attorney’s office, supervising 10 ASA’s and the management of their civil litigation.

My temperament and my suitability for the bench I think really make me an outstanding candidate and someone who the voters should support. I have the highest respect for the law. I am currently in the position and plan to continue treating all litigants who come become me and all parties fairly and with respect.

I think it’s so important the judge has the right temperament to maintain the proper tone and temperament for everybody’s experience in court. I’ve seen it more so now from a practical vantage point as the person sitting on the bench, and it’s been a wonderful and humbling experience. It’s been the best experience of my career.

I’m extremely reasonable, and one of my strengths as a state’s attorney was working on the tough cases that couldn’t be settled — the cases with a convoluted issue or a tough client. That was where they would send me in to quell things and fix them.

I just bring an array of life experience, practical legal experience. And I think my temperament, my reasonability, my respect for the law, my fair treatment of all parties, as well as court personnel — that’s extremely important to set the right tone.

For many people, sitting in court is their primary experience of the judiciary. And I think it’s important the judges are reflective of what we want in the circuit court and the tone that we want set and the experience we want people to have. Sometimes, it’s an unpleasant experience — you’re not coming away always happy with the result or the amount of money you might have to pay. But, I think if you treat people appropriately and with respect, you can really change their experience for the better.

Why do you want to continue to be a judge?

It has been the most significant experience of my legal career to have been appointed by a unanimous vote of the [Illinois] Supreme Court. It’s something that I’ve aspired to for years, but knowing how coveted the positions are and how difficult it would be to attain this goal, I always was reserved in my aspirations trying to prepare myself in case it didn’t happen.

Now that I’m here, it’s even more wonderful than I could have imagined in terms of the ability to know the other side of the bench and have this wonderful position with tremendous discretion, tremendous responsibility.

I take the position and the responsibilities that come with it very seriously. I’m working hard every day to become a better judge, because I think that I still have a lot to learn and the most wonderful thing about it is you are learning all of the time.

I want to keep the position, because I think I have a lot to offer to the citizens of Cook County in this role.

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

Probably one of the most interesting cases as I handled as a Cook County assistant state’s attorney was the [Barbara] Stanfield case.

It was a seven-count federal complaint that ranged from Title VII discrimination to [section] 1983 equal protection. There was a myriad of claims: hostile work environment, harassment. And it was a case that I worked on from its inception when I received it.

It ended up being a two-week jury trial that was quite involved that we brought in conflict counsel for the state’s attorney’s office to represent the main defendant.

I represented the sheriff’s office and Cook County. I second-chaired the jury trial, and we did get a verdict on behalf of the defendants on all counts. And it was a tremendous learning experience.

I drafted all pretrial orders, all jury instructions, motions in limine, motions for directed verdict. I got tremendous experience working on the trial.

What would you consider your greatest career accomplishment?

Being appointed to the bench by unanimous vote of the Supreme Court.

Second to that would be the positive bar ratings I’ve received from all the bar associations that have evaluated my credentials thus far.

What qualities do you believe you’ve brought to the bench and what do you plan to continue to bring to the bench?

Respect for the law, the ability to be impartial, to treat every person who appears before me — litigants and all other parties — fairly. And to ensure that the courtroom personnel are also treated with respect and fairness, and the court adheres to a certain level of decorum and follows a timeliness and fairness, and sets a tone for the benefit and experience of everyone in the courtroom.

My reasonability is another strength that I have, my life experience, and my ability to review each situation separately and determine the best course of action while, of course, maintaining the highest respect for the law and understanding my role as a judge.