Steven A. Kozicki
Alex Kaplan
In the days leading up to the March 15 primary election, the Daily Law Bulletin will publish responses to questionnaires sent to candidates in all contested Cook County judicial races. Campaign finance information comes from Illinois State Board of Elections reports.
Name: Alex Kaplan
Age: 41
Party: Republican
Current residence: Glencoe
Current position: Owner, Kaplan Law Offices P.C. in Northbrook
Past legal experience: As a law clerk, I started working at Sudakem, Rosenberg & Cassidy (now Sudekum, Cassidy & Shulruff Chtd.) and, in 2000, when I was licensed, I became an associate. Shortly thereafter, I started my own law firm (with a partner at the time).
I have worked on a whole gamut of legal issues, ranging from insurance defense to plaintiff’s personal injury, contract litigation, divorce work, criminal defense, consumer and business bankruptcies (Chapter 7) and have transnational experience in real estate (both commercial and residential) and business transactions. During the past 15 years of practice, I have litigated all of these cases, many going to jury trials.
Campaign funds available, July 1 to Dec. 31: $4,291.63
Campaign funds spent, July 1 to Dec. 31: $2,805.57
Chicago Bar Association finding: Did not participate in evaluation process, automatically considered “Not Recommended.”
Law school: IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law, 2000
Campaign website: electalexkaplan.com
Family: Wife, Jennifer; children Hannah, 11; Max, 9; and Alexis, 6.
Hobbies/Interests: Spending time with my family (there never seems to be enough time with the Jennifer and the kids); equestrian activities.
Have you run for office before?
No.
Why should voters support your candidacy?
I have the broad range of legal experience with clients and the law to understand that being a good judge incorporates all aspects of the law. I have seen bankruptcy law applied in dissolution of marriage cases, and real estate/title law applied in criminal cases. Knowing the multifaceted interactions of the law is salient to being a good jurist. Additionally, I immigrated to the United States as a Jewish refugee in 1978 with my family. Growing up in a multicultural and multilingual home has given me a kaleidoscopic perception, and appreciation, of peoples’ differences, which I have come to respect and cherish.
Why do you want to be a judge?
I believe that my professional and personal history have laid the foundation for me to be an honest, industrious and tempered jurist. I was brought up in a home that fostered respect for personal achievement and social consciousness. Getting elected to the bench, especially in Cook County, would be a personal highlight in my career, while simultaneously giving me a chance to serve my community with the skills, education and personal history that I have. I believe that this is one of the most honorable achievements of an attorney.
What was the most interesting case you handled as a lawyer?
Easy: all of them. The most important and interesting aspect of my practice is focusing on my clients. What is most engaging is not just their legal issues, but the underlying personal and social problems that bring the legal issues about. Every client is different; every client comes with an intriguing history; and the personal, social and economic nuances of each individual makes every case that much more interesting (for different reasons) than the one before. I enjoy the practice of law because of my client’s “human” legal problems; I very much hope to bring that same appreciation to the bench.
What would you consider your greatest career accomplishment?
My greatest career accomplishment, I would like to think, is that I have generated the respect and confidence of my clients. Sure, I’ve had “great” victories in court; jury verdicts in my favor where I thought that we couldn’t win; jury/judge verdicts for more money than I thought we could get. Every attorney has great days (and facts to bring those days about) as well as days that are not so great. However, my “greatest career accomplishment” is the relationship that I’ve fostered with my clients.
What qualities do you plan to the bench?
Integrity, honesty, even-handedness. I believe that I can bring a perspective to the bench that is respectful of the litigants as well as the attorneys presenting their arguments. I also believe that I have the personal qualities, coupled with a sound understanding and appreciation of the law, to make fair decisions, taking into consideration that with every decision, human beings and lives are being affected and influenced.
Name: Steven A. Kozicki
Age: 56
Party: Republican
Current residence: Prospect Heights
Current position: Owner, the Law Offices of Steven A. Kozicki in Park Ridge
Past legal experience: Trial attorney/owner, Law Offices of Steven A. Kozicki, 1998-present; trial attorney, Judge & James Ltd., 1989-98; DuPage County assistant public defender, 1986-89; Rule 711 prosecutor, DuPage County state’s attorney’s office, 1983-86.
Campaign funds available, July 1 to Dec. 31: $2,500
Campaign funds spent, July 1 to Dec. 31: $2,500
Chicago Bar Association finding: Qualified
Law school: Loyola University Chicago School of Law, 1985.
Campaign website: StevenKozickiforJudge.com
Family: Wife of 27 years, Patricia Regan Kozicki; children Daniel, 25, David, 24, and Megan, 21
Hobbies/interests: Running, snow skiing, hockey, auto mechanics and yoga.
Have you ever run for office before?
No.
Why should voters support your candidacy?
Voters should support my candidacy because, if they or one of their loved ones ever had a case in front of me, they will have a judge hearing the case who will be fair but firm. They will have a judge who works hard to know the law, who has integrity, who loves people and who deeply loves the United States of America and the philosophy behind the laws that make it the best country in the world.
Why do you want to be a judge?
The varied and extensive litigation experience that I have had makes me somewhat unique in the legal profession, and the knowledge I have gained from this experience will make the work of being a circuit court judge second nature to me. Being addressed as “your honor” would also serve to remind me of the great trust society has placed in me and, rather than being a boost to my ego, act as a constant and daily challenge to me to live up to the title. Additionally, I want to be a judge because, at the age of 56, I am noticing that many of the judges who are now sitting on the bench are younger and less experienced than me.
What was the most interesting case you handled as a lawyer?
The most interesting case I handled as a lawyer was a case where I represented a woman who was accused of poisoning her husband to death the day after he received the winning Illinois Lottery check. The case required me to do some great work as a lawyer that wasn’t necessarily in the courtroom, because my client needed to be protected from herself and the media, and my client needed me to be a steady voice of reason amid the chaos.
The case received international notoriety and unrelenting press coverage, but the reason I found it interesting was because I got to learn about cyanide poisoning from my oldest son, Daniel, who had just studied it in medical school. It was an interesting juxtaposition.
What would you consider your greatest career accomplishment?
Receiving ratings of “qualified” and “recommended” from the judicial screening committees of the Alliance of Bar Associations and The Chicago Bar Association have been my greatest career accomplishments. These ratings, and the extensive investigation and evaluation process they represent, tell me that I’ve arrived at certain point in my career. It is a point where other lawyers and judges whom I’ve admired, copied, liked and respected for many years, think that I would make a good judge.
What qualities do you plan to bring to the bench?
I would bring integrity, patience, a diligent work ethic, a good mind, an optimistic view of the world and a basic respect for people to the bench.