Lake County Gazette

The Lake County Illinois GOP is hosting a reception for Judge Dan Shanes in his bid for Illinois Supreme Court on July 28 in Vernon Hills.

The two-hour event, hosted by Stephen Simonian and Larry Falbe at Tsukasa of Tokyo kicks off at 5:30 p.m.

Presently the presiding judge of the Felony Division in the 19th Judicial Circuit, Shanes was recently appointed chair of the Illinois Judicial College Board of Trustees by the state high court.

"It is an honor to serve in this position as the Judicial College rolls out education and training for all members of the judicial branch," Shanes told IllinoisCourts.gov. "These professional development efforts will enhance public trust and confidence in the integrity of the justice system."

Established in 2016, the Illinois Judicial College serves as the “governance structure to provide educational training and professional development programs to improve the skills, knowledge and competencies of the judges and employees of the Illinois Judicial Branch.”

The college has earned Illinois a national reputation for training judges as well as such justice partners as probation officers, court clerks, guardians ad litem, trial court administrators and members of judicial branch staff.

Shanes was first appointed to the bench in 2007 and by 2010 had been appointed as a circuit judge in the 19th Judicial Circuit. Since then, he’s been reelected in two different cycles (2012 and 2018).

Shanes previously served as presiding judge of the Misdemeanor/Traffic Division. Before joining the bench, he was an assistant state's attorney for the Lake County State's Attorney's Office for 12 years, including being one of the founding team members credited with creating Lake County's Drug Court.

Over the last several years, Shanes has served as a member of the Illinois Judicial Conference and as a vice chair for the Illinois Supreme Court Committee on pattern jury instructions for criminal cases.

Shanes earned his bachelor of arts from the University of Iowa and his juris doctor from the DePaul University College of Law.