Sanjay T. Tailor Sworn In As Illinois Supreme Court Justice
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India-West News Desk
CHICAGO, IL – Justice Sanjay T. Tailor, a veteran jurist with more than two decades of service on trial and appellate courts, was sworn in to the Illinois Supreme Court on January 30, becoming the first Asian American to serve on the state’s highest court.
The installation ceremony was held in Chicago and was conducted by Chief Justice P. Scott Neville. Justice Tailor was accompanied by his wife and their three children. Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi was among the dignitaries in attendance and offered remarks during the program. The swearing in ceremony was carried live on local television channels.
“I am honored by the trust and confidence placed in me by the justices of the Illinois Supreme Court,” Justice Tailor said in his remarks. “I look forward to continuing the work of the court to ensure that our system of justice serves all people fairly and equitably.”
Justice Tailor has served as a judge since 2003. His judicial career began as an associate judge in the Circuit Court of Cook County, a position he held until 2021. In January 2021, the Illinois Supreme Court appointed him as a circuit judge and simultaneously named him presiding judge of the Circuit Court’s County Division, making him the first Asian American presiding judge in Illinois. The following year, he was elected to the position of Cook County Circuit Judge, receiving 81 percent of the vote.
In 2022, the Illinois Supreme Court assigned Justice Tailor to serve as a justice of the Illinois Appellate Court, First District. During his tenure on the appellate bench, he served as presiding judge of the Sixth Division and also sat on the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission Division of the court.
Before joining the judiciary, Justice Tailor practiced law as an associate at Chapman and Cutler and later as in house counsel at the First National Bank of Chicago. He earned his Juris Doctor degree from Loyola University Chicago School of Law, graduating cum laude. He later returned to Loyola, where he taught a course on Illinois civil procedure for two decades. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in biological sciences from the University of Delaware.
In addition to his judicial duties, Justice Tailor has been active in legal education and community service. He serves as a board trustee of the Illinois Judicial College, which oversees continuing education and training for Illinois judges. He is a past chair of the India Committee of the American Bar Association’s Section of International Law and a founding director of the South Asian Bar Association of Chicago.
Justice Tailor has also held leadership roles in community organizations, including serving as a past president and board director of Apna Ghar, a domestic violence agency serving the Asian American community in the Chicago area. For 25 years, he served as a board director of Impact for Equity, a public interest law and policy center focused on addressing racial, economic, and social injustice in Chicago’s underserved communities.
