The Illinois Supreme Court held oral arguments in two cases before an audience at Western Illinois University on March 11. About 500 students, community leaders, and members of the public attended the event.
Following the arguments, a question-and-answer session took place with Ninth Judicial Circuit Court Judges Heidi Benson and Nigel Graham, as well as attorney Emily Sutton. This gave attendees an opportunity to engage directly with legal professionals about the proceedings.
The tradition of holding Supreme Court sessions outside Springfield is known as “riding the circuit.” This practice began in medieval England when judges traveled to local communities so people could see how laws were applied. The United States adopted this idea at its founding, requiring justices to travel so that citizens would understand and trust the new courts. In Illinois, riding the circuit was common after statehood in 1818 until it ended with the adoption of the 1848 Constitution.
Prior to this session in Macomb, recent off-site meetings of the court have been held in Mt. Vernon (2008), Ottawa (2014), Lisle (2016), Champaign (2018), Godfrey (2019), Chicago (2023), DeKalb (2024), and Carbondale (2025).
The event was sponsored by several organizations including the Illinois Supreme Court, Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts, Supreme Court Historic Preservation Commission, and WIU Foundation. Photos from this event are available online.
Holding these sessions outside Springfield allows more people across Illinois to observe court proceedings firsthand and learn about judicial processes.
