When you meet Cook County Judge Joel Chupack, you immediately feel his warm personality and his compassion for others. Judge Chupack has been on the bench since being elected in November 2018.
Prior to taking the bench, Judge Chupack was in private practice (for over three decades) and was an arbitrator with the American Arbitration Association, where he earned widespread praise for his knowledge, fairness, and temperament. His law practice focused on real estate and commercial litigation.
Judge Chupack sits in the General Chancery Section (Chancery Division). Prior to his current assignment, Chupack was assigned to the Mortgage Foreclosure/Mechanics’ Lien Section (Chancery) and the Eviction Call (First Municipal Division).
During his time in Mortgage Foreclosure, Judge Chupack joined the Mortgage Foreclosure Bench Book team, where he remains a contributing editor,. During his time in Evictions, he drafted an eviction bench book for Cook County judges.
While in private practice Chupack volunteered in numerous pro bono programs. His commitment to pro bono services has continued since becoming a judge. He has collaborated with the General Counsel for the Center for Disability and Elder Law and the General Counsel for the Cook County Clerk to develop a pro bono and walk-in program for the public. He has participated in other pro bono opportunities, including IJA’s “Judges Go to School Day”.
Judge Chupack is a current member of the Civil Practice and Procedure Committee and the Animal Law Committee of the Illinois State Bar Association. He is a former chair of the ISBA’s Task Force on the Unauthorized Practice of Law and its Real Estate Law Section Council and is an Assembly Member. Judge Chupack is an active member in many other judicial and bar associations, including being a Past President of The Decalogue Society of Lawyers.
Being first generation from a mother orphaned by World War II and first generation to have gone to college, Judge Chupack does not take being a judge for granted. It took him a long time before he considered seeking a position in the judiciary. This was because he deeply cared for the clients he represented in his practice. Judge Chupack has brought that caring and compassion with him to the bench by making sure that every litigant is heard and that every decision is explained. Lawyers who have appeared before him note that he is diligent, that he arrives at hearings with a strong command of the facts and the law, and that he treats all parties with respect regardless of whether they are represented by counsel.