Hon. Joan Humphrey Lefkow See Rating Details
District Judge See Comments
N.D.Ill.  
Average Rating:4.9 - 17 rating(s)
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Ratings
*Temperament:   (1=Awful,10=Excellent)
*Scholarship:   (1=Awful,10=Excellent)
*Industriousness:   (1=Not at all industrious,10=Highly industrious)
*Ability to Handle Complex Litigation:    (1=Awful,10=Excellent)
*Punctuality:    (1=Chronic`y Late,10=Always on Time)
*Evenhandedness in Civil Litigation:    (1=Demonstrates Bias,10=Entirely Evenhanded)
*Evenhandedness in Criminal Litigation:   (1=Demonstrates Bias,10=Entirely Evenhanded)
Flexibility In Scheduling   (1=Completely Inflexible,10=Very Flexible)
General Inclination Regarding Bail (1=Pro-Defense,10=Pro-Government)
General Inclination in Criminal Cases, Pre-Trial:   (1=Pro-Defense,10=Pro-Government)
Involvement in Civil Settlement Discussions:   (1=Least Involved,10=Most Involved)
General Inclination in Criminal Cases, Trial:    (1=Pro-Defense,10=Pro-Government)
General Inclination in Criminal Cases, Sentencing:    (1=Most Lenient,10=Most Harsh)
Typical Discount Off Guidelines for Cooperators:    (1=10%,10=100%)
  Items marked with (*) are averaged into the displayed overall rating
Comments


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What others have said about Hon. Joan Humphrey Lefkow


Comments


Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: 33284
Rating:2.6
Comments:
Very disappointed in this jurist. She demonstrated a pronounced and malicious bias against my clients early and often in the course of proceedings. Her analysis of issues often seemed superficial and driven by agenda/outcome rather than by merits. Its very disheartening to practice before such a judge.

Send e-mail to this poster 5/5/2020 11:43:38 AM

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: 32858
Rating:10.0
Comments:
I don't understand the comments about her. Being mean. She is the kindest judge on the bench. She is also smart and fair.

Send e-mail to this poster 10/30/2019 12:42:36 AM

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: 23927
Rating:1.3
Comments:
Horrible, Horrible judge. She really makes you want to rethink the wisdom of lifetime appointments.

Send e-mail to this poster 10/20/2016 10:05:15 PM

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: 22043
Rating:3.1
Comments:
Lefkow, this Judge lacks wisdom and mercy. She speaks about the Law as if it her duty to apply it like the book of rule. No common sense and no sense of human being involved. 1 2 3 close.

She went to law school yet she did not learn anything about moral values and treating people nicely in her court room. Impatient and wicked.

Lacks wisdom, gets angry fast, and shows her facial dissatisfaction toward both plaintiff and defendant when she hates a specific argument.

Lets not forget to talk about pro-se litigant, she hates dealing with them.

The Gov should not keep Judges who cannot handle cases promptly and fairly and most important with wisdom. Unfortunately, only few judges are raised to be wise, good overall judges.

Lefkow should seriously retire because she isn't capable of being a Judge. The word "Judge" has a lot of deep meaning, she doesn't understand it.

Send e-mail to this poster 8/30/2014 11:00:42 AM

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: 19593
Rating:9.7
Comments:
Excellent, fair and decisive judge with a great personality.

Send e-mail to this poster 2/22/2013 11:18:58 PM

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: 18555
Rating:1.0
Comments:
Judge lefkow lacks wisdom with her ruling and if she was given the law vs. using her wisdom to save a life. She would outright use the law and call it a tough life. A good judge is a judge who possesses wisdom and balances the circumstances of every case by using the law.

Judge lefkow should step down from the bench. Her age plays a big role in her rulings, the judicial system should impose a restriction on when a judge should retire from the bench. Old judges tend to be impatient, tired, and lack of wisdom.

If Judge lefkow lacks the time to resolve cases fairly, then her role as a judge fails severely.

Send e-mail to this poster 9/11/2012 5:13:21 AM

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: 17979
Rating:3.3
Comments:
Judge Lefkow lacks genuine kindness. She is a judge who makes up her mind way too quickly. Not at all open-minded and does not listen fairly to legal arguments.

She smirks and her strange facial expressions are extremely visible in the court and a lawyer could determine from the start of the case who she favors.

Send e-mail to this poster 5/19/2012 1:03:47 PM

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: 13888
Rating:1.3
Comments:
I believe it is time for Judge Lefkow to resign. She doesn't even try to pretend anymore, always striving to terminate cases by jumping to fast conclusions and remove them from her docket rather than spend the time and issue prominent and fair rulings.

She demonstrates bias against plaintiffs in civil rights and employment litigation. Does not read the briefs and does not care. Once she's made up her mind, forget any attention paid to true evidence no matter how wrong the other side is.

Send e-mail to this poster 4/11/2012 7:17:26 AM

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: 13414
Rating:1.6
Comments:
She will try to toss away as many Pro Se litigant cases off her deck as much as she can. I find it hard when someone here said that her reputation for being soft on plaintiffs, especially Pro Se plaintiff's.

I'd wish that Judge Joan Lefkow would give Pro Se litigants a chance and to be respectful to all parties and treat plaintiffs and defendants the way anyone would treat her as a person.

Judges here like Lefkow don't understand that they are the ones making decisions and their decisions has to be accurate and fair and not rushed because they are the ones who live with it.

Send e-mail to this poster 1/31/2012 8:14:44 PM

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: 10643
Rating:1.5
Comments:
The poster child for reconsideration of lifetime appointments.

Send e-mail to this poster 7/26/2010 12:06:09 PM

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: 10531
Rating:1.5
Comments:
I really want to like this Judge. But but she is so disrespectful to counsel and witnesses in her courtroom that it is impossible to even tolerate her. She smirks, makes sarcastic comments, makes strange facial expressions,and calls counsel and witnesses by terms such as "Hey you". If you argue a postion that she has already made up her mind is wrong, she and her clerks literally laugh in your face. I understand this woman has had great tragedy in her life, but this is he Federal Bar, if she cannot even show a modicum of respect for the process, she does nto belong on the bench.

Send e-mail to this poster 7/20/2010 8:03:54 AM

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: 10195
Rating:8.2
Comments:
Judge Lefkow is able and willing to sort through difficult legal issues and understands complex issues. However, she has a tendency to let motions sit on her docket awaiting ruling. In my experience, she is decisive, if not as prompt as I would have wished.

Send e-mail to this poster 5/18/2010 11:42:29 AM

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: 10150
Rating:8.0
Comments:
Is very indecisive. As a plaintiff in a Title VII case, I had a civil jury with her last year where she allowed a juror who was a defendant in a pending civil rights cases to sit. She tries to be fair, but she waffles. I settled because I did not want the risk of her undecisiveness.

Send e-mail to this poster 5/5/2010 4:15:50 AM

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: 8707
Rating:5.2
Comments:
She does not strike me as particularly bright. She favors the government at trial tending to let them lead her into making pro-government decisions, however she is very good at sentencing for the defense.

Send e-mail to this poster 5/27/2009 1:46:18 PM

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: 8483
Rating:6.0
Comments:
Weak, cannot rule, hates conflict.

Send e-mail to this poster 3/30/2009 1:53:33 PM

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: 2953
Rating:9.6
Comments:
One of the best judges and one of the best persons to have ever been a judge. Highly respected and admired and for good reason!!!!!!!!!

Send e-mail to this poster 11/6/2006 7:40:46 PM

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: 2234
Rating:8.8
Comments:
She is probably the nicest judge in the building (or in statistically insignificant tie with Judge Blanche Manning for that title). Her reputation for being soft on plaintiffs, especially pro se plaintiff's, is the stuff of local legend, long before the unfortunate incident that happened last year. Overall, she is competent, professional, and pleasant.

Send e-mail to this poster 9/12/2006 3:27:03 PM