TRIAL COURT ADMINISTRATION Thomas R. Jakeway, Trial Court Administrator
The Trial Court Administration Office supports the judges of the Seventeenth Circuit Court. The Court Administration staff works under the supervision and direction of the Chief Judge. The office manages court operations and provides guidance for day-to-day operations and long-term decisions. The office is responsible for collaboration and coordination with judges, court personnel, legal professionals, and other justice system stakeholders to address systemic issues, improve court processes, and implement policies and procedures to ensure the smooth functioning of the court system. Responsibilities include:
Court Administration is dedicated to ensuring equal and timely access to the court and related services, conducting performance measurement for purposes of continuous improvement, and maintaining a safe and secure work environment. Court Administration is also actively involved in grant administration, judicial internship programs, and web-site management.
Left: Court Reporting Supervisor, Tammy Gulley, addresses area students.
Court Reporting Services employees are responsible for making a full reporting of the courtroom proceedings presented in the trial court. It is the duty of these court reporting employees to record verbatim all that is said during every court proceeding to which they are assigned.
Presently there are a total of twenty-three court reporting employees assigned to the 17th Judicial Circuit Court. Winnebago County maintains a staff of six Official Court Reporters and twelve Court Specialists. Boone County maintains a staff of two Official Court Reporters. One supervisor maintains overall staff operations with two assistant supervisors responsible for daily department operations. All staff are assigned to courtrooms on a rotating schedule to evenly distribute workloads and transcript volume. All Official Court Reporters are Certified Shorthand Reporters licensed by the Illinois Department of Financial & Professional Regulation.
The Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts (AOIC) has installed digital recording equipment in all of the courtrooms in both Winnebago and Boone Counties. All civil courtrooms and select felony courtrooms are currently using digital recording as the official record. All of the Court Reporting Services employees are to be trained and certified by the AOIC to operate this equipment.