Thomas J. Moran, Class of 1950

Former chief justice of the Illinois Supreme Court

Thomas Moran is a former Illinois Supreme Court chief justice who spent more than fifty years in public service. After graduating from Chicago-Kent in 1950, he began his career in the private sector, but after six years, was elected State’s Attorney for Lake County. In 1958, he was elected Probate Judge and in April 1961, he was elected Circuit Judge of the 19th Judicial Circuit. After serving as Chief Judge for the 19th Judicial Circuit, Justice Moran was appointed to the 2nd District vacancy on the Illinois Appellate Court in January 1964 and was thereafter elected to and retained in that position.

After thirteen years on the Appellate Court, including serving as Presiding Judge, Justice Moran was elected to the Illinois Supreme Court in November 1976. He served as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court from 1988 through 1990. During his career, Justice Moran was a member of the Executive Committee of the Appellate Judges Conference and served as chairman of the American Bar Association’s Judicial Administration Division Committee on Technology and the Courts. He also taught New York University Law School seminars conducted for state Supreme Court justices and federal Appellate Court judges. He passed away in 1995.