[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 146 (Thursday, September 19, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Page S6208]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       TRIBUTE TO JAMES L. PALMER

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I have served on the Senate Judiciary 
Committee for more than 20 years, including the most recent 3-and-a-
half years as chair. I have come to know many of the dedicated 
professionals across our Nation who have devoted their careers to the 
law, the Constitution, and equal justice. Next month, one of those 
dedicated professionals, Jim Palmer, of Quincy, IL, will be celebrating 
his 50th year as a litigator.
  A Quincy native, Jim is Illinois educated through and through--having 
earned his undergraduate degree from Quincy University and his law 
degree from the University of Illinois College of Law. After graduating 
from law school, he served as a law clerk for the Fourth District 
Appellate Court in Springfield. And following that, Jim worked as an 
associate and then made his way to partner at a law firm, spending the 
rest of his career with his name on the door of that practice. His 
experience has spanned a wide range of legal issues, from estate 
planning to insurance defense to complex litigation. For much of his 
career, he has also concentrated on issues involving questions 
interpreting Federal statutes and the U.S. Constitution.
  Throughout his life, Jim's commitment to the law also inspired him to 
give back to his community, Illinois, and the country. For nearly three 
decades, Jim served as a member of the Attorney Registration & 
Disciplinary Commission of the Illinois Supreme Court. And in Adams 
County, IL, he tried criminal cases--serving as a part-time public 
defender representing indigent defendants and later as a part-time 
assistant State's attorney. In all of these endeavors, Jim used his 
knowledge of the law to help advance that ever-important goal of equal 
justice.
  But if you don't take my word about how excellent of an attorney Jim 
is, his awards and recognition speak for themselves. He is a graduate 
of the National Institute for Trial Advocacy, a recipient of the 
Liberty Bell Award from the Illinois State Bar Association, and a 
member of the Leading Lawyer Network, where he has been recognized as 
an outstanding defense counsel and general civil litigator in the 
State.
  But more than just practicing law, Jim has taken it upon himself to 
teach the law. Since 1979, Jim has taught classes including criminal 
law, criminal procedure, and constitutional law at Quincy University, 
helping to mold the next generation of lawyers, judges, and legal 
scholars. He also lectures on a regular basis for the Pursuit of 
Learning in Society--POLIS--a program sponsored by Quincy University 
that allows retired adults to continue the lifelong journey of 
learning.
  Jim, congratulations on 50 years of legal practice. Illinois' legal 
profession is stronger with you in it. I am lucky to call you a friend. 
To your wife Ann; your children Mark, Jennifer, and Christopher; and 
your grandchildren Luke, Eli, Dylan, and William Michael, you should be 
incredibly proud of Jim. I hope you all take time to be outside, 
travel, and maybe even pet some Newfoundland dogs in celebration of 
this momentous milestone.

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