[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 10]
[Senate]
[Page 14115]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                CONGRATULATING JUDGE RENA MARIE VAN TINE

 Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, I rise to recognize and 
congratulate Rena Marie Van Tine of Chicago on her recent appointment 
as an Associate Judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County, IL. When she 
was sworn in on June 12, 2001, Ms. Van Tine became not only the first 
judge in Illinois of South Asian heritage, but the first female Indian 
American judge in the Nation.
  With a fast-growing community of Asian Americans in Cook County, it 
is important that the Judiciary reflects the diversity of the people it 
serves. I applaud Chief Judge Donald P. O'Connell and other Circuit 
Judges of Cook County for electing this outstanding lawyer to join them 
on the bench.
  Judge Van Tine is a highly experienced attorney with a distinguished 
record of service to the people of Illinois. She most recently served 
as Special Counsel to Illinois State Comptroller Daniel W. Hynes, in a 
position where she oversaw the regulation of approximately one billion 
dollars in Illinois consumer trust funds entrusted pursuant to the laws 
governing the cemetery and funeral industries.
  Prior to joining the Comptroller's Office, Judge Van Tine was a Cook 
County Assistant State's Attorney for 12 years. In this capacity she 
tried hundreds of cases, both in the Criminal Division where she 
prosecuted violent offenders, as well as in the Civil Division where 
she saved taxpayers millions of dollars in lawsuits.
  In addition to her public service positions, Judge Van Tine has been 
active with voluntary bar activities. A past president of the Asian 
American Bar Association and a former executive committee member of the 
Alliance of Bar Associations for Judicial Screening, she is currently 
on the board of the Women's Bar Association of Illinois, and is a 
founding member of the Chicago chapter of the Indian-American Bar 
Association.
  Her contributions to the legal profession are extensive. Judge Van 
Tine was an adjunct professor for Trial Advocacy at the Chicago-Kent 
College of Law, and has served as a mock judge for local and national 
moot court competitions. She has written a book chapter in the American 
Bar Association's publication of ``Dear Sisters, Dear Daughters: Words 
of Wisdom from Multicultural Women Attorneys Who've Been There and Done 
That.'' She also assisted in establishing a legal clinic at the Indo-
American Center, which has been providing legal assistance to the Asian 
American community since 1997.
  Judge Van Tine has made numerous appearances at law schools, bar 
programs, and symposiums to educate law students, attorneys, and 
community members about various aspects of law and issues affecting 
Asian Americans, such as hate crimes. She has also discussed the issue 
of running ethical judicial campaigns on a cable program aired by the 
Illinois Judges Association.
  Judge Van Tine is a member of the Fourth Presbyterian Church where 
she has participated in conducting Cabrini Green Health workshops for 
children, serving as a Cook County Hospital candy striper, and 
volunteering as a Sunday nursery school teacher.
  Judge Van Tine earned her law degree at New York Law School and her 
undergraduate degree from Oakland University. She has completed several 
graduate courses at Michigan State University focusing on inter-
cultural communication. Judge Van Tine has been married for 13 years to 
Matthew Van Tine, an attorney specializing in commercial and antitrust 
litigation. They have a young daughter named Kristen.
  As the senior Senator of the State of Illinois, I ask my colleagues 
to join me on the occasion of her appointment to the bench in 
congratulating Rena Marie Van Tine for all of her 
accomplishments.

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