Stuart H. Shiffman

Having spent 26 years as a circuit court judge and nine years as an assistant state’s attorney, Stuart H. Shiffman delights in tackling complex legal cases that are being appealed to higher courts.

His broad and deep experience on the judicial bench, which ranges from multimillion-dollar civil disputes to death penalty criminal trials to small claims cases, enables him to pick out the key legal issues from a judge’s perspective and to deliver winning arguments on his clients’ behalf.

Having additionally spent almost three years in the State Appellate Defender’s Office, Stuart understands how important it is for ordinary citizens to have the quality legal representation they deserve. That’s why he prides himself on delivering top-of-the-line services to current clients who have domestic or family problems or who have been accused of crimes.

When he’s not making life better for FeldmanWasser clients, Stuart can be found teaching the next generation of attorneys at the University of Illinois at Springfield and at Illinois State University. He also takes great pleasure in writing about legal and other topics for Springfield’s Illinois Times, BookReporter.com and ABA Journal.

Education

• DePaul University College of Law, J.D., 1974
• Northwestern University, B.A., political science, history, 1970

Cases and Results

• Succeeded in getting a court to overturn a lower court’s divorce trial ruling that had denied a client maintenance support that she desperately needed.
• As a defense attorney, argued several death penalty cases before the Illinois Supreme Court.
• Successfully argued one of the first death penalty cases before the Illinois Supreme Court shortly after the death penalty was newly reinstated in the 1970s.
• Served in the Opinions Division of the Illinois attorney general, administering legal advice to leaders and managers in various governmental organizations.

Professional Memberships

Scribes: The American Society of Legal Writers

• President, 2007-2010

American Bar Association

• Standing Committee on Gavel Awards, chairman, 1988-1990

Employment

• 7th Judicial Circuit Court of Illinois, associate circuit judge, 1983-2009
• Sangamon County, assistant state’s attorney, 1976-1983

Teaching Experience

“Introduction to the Law,” Illinois State University at Bloomington-Normal, 2013-2014

Publications

“The Constitutional Debates,” 89 Judicature 326, 2006

 “Judicial Biographies: A Sampling,” 39 Judges Journal vol. 3, 38, 2000

Presentations

“The Darrow Trials, Law and War,” IICLE, 2009-2010

“Evidence, Family Law, Law and Literature, Great Trials,” University of Illinois Springfield, 2002-2008