Associate Judge James Eder Announces Retirement

Associate Judge James J. Eder of the Fourth Judicial Circuit of Illinois has announced that he will be retiring at the end of 2020, after 19 ½ years on the bench.

Eder first took the oath of office as an associate judge on July 27, 2001, at a swearing-in ceremony held at the old Effingham County courthouse.  He was initially appointed to complete the 4-year term of a retiring associate judge. Subsequently, he was reappointed in 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015 and 2019 to five successive 4-year terms.  In Illinois, the associate judges of a judicial circuit are appointed by a vote of the elected circuit judges of that circuit.  The Fourth Judicial Circuit has 12 elected circuit judges and 7 appointed associate judges.

For the past 19 years, Eder has served on the Local Rules Committee of the Fourth Circuit, which drafts amendments and additions to the rules of practice to be followed throughout the Circuit.  Eder also served on the steering committee of the Fourth Circuit’s Family Violence Coordinating Council since 2002; and in 2014, he was appointed as its Co-Chair.  In addition, since 2014, Eder has served as a mentor for new judges, under the New Judge Mentoring Program, which was established by the Illinois Supreme Court. 

“Serving as a judge has been a great privilege, and I am very grateful for having had the opportunity to do so,” Eder said.  “It has been a responsibility that I always have taken very seriously.  I have tried my best to give the same degree of attention and consideration to every case, large or small, because each case is important to the parties involved.”      

During his years as a judge, Eder has conducted court in all 9 counties of the Fourth Circuit, but he served most often as the presiding judge of the civil docket in Effingham County.  The Circuit is comprised of the following counties:  Christian, Clay, Clinton, Effingham, Fayette, Jasper, Marion, Montgomery, and Shelby.   

"Judge Eder is our most senior judge in the Fourth Judicial Circuit,” said Fourth Circuit Chief Judge Kimberly Koester.  “His experience and expertise is something that will be missed and hard to replace.  I truly thank Judge Eder for his years of dedication to this wonderful profession and the people of the Fourth Circuit."

Eder graduated from the University of Notre Dame with a B.A. in 1976, and from the University of Illinois College of Law with a J.D. in 1979.  He was sworn in as an attorney over 41 years ago, on November 5, 1979.  He had been in the private practice of law for nearly 22 years before becoming a judge. He started his legal career at a Chicago law firm, where he worked for 2 years, before moving to Effingham to join the firm of Dale F. Wolff & Associates, P.C., which eventually became known as Taylor Law Offices, P.C., where he engaged in the general practice of law, concentrating primarily in civil litigation, for 20 years.  He served as President of the Effingham County Bar Association in 1995, during which term he organized the presentation of a “People’s Law School,” co-sponsored by the Illinois State Bar Association, consisting of five weekly public seminars on various areas of the law.

In addition to his professional endeavors, Eder was active in a variety of civic, church, and charitable organizations, before and after becoming judge. He served on the St. Anthony of Padua parish finance council for 21 years from 1987 to 2008, and as a Trustee of the St. Anthony Catholic Church Educational Trust from 1995 to 2001.  In 1989, he developed the Effingham Rotary Club Scholarship program, which he chaired for over 25 years, awarding annual scholarships to graduating seniors from Effingham High School and St. Anthony High School.  He also coached the junior varsity and varsity scholastic bowl teams of St. Anthony High School for 3 years, culminating in an IHSA Sectional Championship and appearance at the State Finals in 2000.    

Eder lives in Effingham with his wife, Cindy, who has worked as a teacher and substitute teacher at St. Anthony High School for the past 30 years and is involved as a volunteer with several organizations. They have two adult children and five grandchildren.