Judge Robert E. Gordon: Professional Background and Legal Expertise

Hon. Robert E. Gordon is a justice of the First District Appellate Court in Illinois. He was assigned to the Appellate Court by the Illinois Supreme Court in 2006.

Gordon first joined the judiciary in 1996 after he was appointed by the Illinois Supreme Court to serve as a circuit judge for the Cook County Circuit Court. During his tenure on the bench, he has served as the presiding justice of the First, Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Divisions and was an alternate on the Workers Comp Appellate Court for Cook County. Early in his judicial career, Gordon sat in Traffic Court in the First Municipal District and was then later assigned to the Law Division (2003 to 2006), where he remained until being assigned to the Appellate Court.

Gordon received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He then completed a J.D. at DePaul University Law School in 1962.

He began his legal career as a trial lawyer at a small insurance company and later tried cases for Aetna Insurance. Gordon then spent the next eighteen years working as a defense litigator until transitioning to plaintiff personal injury, malpractice litigation, trade dress, workers compensation, condemnation, commercial, franchising, zoning, and sports law. He practiced as a principal at Gordon & Brustin, Gordon, Brustin & Schaefer, Gordon, Schaefer & Gordon, and Gordon & Gordon, Ltd.

In addition to his private practice work, Gordon served as a village trustee (1975 to 1984) and was a special assistant attorney general (1985 to 1996).

His memberships have included the Jewish Judges of Illinois (past president), the Decalogue Society (board of managers), Local Board No.5 of the Illinois Draft Board (chairman), the United Council for Higher Education in Haiti (treasurer), and Operation PUSH.

Gordon has served on the ADR Committee of the Supreme Court, the First District Executive Committee (chair), the Operation PUSH Juvenile Mentoring and Early Intervention Committee, the Appellate Court ADM Committee, the Educational Committee, the Council of Governments of Cook County (chairperson), and the Jesse White Legal Committee, to name a few.

Among his many accolades, Gordon received a special recognition award at the Jury Verdict Reporter awards ceremony in 2019 for holding the distinction of presiding over the most jury verdicts in the state of Illinois.

Gordon, who considers himself a sports historian, served as a Little League coach and as commissioner of baseball in the northern suburbs.

He was born and raised in the Chicago neighborhood of Logan Square. Gordon is married and has four children and eight grandchildren. Three of his children are also attorneys.