ASIAN AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION OF GREATER CHICAGO ANNOUNCES THE SWEARING-IN OF

CHICAGO - On January 25, 2010, Ketki Shroff Steffen was sworn-in as a Circuit Court Judge of the Cook County Circuit Court for the 13^th Subcircuit.  The 13^th Subcircuit covers Arlington Heights, Palatine, Schaumburg, Hoffman Estates, Streamwood, Hanover Park, Elgin, and Barrington.  Judge Steffen was appointed by Illinois Supreme Court Justice Anne M. Burke under a special legislative commission.  Judge Steffen is only the third Asian American judge to be appointed in the Cook County Circuit Court.   There are a total of eight Asian American judges and Judge Steffen is one of the two full Circuit Court judges with full voting rights with the Associate judge races.

Prior to her appointment, Judge Steffen served as a prosecutor in the Cook County State's Attorney's Office since 1991, serving primarily in the Domestic Violence Courtrooms in the Third Municipal District.  Judge Steffen has worked tirelessly to help victims of Domestic Violence and to serve the Asian American Community.  She is a Co-Chair of the Pro-Bono Legal Clinic at the Indo-American Center and a Board Member of Apna Ghar - a South Asian Domestic Violence Shelter.

Judge Steffen migrated to the United States from India when she was 16 years old.  She is married to attorney Robert Steffen and has three children.

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The Asian American Bar Association of the Greater Chicago Area (AABA) was founded in 1987 as the Midwest's first bar association promoting the interests of Asian American attorneys and law students and supporting the Asian American community in Chicago.  AABA increases awareness of issues of importance to the Asian American community, including promoting the need for increased representation in all areas of the profession including the judiciary and serving the legal needs of the community.  AABA has grown to one of the city's largest ethnic bar associations, with a membership of more than 400.