Chicago – JAMS, the largest private provider of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) services worldwide, is proud to announce that Hon. Bernetta D. Bush (Ret.), Hon. David H. Coar (Ret.) and Hon. Arlander Keys (Ret.) have been inducted into the Cook County Bar Association’s Hall of Fame. A ceremony took place on February 24 to honor the 2024 class of inductees.
The Cook County Bar Association (CCBA) is the nation’s oldest association of African American lawyers and judges. The CCBA remains at the forefront of legal issues of concern to the African American community and is a dominant force for promoting diversity within the profession. Each year, prominent legal professionals are inducted into the CCBA’s Hall of Fame.
We congratulate Judge Bush, Judge Coar and Judge Keys on this outstanding recognition by the Cook County Bar Association. All three of these neutrals have decades of experience handling cases that run the gamut of legal matters, and their individual track records of success and leadership make them standout professionals within the Chicago legal community.
- Chris Poole, JAMS CEO
Judge Bush served for over 15 years as a judge on the Circuit Court of Cook County in the Municipal, County and Chancery divisions. She has significant experience in disputes that arise in the context of higher education, including Title IX disputes and faculty disputes, as well as giving advice on ethical matters, disciplinary actions, special education law and procurement issues for public institutions. She joined JAMS in 2007 and is known for her ability to resolve matters involving unrepresented parties.
Prior to joining JAMS in 2011, Judge Coar served as United States district judge for the Northern District of Illinois for 16 years and as a United States bankruptcy judge for eight years. As associate professor of law at DePaul University College of Law, he taught courses on ethics, corporations, corporate finance, constitutional law, labor law and professional responsibility. As a practicing lawyer, he represented private plaintiffs in the case that determined how Title VII impacted the merger of previously segregated lines of progression in the steel industry.
Judge Keys joined JAMS in 2014 after nearly two decades of distinguished service as a United States magistrate judge for the Northern District of Illinois. During his time on the bench, he presided over thousands of civil and criminal matters in both the pretrial and trial stages of litigation. In civil matters, his focus was on the supervision of pretrial discovery, including ruling on motions to compel and motions to quash, and conducting settlement conferences in cases referred to him by district judges for settlement negotiations.
More information about the CCBA can be found here.
About JAMS – Local Solutions. Global Reach.
Founded in 1979, JAMS is the largest private provider of alternative dispute resolution services worldwide. JAMS successfully resolves and manages business and legal disputes by providing efficient, cost-effective and impartial ways to overcome barriers at any stage of conflict. JAMS offers customized in-person, virtual and hybrid resolution services locally and globally through a combination of industry-specific experience, first-class client service, the latest technology and highly trained mediators and arbitrators.
With a roster of over 400 neutrals and 29 locations, JAMS resolves thousands of the world’s important cases every year. JAMS neutrals are adept at managing the resolution process whether they are conducting in-person, virtual or hybrid hearings.
More information is available at www.jamsadr.com, and you can connect with us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and our JAMS ADR blog. To learn about diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives at JAMS, visit www.jamsadr.com/diversity/.