--- title: "Jeffrey Irvine Cummings | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/jeffrey-irvine-cummings" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-07" --- # Jeffrey Irvine Cummings U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois · Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois - State: Illinois - Role: Judge - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-07-25 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - U.S. District Judge for the Northern District of Illinois, appointed in 2023 after serving as a magistrate judge in the same court from 2019 to 2023 - Law clerk, Hon. Ann C. Williams, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, 1987-1989 - Early Career: Law clerk to Judge Ann Claire Williams, N.D. Ill. (1987–1989) - Position: United States District Judge, Northern District of Illinois ### Education - Northwestern University School of Law (now Pritzker School of Law) — J.D. (1987) - Michigan State University — B.A. (1984) ### Additional information - District Judge: Since 2023, presides over federal civil and criminal cases in the Northern District of Illinois - Magistrate, District Court, N.D. Illinois, 2019-present - Magistrate Judge: N.D. Ill., 2019–2023 - Handled criminal and civil cases, including initial appearances, arraignments, detention hearings, search/arrest warrants, and civil motions Notable rulings: 2020 decision barring Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker from deposing in a discrimination case; 2021 pretrial release of Proud Boys member Jim Bob Elliott in a January 6 case - Hearing officer, Chicago Police Board, 2016-2019 - Administrative hearing officer, City of Chicago Commission on Human Relations, 1995-2019 - Private practice, Chicago, Illinois, 1989-2019 - Date of birth: 1962 - Birth place: Fort Wayne ## Before you appear - Read the judge-specific standing order first when one is listed. - Check the docket and case orders for requirements that supersede broader guidance. - Confirm current remote-access and courtroom technology arrangements before the proceeding. ## Courtroom Rules ### civil remote testimony Scope: courtwide In federal district-court civil proceedings, testimony is ordinarily taken in open court; remote contemporaneous testimony requires good cause in compelling circumstances and appropriate safeguards. Evidence excerpt: For good cause in compelling circumstances and with appropriate safeguards, the court may permit testimony in open court by contemporaneous transmission from a different location. [Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43(a), Testimony in Open Court](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-civil-procedure) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ### criminal recording and broadcasting Scope: courtwide Federal district courts may not permit courtroom photography or broadcasting during criminal judicial proceedings unless a statute or another federal rule provides an exception. Evidence excerpt: Except as otherwise provided by a statute or these rules, the court must not permit the taking of photographs in the courtroom during judicial proceedings or the broadcasting of judicial proceedings from the courtroom. [Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 53, Courtroom Photographing and Broadcasting Prohibited](https://www.uscourts.gov/court-records/access-court-proceedings/remote-public-access-proceedings/history-cameras-broadcasting-and-remote-public-access-courts) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ## Sources - [Official profile](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13760981) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13760981) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13760981) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9225/jeffrey-i-cummings/) - [Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43(a), Testimony in Open Court](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-civil-procedure) - [Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 53, Courtroom Photographing and Broadcasting Prohibited](https://www.uscourts.gov/court-records/access-court-proceedings/remote-public-access-proceedings/history-cameras-broadcasting-and-remote-public-access-courts) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9225/jeffrey-i-cummings/) - [Judge Jeffrey Irvine Cummings](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13760981) - [Wikidata: Jeffrey Cummings](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q116784743) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/jeffrey-irvine-cummings", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/jeffrey-irvine-cummings", "name": "Jeffrey Irvine Cummings | KnowJudges", "description": "Jeffrey Irvine Cummings, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. Source-linked judicial identity, courtroom procedures, and presentation guidance.", "dateModified": "2026-10-07", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/#website" }, "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/jeffrey-irvine-cummings#judge" } }, { "@type": "Person", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/jeffrey-irvine-cummings#judge", "name": "Jeffrey Irvine Cummings", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/jeffrey-irvine-cummings", "jobTitle": "Judge", "worksFor": { "@type": "GovernmentOrganization", "name": "U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois" }, "sameAs": [ "https://www.fjc.gov/node/13760981", "https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9225/jeffrey-i-cummings/" ], "birthDate": "1962", "birthPlace": "Fort Wayne", "alumniOf": [ { "@type": "EducationalOrganization", "name": "Michigan State University" }, { "@type": "EducationalOrganization", "name": "Northwestern University School of Law (now Pritzker School of Law)" } ] }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "KnowJudges", "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Illinois", "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/state/illinois" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Jeffrey Irvine Cummings", "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/jeffrey-irvine-cummings" } ] } ] } ``` ## Federal civil docket activity Dataset updated through 2026-06-30. | Period | Assigned cases | Terminated cases | Median disposition (months) | Median sample | | --- | ---: | ---: | ---: | ---: | | 1y | 297 | 44 | 1.2 | 44 | | 2y | 744 | 287 | 3.2 | 287 | | 5y | 973 | 477 | 3.3 | 477 | | 10y | 973 | 477 | 3.3 | 477 | Source: https://www.courtlistener.com/recap/ ## Published courtroom rules ### Shared court rules - [Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, December 1, 2025](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-651872d6e45e0d82319ecccc) — Civil actions in United States District Courts; Rule 81 exceptions apply. Section-specific exceptions, waivers, later amendments and case orders remain applicable. This is a source excerpt, not an exhaustive statement of the rule. [Official source](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/federal-rules-of-civil-procedure.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27. - [Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, December 1, 2025](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-8721a344fececced2257fe1d) — Criminal proceedings in United States District Courts; this conservative mapping does not distribute appellate-specific provisions to appellate judges. Section-specific exceptions, waivers, later amendments and case orders remain applicable. This is a source excerpt, not an exhaustive statement of the rule. [Official source](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/federal-rules-of-criminal-procedure.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27.