News from 2Civility; EIU Alum Pirtle’s details in bold.
The Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism is pleased to announce the appointment of three new commissioners. The Illinois Supreme Court has appointed Hon. Sierra D. Senor-Moore, Daniel R. Hernandez, and Alan G. Pirtle to three-year terms, expiring December 31, 2028.
In addition, the Illinois Supreme Court has reappointed Commissioners Heather B. Kroencke and Azam Nizamuddin to terms expiring December 31, 2028.
“We are thrilled to welcome Judge Senor-Moore, Daniel Hernandez, and Alan Pirtle as commissioners,” said John K. Kim, chair of the Commission on Professionalism. “We look forward to leveraging their diverse backgrounds and experiences to advance integrity, professionalism, and civility among Illinois lawyers and judges, principles that are essential to the effective delivery of justice in our state.”
Hon. Sierra D. Senor-Moore was appointed as an associate judge in the Seventh Judicial Circuit in September 2025. Serving in Sangamon County, Judge Senor-Moore presides over juvenile, pretrial, and detention matters.
Prior to her appointment as a judge, Judge Senor-Moore served as an assistant United States attorney for the Central District of Illinois.
Earlier in her career, she was chief investigator for the Office of the Inspector General with the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, an assistant attorney general with the Illinois Attorney General’s Office, and an assistant state’s attorney with the Sangamon County State’s Attorney’s Office.
Judge Senor-Moore has served as the president of the Central Illinois Black Bar Association and, since 2021, has assisted in facilitating the Southeast High School Teen Court. The program is a practice of restorative justice and an alternative to punishment for students.
Judge Senor-Moore was previously a scholar in the American Bar Association’s Young Lawyers Division and led the Sangamon County Boy Scouts’ Law Explorer’s Post Mock Trial team. She regularly volunteers to speak to youth in the community.
Judge Senor-Moore earned a J.D. from Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law and a Bachelor of Science from the University of South Carolina.
“I look forward to working with the Commission to continue to promote civility and inclusion within the legal community,” said Judge Senor-Moore. “Our legal systems cannot achieve the goal of instilling justice if we are not first fair, accessible, and respectful.”
Daniel R. Hernandez is the founder, CEO, and principal attorney of NextLevel Law, a Chicago-based firm. His practice areas include family law, real estate, and LGBTQ rights.
Mr. Hernandez is also an adjunct professor at the University of Illinois Chicago School of Law, where he teaches family law and has instructed courses on courtroom techniques and expert learning.
He serves as a commissioner on the Chicago Commission on Human Relations and is the president emeritus of the board of directors at Between Friends, a nonprofit focused on ending domestic violence. He is also actively involved with the Hispanic National Bar Association, where he holds various leadership positions.
Mr. Hernandez has been named a Rising Star by Super Lawyers for several consecutive years and received the Top Attorney Under 40 award from the Hispanic National Bar Association. His work has also been recognized by Crain’s Business Chicago and Business Equality Magazine.
He received a J.D. from the University of Illinois Chicago School of Law and a bachelor’s degree from Florida International University.
“I’m honored to be appointed to the Commission on Professionalism. This role aligns with my passion for making the legal system more accessible and equitable, and I look forward to helping ensure every Illinoisan has fair and efficient access to justice,” said Mr. Hernandez.
Alan G. Pirtle is a personal injury attorney at Brown & Crouppen Law Firm, which has offices in St. Louis, Mo., and Edwardsville, Ill. For more than 30 years, he has litigated personal injury and wrongful death cases, in both state and federal courts, involving truck and automobile crashes, medical malpractice, nursing home neglect, police car chases, and products and premises liability.
One of his Brown & Crouppen cases was accepted for appeal and decision by the United States Supreme Court.
Mr. Pirtle has been named to the Best Lawyers in America list from 2022 through 2026, to the Top Trial Lawyers in America’s Million Dollar and Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forums, and to National Trial Lawyers’ Top Ten Trucking Lawyers and Top 100 Personal Injury Lawyers. He has also been designated a Leading Lawyer by a National Advisory Board of Trial Lawyers.
Mr. Pirtle has provided continuing legal education seminars to other trial lawyers about state and federal court evidence and civil procedure.
He is a member and leader of numerous charitable organizations in Illinois. His most recent charitable work has focused on women’s cancer organizations and animal rescue groups.
Mr. Pirtle received a J.D. from Saint Louis University School of Law and a bachelor’s degree from Eastern Illinois University.
“I am grateful for the opportunity to serve on a Commission that stresses the importance of civil and inclusive legal and judicial systems for access to justice and also for the health and productivity of the lawyers and judges working within those systems,” said Mr. Pirtle.
Hon. Senor-Moore, Mr. Hernandez, and Mr. Pirtle are replacing Hon. Alicia N. Washington, Trisha M. Rich, and Kathleen L. Pine, whose terms as Commissioners expired in 2025.
“Judge Senor-Moore, Daniel Hernandez, and Alan Pirtle exemplify how legal excellence can support a justice system that works for everyone,” said Erika Harold, executive director of the Commission on Professionalism. “I look forward to working with them to help lawyers and judges uphold ethics, act with civility, prioritize diversity and well-being, and responsibly navigate the future of law. In addition, I would like to thank Judge Alicia Washington, Trish Rich, and Kathy Pine for their invaluable service as Commissioners and the direct role they played in so much of the Commission’s success.”
About the Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism
The Illinois Supreme Court established the Commission on Professionalism under Supreme Court Rule 799 to promote integrity, professionalism, and civility among the lawyers and judges of Illinois, to foster a commitment to the elimination of bias and divisiveness within the legal and judicial systems, and to ensure those systems provide equitable, effective, and efficient resolution of problems for the people of Illinois.
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