Professor Ann M. Lousin of The John Marshall Law School in Chicago was once again honored by the Illinois State Historical Society for her writings on public issues happening in Illinois. This is the seventh consecutive year the ISHS has honored Lousin.
This year Lousin received a Certificate of Excellence for three articles she wrote as part of her ongoing column featured in the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin. The first column, “Here’s a somewhat painless way to redistrict without the courts,” discussed Gill v. Whitford, a redistricting case that went before the U.S. Supreme Court.
The second column, “What’s in a name in Chicago? Changing times, changing standards,” focused on the recent controversy about pulling down monuments and its relevance to Chicago, where the Balbo monument has become controversial.
The third and final column was “200 years ago, Illinois took step to statehood,” which discussed the history behind Illinois becoming a state. Lousin was a research assistant at the 1969-1970 Illinois Constitutional Convention. She also served as staff assistant to the Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives, including a term as Parliamentarian of the House.
According to the ISHS, “Professor Ann Lousin’s columns are informed, well-written, and insightful. Her writing would be welcome in any publication, and her style and point of view are refreshing, worthy of our respect and admiration. We especially enjoyed her column on the Balbo monument and the need for new historical markers in Chicago. Her tease about bicentennial columns to come suggests next year’s crop will delight all who care about Prairie State history.”
In previous years, she received awards for her writing on a variety of topics, including Illinois constitutional amendments and the Fort Dearborn Massacre.
Lousin has served on several nonprofit boards and governmental commissions, including a term as chairman of the Illinois State Civil Service Commission. She has been a leader in other legal organizations, including service as chair of the Board of Governors of the Armenian Bar Association from 1995 to 1998. She also lectures and consults on the Illinois Constitution, general public law issues and commercial law in the U.S. and abroad. In 2009 she was elected a member of the American Law Institute.
In 2016, the Armenian Bar Association named its inaugural legal scholar award “The Ann M. Lousin Scholar of Law Award,” in her honor.
Lousin joined the John Marshall faculty in 1975. She primarily teaches Sales Transactions and Illinois Constitutional Law. Lousin received her bachelor’s degree from Grinnell College and her law degree from The University of Chicago. Between college and law school, she studied political science at the University of Heidelberg in Germany.
