Chief Judge Diane P. Wood of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit is pleased to announce the appointment of Deborah L. Thorne to a 14-year term as United States Bankruptcy Judge for the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. She will take office on October 22, 2015.

Ms. Thorne earned her bachelor's degree from Macalester College, her Master of Arts in Teaching degree from Duke University and her law degree from the Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago Kent College of Law. She was admitted to practice in Illinois in 1983.

Ms. Thorne is a partner in the Chicago office of Barnes & Thornburg LLP. She is Vice President of the American Bankruptcy Institute for Communications and Information Technology and serves on the Executive Committee. She has served as Chair of the Chicago Bar Association Bankruptcy and Reorganization Committee, Chair of the Seventh Circuit Bar Association Bankruptcy Committee, and on the Board of Governors of the Chicago Council of Lawyers. Ms. Thorne is a Fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy and is also a member of the Federal Bar Association, Turnaround Management Association, International Women's Insolvency Confederation, and Decalogue Society.