Judge Michael B. Slade

Location and Contact Information
Courtroom 642 Chambers: ilnbml_sladestaff@ilnb.uscourts.gov (312) 435-5642 Courtroom Deputy: Nancy_Castellano@ilnb.uscourts.gov (312) 435-5531	Everett McKinley Dirksen United States Courthouse 219 South Dearborn Street Chambers 638 Chicago, IL 60604

Staff Information

Courtroom Deputy	Law Clerks
Nancy Castellano	Rebecca Blake Chaikin Sarah Wolf-Knight

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Judge Slade issued revisions to his Court Procedures, effective January 27, 2026. All parties are expected to review and comply with the Court Procedures, available in the Procedures tab below. Failure to comply may result in denial of relief requested or other consequences as noted therein.

Judge Tabs

Chicago Schedule

Courtroom 642
Chapter 7 Cases (Cook County)
Motions	Monday at 9:30 a.m.
Set Matters and Adversary Return Date	Monday at 10:00 a.m.
Involuntary Petition Summons Return Date	Monday at 10:00 a.m
Hearings on Trustee Final Reports	Mondays at 10:00 a.m
Reaffirmations, Presumption of Undue Hardship, Applications to Waive Filing Fee	Mondays at 10:30 a.m

Courtroom 642
Chapter 11 Cases (Cook County and Lake County)
Motions	Monday at 9:30 a.m.
Set Matters and Adversary Return Date	Monday at 10:00 a.m.
Involuntary Petition Summons Return Date	Monday at 10:00 a.m

Courtroom 642
Chapter 13 Cases (Cook County)
Trustee Motions	Tuesday at 9:15 a.m.
Original Motions	Tuesday at 9:30 a.m.
Set Matters and Adversary Return Date	Tuesday at 9:45 a.m.
Confirmations	Tuesday at 10:00 a.m.

Court Calendar

Opinions

Judge Slade's Opinions

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Biography

Judge's Biography

Judge Slade grew up in Northbrook. He attended Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, where he was a member of the Barkley Forum, was admitted to Phi Beta Kappa, and in 1996 earned a B.A. with High Honors in Political Science. Judge Slade then attended Harvard Law School, where he received a J.D. with Honors in 1999.

Following law school, Judge Slade served as a law clerk for Hon. Emilio M. Garza of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in San Antonio, Texas. In 2000, he joined Kirkland & Ellis LLP in Chicago, where he practiced for 24 years, 19 as a partner. While at Kirkland, Judge Slade had a broad commercial and appellate practice, focusing on products liability, employment, and restructuring-related matters across the country. Judge Slade also taught seminars as a Lecturer in Law at the University of Chicago Law School and had an active pro bono practice in which he, among other things, accepted appointments representing individual criminal defendants in their criminal cases.

Judge Slade previously served on the Board of Directors for CARPLS (the Coordinated Advice and Referral Program for Legal Services), Cook County’s largest legal aid provider, for ten years, including two as President. He currently serves on the Boards of Directors of the Chicago Bar Foundation and Thrive Scholars.

Standing Orders/Required Forms

Form Scheduling Order (as of February 5, 2025)

Form Complex 11 Notice of Motion (as of October 6, 2025)

Remote/Zoom Information

Zoom for Government can be accessed at www.zoomgov.com. The meeting ID and passcode below will be used for all motion calls and regularly scheduled hearings:

Meeting ID: 160 817 7512
Passcode: 623389

There are two options to join a court call via Zoom for Government:
--join by website: https://www.zoomgov.com/join (please note the correct domain is zoomgov.com, not zoom.com)
--join by phone: (669) 254-5252 or (646) 828-7666

All Zoom participants are required to identify themselves.

All other proceedings will be conducted in court.

Megacases

Lutheran Home and Services for the Aged, Inc., et al

Lead Case No. 25-01705

Hearings:
Pursuant to Local Rule 9090-3, all motions and other Requests for Relief shall be noticed for scheduled Omnibus Hearings, unless the motion is an emergency under Local Rule 9013-2.

The following Omnibus Hearings are scheduled:

Wednesday, March 11, 2026, at 9:30 a.m. (CT)

The Confirmation Hearing will commence on Wednesday, February 25, 2026, at 9:00 a.m. (CT)

Unless otherwise ordered, Omnibus Hearings will be conducted in-person in the courtroom (Courtroom 642, Dirksen Federal Courthouse, 219 S. Dearborn Street, Chicago) or by video using Zoom for Government. View Judge Slade's Remote/Zoom Information tab for complete details.

As set forth in Judge Slade’s Court Procedures, all trials and evidentiary hearings are in-person. For matters that do not involve witness testimony, in-person attendance of parties presenting or opposing motions and requests for relief is preferred.

Notice of Motion Form:
Judge Slade has ordered (see Docket No. 186, Case No. 25-01705) pursuant to Local Rule 9013-1(A) that all motions in this case must use this form of notice instead of Local Form G-3.

Claims & Noticing Agent:
Stretto
https://cases.stretto.com/lutheranhome/

RAS Data Services, Inc.

Case No. 25-11837

Hearings:
Pursuant to Local Rule 9090-3, all motions and other Requests for Relief shall be noticed for scheduled Omnibus Hearings, unless the motion is an emergency under Local Rule 9013-2.

The following Omnibus Hearings are scheduled:

Thursday, February 19, 2026, at 1:00 p.m.
Thursday, March 19, 2026, at 9:30 a.m.

Notice of Motion Form:
Judge Slade has ordered (see Docket No. 71, Case No. 25-11837) pursuant to Local Rule 9013-1(A) that all motions in this case must use this form of notice instead of Local Form G-3.

Lake County Schedule

LOCATION: The Lake County call is no longer held physically in Lake County. Attorneys and parties with matters on the Lake County call should appear either in person in the courtroom (Courtroom 642, Dirksen Federal Courthouse, 219 S. Dearborn Street, Chicago) or by video using Zoom for Government. View Judge Slade's Remote/Zoom Information tab for complete details.

DATES: Judge Slade will hold hearings in Lake County chapter 7 and 13 cases on the following dates only (all chapter 11 matters are heard on Mondays; see chart at bottom):

Courtroom 642
Chapter 13 Cases (Lake County)
Trustee Motions	9:15 a.m.
Original Motions	9:30 a.m.
Set Matters and Adversary Return Date	10:00 a.m.
Confirmations	10:30 a.m.

Courtroom 642
Chapter 7 Cases (Lake County)
Original Motions	11:00 a.m.
Set Matters and Adversary Return Date	11:15 a.m.
Involuntary Petition Summons Return Date	11:15 a.m.
Hearings on Trustee Final Reports	11:15 a.m.
Reaffirmations	11:30 a.m.

Courtroom 642
Chapter 11 Cases (Lake County)
Motions	Monday at 9:30 a.m.
Set Matters and Adversary Return Date	Monday at 10:00 a.m.
Involuntary Petition Summons Return Date	Monday at 10:00 a.m.

Not Sitting

Procedures

Court Procedures for Judge Slade (effective January 27, 2026)

United States Bankruptcy Court

Northern District of Illinois

Jacqueline P. Cox, Chief Judge | Jeffrey P. Allsteadt, Clerk of the Court

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