Otto Kerner Jr. was an American jurist and politician. He served as the 33rd governor of Illinois from 1961 to 1968 and chaired the National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders. He was then appointed a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. He was forced to step down from the bench after being convicted of mail fraud in 1974.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit is the U.S. federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the courts in the following districts:Central District of Illinois Northern District of Illinois Southern District of Illinois Northern District of Indiana Southern District of Indiana Eastern District of Wisconsin Western District of Wisconsin