Durkin was born in
Chicago. He received his
Bachelor of Science degree, cum laude, from the
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 1975. He received his
Juris Doctor degree,
cum laude, from the
DePaul University College of Law in 1978. From 1978 to 1980, he served as a
law clerk to Judge
Stanley Julian Roszkowski of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. From 1980 to 1993, he served as an
assistant United States attorney in the Northern District of Illinois. His leadership positions during that service included chief of the special prosecutions division, chief of the criminal receiving and appellate division and first assistant United States attorney. From 1993 to 2012, he served as a partner at
Mayer Brown LLP in Chicago, where he handled a wide variety of matters including complex
commercial litigation and
white collar criminal defense.
Federal judicial service On May 21, 2012, President
Barack Obama nominated Durkin to be a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, to the seat vacated by Judge
Wayne Andersen who retired in 2010. The Senate confirmed Durkin in a
voice vote on December 17, 2012. He received his commission on December 19, 2012. Durkin assumed
senior status on December 26, 2023. Ultimately, Durkin sentenced Hastert to 15 months in prison, far more than the federal recommended sentencing guidelines of zero to six months of prison. The maximum possible sentence was five years. Durkin also described Hastert as a "serial child molester". ==Personal==