Callis received both her bachelor's degree magna cum laude and her Juris Doctor from St. Louis University.

[5] Callis noted that she had not received any complaints about her performance, and the low rating reflected the fact that she had been on the bench only a few months and most lawyers had not appeared before her.

As a judge, Callis was involved with the creation of the first Veterans’ Court in Illinois, which received the national 2010 Paul H. Chapman Award.

[7][8] Callis also created mediation programs aimed at helping homeowners and lenders avoid mortgage foreclosures.

[18][19] In October 2014, Roll Call reported that the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee would be cutting back initially planned ads supporting Callis in the second-to-last-week of the cycle, part of a larger series of cuts that "serve as a signal the party does not see a path to victory for these candidates or races.

"[20] Callis supports the Affordable Care Act, saying: "We can't just shut down our government and cost our economy billions of dollars because we disagree with a law.