It is my hope that his generosity to me will demonstrate itself not only in my professional excellence, but even more significantly in my willingness to be a mentor to others.
It is fair to say that Terry Lavin has helped to influence the quality of legal life in Chicago, one attorney at a time. In the practice of the law, he displays to our profession an abiding sense of courage that is both engaging and exciting.
I am proud to salute that courage as it inspires new generations of Chicago legal professionals. "Courage is not simply one of the virtues," C.S. Lewis once wrote, "but the form of every virtue at the testing point."
Newly elected Assembly members to be seated June 19
When Cook County votes were counted for the election of 39 members of the ISBA Assembly, Ronald J. Nelson of Arlington Heights came in 40th by the slimmest possible margin of one vote.
All was not lost, however. The ISBA Board of Governors has appointed Nelson, a past president of the Northwest Suburban Bar Association, to one of the three vacancies caused by other elections.
Also appointed to Cook County vacancies were James S. LasCola of Palos Heights and Christina V. Caputo of Chicago, who were next in line in votes received during the election. All new Assembly members will take seats June 19 during the Annual Meeting.
Nelson and LasCola will serve one-year interim terms in place of Andrea M. Schleifer and Kevin E. O'Reilly, who were elected simultaneously to both the board and the Assembly. Caputo will serve the two remaining years of governor-elect John G. Locallo's term on the Assembly.
Four Cook County candidates for the Assembly polled more than a thousand votes each: Dennis J. Burke, 1,133; William R. Quinlan, 1,120; Andrea Schleifer, 1,089, and Umberto S. Davi, 1,075. Davi's son, Dion U. Davi, also was elected.
Other victorious Cook County candidates are Gina M. Arquilla, Stephen G. Baime, Dennis J. Beninato, Sandra M. Blake, Nathan G. Brenner Jr., Jeffrey D. Corso, Michael H. Erde, Anthony Ferraro, David Figlioli, Robert W. Fioretti, John Fioti, Gail Friedman, Daniel R. Fusco, Joseph M. Gagliardo, Robert L. Gamrath III, Martin L. Glink;Paula Hudson Holderman, Michael T. Huguelet, Anthony A. Iosco, Julia Jensen, Stephen Kehoe, Brian P. Liston, Robert A. Loeb, Adela C. Lucchesi, Bryan Patrick Lynch, James J. Morici Jr., John K. Norris, Daniel E. O'Brien, Robert T. Oleszkiewicz, Paul G. O'Toole, Angela E. Peters, Maureen C. Pikarski, John C. Sciaccotta.
Four father-son pairs now serve on the Assembly: Stephen and Kenneth Baime, John and Mark Damisch, Umberto and Dion Davi, and the William Quinlans. Spouses Eugene and Gail Friedman also are Assembly members.
In other circuits
Only one contested Assembly election was held outside of Cook County. In the 13th Circuit, Herbert J. Klein and George G. Leynaud of Peru defeated Melissa Tomaska of Oglesby.
In all other circuits, the number of candidates was either equal to or fewer than the number of available Assembly seats. The vacancies were filled May 14 by the Board of Governors.
ISBA members outside of Cook County who will be seated June 19 for the Assembly meeting at The Abbey on Lake Geneva follow, with appointed members indicated by asterisks.
1st Circuit - *Cheryl Lynn Erdman, *Wenona Y. Whitfield.
2nd Circuit - *Kenneth F. Werts.
3rd Circuit - Joseph R. Bartylak, Nelson F. Metz, John J. Rekowski, Richard L. Tognarelli.
4th Circuit - Edward T. Graham Jr., Daniel E. Hartigan.
5th Circuit - S. Craig Smith.
6th Circuit - Rex L. Brown, Thomas A. Bruno, Brian G. McPheters, Jeffrey D. Richardson, Brian C. Silverman.
7th Circuit - Paul Bown, James W. Chipman, Carl R. Draper, Charles J. Northrup, Thomas P. Schanzle-Haskins, April G. Troemper.
8th Circuit - *Thomas J. Brannan.
9th Circuit - Jeremy S. Karlin.
10th Circuit - Elizabeth Jensen, Susan Dawson-Tibbits, Sonni Choi Williams, *Burt Dancey, *Donald R. Jackson.
11th Circuit - Ronald L. Lewis, Stephen R. Pacey, Robert T. Varney, *Peter W. Brandt.
12th Circuit - Jeff Allen, Eric P. Hanson, Myles L. Jacobs, Randal J. Miller.
14th Circuit - William A. Cleaver, John F. Doak, Philip E. Koenig.
15th Circuit - Susan M. Witt.
16th Circuit - Richard D. Larson, Lisa M. Nyuli, Richard L. Turner Jr., Rory T. Weiler, *Michelle D. Porro, *Richard C. Irvin, *J. Brick Van Der Snick.
17th Circuit - John J. Holevas, Frank A. Perrecone, Nerino J. Petro Jr., Donald P. Shriver.
18th Circuit - Deborah A. Benzing, Steven B. Bashaw, Neal W. Cerne, Paul P. Didzerekis, Kent A. Gaertner, Angela Imbierowicz, Nancy L. Martin, James E. McCluskey, Colleen M. McLaughlin, Mary E. McSwain, Donald J. Ramsell, Laura M. Urbik-Kern, Michael C. Wiedel, *Kevin H. Millon, *David N. Schaffer.
19th Circuit - Terrence J. Brady, Ann Buche Conroy, Wallace B. Dunn, Steven G. English, Chris S. Haaff, Gary L. Schlesinger, Lisle A. Stalter, Elizabeth Felt Wakeman, James L. Wright, Bernard Wysocki, *Michael J. Chmiel, *Richard J. Curran Jr., *Torrie Mark Newsome.
20th Circuit - Jack C. Carey, *John J. Johnston, *Julie K. Katz, *Robert C. Nelson Jr., *Donald W. Ward.
21st Circuit - James L. Tungate.
Assembly agenda includes ABA model rule proposals
By Stephen Anderson
The 201-member ISBA Assembly will revisit proposed revisions to the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct during its semi-annual meeting Saturday, June 19, at The Abbey on Lake Geneva.
Other issues on the Assembly agenda include continuation of state bar association advertising in support of the legal profession.
The model rules proposals were presented to the Assembly in November by Robert A. Creamer and Thomas P. Luning, co-chairs of the Joint ISBA/CBA Committee on Ethics 2000. Revised proposals were reviewed in March by the ISBA Board of Governors. Members of the ISBA Task Force on Ancillary Services are expected to suggest additional changes.
Model rules adopted by the ABA serve as guidelines to entities such as the Illinois Supreme Court that set individual state standards. The Assembly requested an opportunity to study the proposals and take action during its June meeting.
The ISBA embarked last year on an advertising campaign to promote the availability of experienced, licensed attorneys to serve the legal needs of the public, and to direct potential clients to the Web site, www.illinois lawyers. com.
Expanding the campaign would further enhance the image of the practicing attorney and support vigilance against the unauthorized practice of law.
Other items on the Assembly agenda this month include electing three new members of the Agenda and Program Committee, hearing a legislative report from Daniel L. Houlihan, and adopting resolutions in honor of retiring members and President Terrence J. Lavin.
Informational reports will be provided by the Illinois Bar Foundation, the ISBA Mutual Insurance Co., the Lawyers Trust Fund and the Lawyers' Assistance Program.
Alberta Pitts led ISBA ladies group
Alberta Van Petten Pitts, the wife of ISBA past president Henry L. Pitts, died May 21 at age 86 in Roswell, N.M. A former Wheaton resident, she was a past president of the ISBA Women's Auxiliary.
A graduate of the University of Illinois, Mrs. Pitts was former business manager of the High Hat Shop for Central DuPage Hospital and past president of the women's organization of Trinity Episcopal Church, where a memorial service was held June 4.
Board of Governors to honor 3 for bar service
Three stalwart ISBA members will receive Board of Governors Awards for significant service to the profession and public during the annual awards luncheon Friday, June 18, at The Abbey on Lake Geneva.
The Board of Governors voted May 14 to honor Joseph R. Bartylak of Alton, Jack C. Carey of Belleville, and Gilda Hudson-Winfield of Chicago.
A pioneer in delivery of legal services to the poor and disadvantaged, Joseph Bartylak joined the staff of the Land of Lincoln Legal Assistance Foundation in 1972 and became executive director in 1976. He stepped down Jan. 1 to become downstate associate director of the Lawyers' Assistance Program.
A member of the LAP board of directors since 1980, Bartylak was its president in 1981-82. He received the program's Carl H. Rolewick Award in 2002.
A member of the ISBA Assembly, he is chair of the Committee on Public Relations. He serves on the Committee on Delivery of Legal Services, which he also chaired, and the board of the Illinois Coalition for Equal Justice.
Bartylak is a Charter Fellow of the Illinois Bar Foundation and a past president of the Madison County Bar Association. He was nominated for the Board of Governors Award by Third Vice President Irene F. Bahr, who said he "has exemplified professionalism and service."
Jack Carey, who served on the Board of Governors for three years and on the Assembly for 16 years, was nominated for his strong support of ISBA initiatives to protect citizens from the unauthorized practice of law.
He represented the bar association pro bono in ISBA v. Reliable Research, a significant UPL case in St. Clair County that resulted late last year in an injunction to prohibit the firm from conducting real estate transactions.
A Charter Fellow and Silver Fellow of the Illinois Bar Foundation, Carey is a former member of the foundation board. He serves on the Committee on Judicial Evaluation.
Gilda Hudson-Winfield has devoted time and effort to ISBA section and committee work throughout her legal career. Most recently, she is co-chair of the Committee on Judicial Evaluations that screens candidates for election and retention in Cook County.
She also serves on the Law Office Management and Economics (Standing Committe on) Council and the Joint ISBA-CBA Committee on Ethics 2000, and she is immediate past chair of the Committee on Women and the Law.
A former member of the ISBA Assembly, Hudson-Winfield is a past chair of the Fellows of the Illinois Bar Foundation and a Silver Fellow.
Law student likes public interest law
Nicole Lalich, a third-year student at the University of Illinois College of Law who has demonstrated a commitment to professional responsibility and public interest law, is the 2004 ISBA Law Student Division Public Service Award recipient.
She will be honored Friday, June 18, at the awards luncheon during the ISBA Annual Meeting at The Abbey on Lake Geneva, and a $250 contribution in her name will be made to the Chicago Legal Clinic.
Lalich devoted last summer to the legal clinic's Austin office, providing family law assistance to disadvantaged individuals on Chicago's West Side. She also interviewed rehabilitated candidates for its executive clemency and expungement program to give them fresh starts with clear records.
For her efforts, she received a modest stipend through grants from public interest law organizations and bypassed opportunities for higher paid legal employment.
As co-chair of the Women's Law Society Symposium last year, Lalich helped plan a major symposium on the issues of worldwide trafficking of people for prostitution and forced labor. She also worked with the Protection Project at Johns Hopkins on a training program for lawyers on human trafficking.
Through the law school's International Human Rights Clinic where she is a teaching assistant, Lalich worked on a report for the Kenya Human Rights Commission that included recommendations for law enforcement reform that were adopted officially.
She also supervised a team of students in drafting a complaint against the European Union for illegally imposing sanctions against a Caribbean nation.
After a series of sexual assaults on the university campus, Lalich organized a safety program to provide access to Mace for the protection of interested women.
Coladipietro, Jang get YLD awards
Franco A. Coladipietro of Amari & Locallo, Chicago, and Betty Y. Jang of Hinshaw & Culbertson, Champaign, have been named the 2004 ISBA Young Lawyers of the Year.
Selected by the ISBA Young Lawyers Division, they will be honored at the awards luncheon Friday, June 18, during the Annual Meeting at The Abbey on Lake Geneva.
A member of the ISBA Assembly, Coladipietro is the immediate past chair of the Young Lawyers Division Council. He is co-founder of an annual YLD holiday party at which more than $100,000 has been raised for the ISBA Children's Assistance Program of support for waiting rooms in courthouses around the state.
Coladipietro has received an ISBA Board of Governors Award and a Community Service Award, as well as a Distinguished Service Award from The John Marshall Law School Alumni Association.
The incoming third vice president of the Justinian Society and past treasurer, he was named one of the "Top Forty Lawyers Under 40" by Law Bulletin Publishing Co.
Jang, a member of the ISBA Committee on Minority and Women Participation, has been a panel moderator for the annual Lawyers Workshop and a speaker during the Supreme Court's town hall forum on professionalism issues.
An adjunct professor of trial advocacy at the University of Illinois College of Law, she is helping to plan a three-day symposium on the roles of Asian American lawyers and law students and their relationship to the profession.
Chair of the East Central Illinois Women Attorneys Public Service Committee, Jang chaired the Women Everywhere Service Project and organized a benefit to raise funds for a women's shelter. She chaired the Champaign County Bar Association Pro Bono Committee for two years.
The Young Lawyers Division is chaired by Francesco E. DiVito of Rosemont. Other officers are Robert L. Gamrath of Chicago, vice chair, and Eric I. Long of Springfield, secretary.
Co-editors of the division newsletter are Gina M. Arquilla of Northbrook, Eric P. Hanson of Joliet and Anthony J. Jacob of Chicago.
Tipton Award to Bergschneider for Criminal Law Decisions
Springfield attorney David P. Bergschneider will receive the ISBA's Virgil E. Tipton Jr. Publications Award at the Annual Meeting awards luncheon Friday, June 18, at The Abbey on Lake Geneva.
Bergschneider, who is legal director in the Office of the State Appellate Defender, is the author and editor of the 1998 edition of "Illinois Handbook of Criminal Law Decisions" and its 2003 supplement.
These ISBA reference publications consist of more than a thousand pages of meticulously categorized case summaries and are considered "a significant gift of information to Illinois criminal practitioners," said John J. Johnston, chair of the Bar Publications Board.
The sale of 2,544 copies of the handbook and supplement also have generated more than $130,000 in non-dues revenue for the association.
Bergschneider, a past chair of the ISBA Criminal Justice Section Council, has compiled the criminal law publication since 1997. He took over from Robert E. Davidson, a previous Tipton Award recipient, who had produced it in various versions since the early 1970s.