to permit the court to order individual counseling for the child, family counseling for one or more of the parties and the child, or parental education for one of more of the parties, when it finds one or more of the following: (1) Both parties or all parties agree to that order. (2) The court finds that the child's physical health is endangered or his or her emotional development is impaired including, but not limited to, a finding of visitation abuse as defined by §607.1. (3) The court finds that one or both of the parties have violated the joint parenting agreement with regard to conduct affecting or in the presence of the child. (4) If the court finds that one or more of the parties has violated an order of the court with regards to custody, visitation, or joint parenting, the court must assess the costs of counseling against the violating party or parties. Otherwise, the court may apportion the costs between the parties as appropriate. All counseling sessions are confidential.
It also conforms §506(a) to the recent Supreme Court of Illinois decision in In re Marriage of Bates, which struck down the ability to cross-examine a child representative in custody litigation. House Bill 360 also defines the duties of a guardian ad litem, child representative, and attorney for a child.
"It's not right, it's not fair, and it's not legal. This bill allows for full compensation for the loss of the ability to walk but limits compensation for the loss of the ability to work."
State Rep. John Fritchey (D-Chi.) on legislation capping non-economic damages in medical malpractice cases and its projected impact on children, stay-at-home moms, and the elderly
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"...we can't answer to either our physicians or the public as to when they can expect to see a decrease or stabilization in their rates, and, in fact, they may see an increase because [new] cases require the expenditure of more money."
Dr. Craig Backs, president of the Illinois State Medical Society, on lawyers' rush to file claims before the effective date of legislation supporters claimed would lead to lower premium rates
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"If the accounting firm Arthur Andersen had trouble keeping track of Enron Corp.'s funds, how can a lawyer be expected to do that task?"
Greg White, Waco, TX lawyer, on 5th U.S. Circuit decision in FTC v. Assail, Inc. that an attorney, under some circumstances, has a duty to investigate the source of funds a client uses to pay legal fees
Editor
At last, Simon says
Somewhere up there, Bob Simon must be smiling, at least a little. He left this life in October 1992, a few weeks before what would have been the last ISBA Assembly meeting in his six-year tenure as a Cook County member.
He would have had one more chance to advocate passionately for his belief that a lawyer's many years in practice, and the good will thereby accrued, ought to be worth something when one wants to retire, or to the heirs when one dies.
Simon would have been gratified to know that in addition to the Assembly adopting a resolution extolling his virtues of leadership and dedication to the association, the ISBA was about to file another petition with the Supreme Court for a rule to permit the sale of a law practice.
On May 23, 12 years and seven months after Bob Simon's death but only 16 months after the ISBA filed its most recent petition, the Supreme Court wrote Rule 1.17, Sale or Transfer of a Law Practice, into the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct. It took effect immediately (see story on page 1).
What energized Simon as he embarked on his campaign 15 years ago was the court's 1989 opinion in O'Hara v. Ahlgren, Blumenfeld and Kempster (127 Ill.2d 333). The holding was that a widow could not sell the goodwill of her husband's law practice.
The ISBA Assembly in November 1987 had adopted a resolution to authorize a spouse or estate of a sole practitioner to sell the goodwill of a practice. In late 1990, both the ISBA and CBA boards sent similar resolutions to the court.
Simon took the court to task in an article that was published in the August 1991 issue of the Illinois Bar Journal. "Selling the Goodwill of a Law Practice: The Sole Practitioner's Perspective" picked apart the view that a compensation arrangement between a law firm and a non-lawyer surviving spouse is tantamount to fee splitting.
"The O'Hara decision effectively discriminates unfairly and unjustifiably against the families of sole practitioners in favor of the families of law partners," Simon concluded, and had the further effect of discouraging lawyers from careers as sole practitioners.
Simon's concerns were heard in other ISBA venues. He served on the Task Force on Professionalism, the Committee on Professional Responsibility and the Senior Lawyers Section Council. His easy re-election to the Assembly in 1990 was a vote of confidence in his mission.
There have been other disciples. Donald Rikli of Highland took his crusade from the ISBA Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Section Council to the ABA Sections of General Practice, which he chaired, and Law Practice Management, and the Senior Lawyers Division.
Rikli, who died in 1997, was named Solo Practitioner of the Year by the ABA in 1990. Since then, a Rikli Solo Lifetime Achievement Award has been created to recognize individuals who work diligently toward the betterment of the sole practitioner.
ISBA Assembly member John Phipps of Champaign deserves such an award. It was he, during the past two years, who chaired the Special Committee on Implementation of Transfer of Law Practice that put together the research and incontrovertible evidence to carry the day.
As stated in the preamble to the ISBA petition for Rule 1.17, "Prohibiting the sale or transfer of sole practitioners' law practices serves no one." The court, as it has frequently promised, was listening and has shown its good will to the bar.
And so it has come to pass that the "Simon Rule" is at last a verse in the scripture of professional responsibility for the ages. A small practice always has added immense value to the community, and now it seems to be of equivalent value to the practitioner.
Isn't it time to pay Peter?
The tidal surge of ecstasy that celebrated the election of Barack Obama to the U.S. Senate seems to have swallowed the memory of his predecessor, Peter Fitzgerald, like a sandcastle in the surf.
The unique achievement of Fitzgerald's six-year tenure was the appointment of competent, independent prosecutors as U.S. attorneys in the three Illinois districts. Some political insiders didn't appreciate this, but newspaper editorialists have deified him.
It seems odd that no law-related organization has seen fit to honor the retired senator, who returned from Capitol Hill with all of the integrity he had when he left Illinois. It's never too late for a well-deserved tribute.
Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan will give the keynote speech at the annual recognition award ceremony of the Center for Disability and Elder Law (CDEL). It will take place from 4 to 6:30 p.m. Thursday, June 16, at Baker & McKenzie.
Chicago attorney Philip H. Corboy, a Laureate of the ISBA Academy of Illinois Lawyers who will receive a Lifetime Achievement Award, heads a list of individual honorees.
Others are: Peter M. Shannon Jr., Lifetime Visionary Award; Edward M. Burke, the Robert A. Michilak Visionary Award; Laura L. Hois, Volunteer of the Year, and Richard L. Clayter, Outstanding Sole Practitioner.
A Dedication to Excellence Award will be presented to the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, which houses CDEL, and an Outstanding Benefactor Award will be given to Baker & McKenzie.
Holland & Knight is Law Firm of the Year, and Winston & Strawn will receive the Paralegal Service Award. Federal Signal Corp. will be honored as Outstanding Corporate Counsel, and a Partnerships for Pro Bono Award will be given to Foley & Lardner and Navigant Consulting.
"CDEL is fortunate to enjoy an outstanding and diverse group of volunteers from throughout Chicago's distinguished legal community," said Judge Marvin E. Aspen of U.S. District Court, chair of the center's board.
"Our CDEL volunteers provide the finest legal counsel available to Chicago's most vulnerable residents," he added. "We are pleased to recognize this distinguished group of individuals."
For more information, call executive director Jann Dragovich-Stulberg at (312) 908-6087.
SIU schools laud alumni attorneys
Two attorneys are among eight alumni of Southern Illinois University who were honored during commencement ceremonies last month.
Aurora attorney William A. Fenwick, a partner in Fenwick & West, received a Distinguished Service Award from the School of Business and Administration for pro bono legal service to charitable organizations that serve the public interest.
A member of the SIU Hall of Fame for his achievements as a springboard and platform diver, Fenwick owns a branch of Wachovia Securities and is a past member of the UBS Financial Services President's Council.
The SIU Law School presented an Alumni Achievement Award to Paul Matalonis of Carbondale, a 21-year staff attorney with Land of Lincoln Legal Assistance Foundation. He coordinates its Homeless Legal Assistance Project and Housing Law Task Force.
The law school also conferred an honorary doctorate in humane letters on Judge Constance Baker Motley of U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
Defenders honor Kindler
Former Chicago attorney Jeffrey Kindler, vice chair and general counsel for Pfizer Inc., received an Exemplar Award from the National Legal Aid and Defender Association during a dinner June 7 at the Capital Hilton in Washington, D.C.
Kindler, former general counsel of the McDonald's Corp., joined Pfizer in January 2002 and was the first to establish a corporate law office with a full-time staff pro bono attorney position.
While with McDonald's, Kindler created a pro bono program that received a Trailblazer Award from the Chicago Public Interest Law Initiative and a Pro Bono Award from the American Bar Association Section of Litigation.
Jaycees praise Kubiczky
Riverside attorney Stephen R. Kubiczky, formerly of Altheimer & Gray, and his wife, Ann, who was a paralegal at the firm, have received Distinguished Service Awards from the Riverside Township Jaycees as 2005 Volunteers of the Year.
Stephen Kubiczky serves on an institutional board that reviews human subject research projects for conformity with federal law and professional ethics. He has received a Special Achievement Award from the Illinois Community College Trustees Association and a Caught in the Act of Caring Award from Rush University Medical Center.
Ann Kubiczky is a member of the Riverside Township Board and its Mental Health Board, and the boards of Township Officials of Cook County and Township Officials of Illinois.
Recent appointments
Bannockburn attorney Myron E. Siegel has been reappointed to a six-year term on the Northern Illinois University Board of Trustees. A member of the former State Board of Regents, he became the first chair of the NIU governing board when it was formed in 1996.
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University of Illinois Law Prof. Richard W. Painter is serving as special assistant to President George W. Bush and associate White House counsel. The office oversees ethics matters and conflicts of interest that involve members of the White House staff.
Painter is chair-elect of the Association of American Law Schools Section on Professional Responsibility. He has given more than 50 lectures on the Sarbanes-Oxley Act during the past two years.
Court elects Justice Thomas to become chief in September
By Stephen Anderson
The anticipated election of Justice Robert R. Thomas of the 2nd District as the next chief justice of the Illinois Supreme Court was made official by his colleagues on May 10.
Thomas will succeed Chief Justice Mary Ann G. McMorrow at the beginning of the court's September session for a three-year term. His position on the Illinois Courts Commission will be filled by Justice Thomas R. Fitzgerald.
Thomas is one of three justices who were elected to the Supreme Court in 2000. He joined Fitzgerald and Thomas L. Kilbride as newcomers to the bench.
Rita B. Garman was appointed in early 2001 to the sudden vacancy of Benjamin K. Miller and elected in 2002. McMorrow, who was elected in 1992 and retained in 2002, has the longest tenure on the present court.
During his 2000 election campaign, Thomas listed in the DuPage County Bar Association magazine, DCBA Brief, three objectives he would pursue to improve the Illinois court system.
1. Promoting more efficient methods to resolve disputes faster and in less expensive fashion (an effort commonly known as alternative dispute resolution).
2. Spearheading an effort to mandate continuing judicial education.
3. Establishing objective criteria for the appointments of Circuit and Appellate Court judges.
During his speech in December 2002 at the ISBA Midyear Meeting, Thomas referred to the court's Special Committee on Civility as an implication "not only that incivility has no place in the legal profession but also that incivility is contrary to the orderly administration of justice."