Building on Aristotle’s teachings concerning logos, pathos, and ethos, retired judge Gino L. DiVito continues his five-part series on trial advocacy in November’s Illinois Bar Journal. In Part Two, “The Essential Elements of Persuasion: What To Do and How and Why To Do It,” Judge DiVito reframes Aristotle’s principles as the three Cs—character, competency, and conviction.
Illinois Bar Journal
-
November 14, 2023 | Practice News
-
November 5, 2023 | Practice News
For the Illinois Bar Journal’s November cover story, “Writing Matters,” the IBJ reached out to members of the bench and bar and law-school writing professors, and asked them to reflect on where good and bad writing begin, and why good writing is worth the practice. They had plenty to say, beginning with their observation that graduating from law school does not mean, ipso facto, you have become a good writer.
-
October 30, 2023 | Practice News
It’s Halloween season, so what better time than to reflect on the role of “Devil’s advocate,” suggests ISBA General Counsel Charles J. Northrup in his October Illinois Bar Journal ethics column, “Giving the Devil His Due.” The essential characteristic of the Devil’s advocate is good communication, Northrup continues. “And as a fundamental part of good communication, it should come as no surprise that the idea of being a good Devil’s advocate is fully embraced by the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct.”
-
October 25, 2023 | Practice News
As federal and Illinois state courts seem to disagree as to whether in personam deficiency judgments are mandatory or discretionary under the Illinois Mortgage Foreclosure Law (IMFL), what’s a client to do? In his October Illinois Bar Journal article, “The Illinois-Federal Foreclosure Split,” Morgan I. Marcus writes that there are practical considerations for creditors and borrowers to keep in mind.
-
October 16, 2023 | Practice News
Most attorneys are aware that a revival is not a new action; it is a continuation of the existing action where a final judgment is already entered. The Revival Act only establishes how and when the vested right may be enforced through legal actions filed in the court. But, as Mike Starzec notes in his October Illinois Bar Journal article, “Judgment Revivals: The Seven-Year Itch,” recent amendments to the Revival Act create two classes of judgments with different effective dates requiring revivals at radically different times.
-
October 9, 2023 | Practice News
The Illinois Bar Journal’s October issue debuts a five-part series on trial advocacy by retired Justice Gino DiVito, who cofounded and is a partner of the Chicago law firm of Tabet DiVito & Rothstein LLC. He has served as a trial judge and as a justice of the First District of the Illinois Appellate Court. He is the author of the ISBA publication, “The Illinois Rules of Evidence: A Color-Coded Guide,” which is updated annually. In his series, “What I Learned From Teaching Trial Advocacy,” Justice DiVito shares his personal experiences based primarily on trying cases and teaching the four stages of trial advocacy.
-
October 4, 2023 | Practice News
In July 2021, the ISBA launched an ISBA-sponsored radio program on 720 AM WGN Radio in Chicago. The show, Let’s Get Legal, allows ISBA members to book themselves on a friendly call-in show hosted by WGN’s Jon Hansen. The station’s 50,000-watt signal and streaming service reach more than 600,000 adults in the Chicagoland area and throughout the state, and attorneys who appear can gain credibility and name recognition with WGN’s loyal listeners.
-
September 25, 2023 | Practice News
If, as scheduled, the federal gift and estate tax exemption is reduced by roughly 50 percent effective Jan. 1, 2026, how does that reduction affect federal estate taxes payable by decedents whose lifetime gifts exceed the available exemption at the time of death? This is one of many questions addressed by Gary R. Gehlbach in his October Illinois Bar Journal article, “To Gift or Not to Gift.”
-
September 18, 2023 | Practice News
As James A. Rapp reminds us in his September Illinois Bar Journal article, “Hello, Goodbye … Planning for Retirement Success,” about one in eight lawyers is 65 years old or older, which means facing the challenge of succession planning is here for many lawyers and firms. Rapp suggests that lawyers and firms should consider what experiences—good and bad—they have had within the firm and with other lawyers or firms when lawyers retire and recommends that lawyers and firms develop a perspective consistent with the interests of the lawyer involved, the firm, and most importantly, the firm’s clients.
-
September 11, 2023 | Practice News
In his September Illinois Bar Journal article, “Busting the Myth About Corporate Trustee Fees,” Jay E. Harker notes that many Illinois attorneys—some regularly, some occasionally—draft revocable, living trusts, and that all of them know firsthand that clients overwhelmingly prefer to designate family members as their successor trustees. This very often this works out just fine for all concerned, Harker notes. But he suggests that some estate-planning scenarios scream for serious consideration of a corporate trustee.