As tax-preparing season ramps up, most lawyers may be surprised to learn that the Internal Revenue Service has embraced equity in its rules benefiting individuals owing IRS back taxes. A lawyer can obtain hero status in a client’s eye by utilizing these IRS equity programs to eliminate a qualified client’s full IRS back-tax liability without paying a penny to the IRS, write Robert V. Schaller and Elizabeth H.
Illinois Bar Journal
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On behalf of the Illinois State Bar Association (ISBA) Special Committee on Serving Lawyers in Rural Practices, I invite you all to help with our important work by completing a brief survey. The survey is less than 20 questions and should take no longer than ten minutes to complete.
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In the Illinois Bar Journal’s December issue, new Illinois Supreme Court Chief Justice Mary Jane Theis says “We have to return to the idea of the public’s trust and confidence,” citing Alexander Hamilton who, in the Federalist Papers No. 78, writes that the judicial branch derives its power neither from the sword nor the purse, but from the public’s confidence in its integrity.
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The Second District of the Illinois Appellate Court’s 2021 ruling in Bank of NY Mellon v. Dubrovay represents a departure from First District and Illinois Supreme Court precedent by enabling mortgage lenders to accelerate and decelerate a homeowner’s mortgage obligation at will by taking an endless number of voluntary dismissals, coming back orders of magnitude stronger, and refiling an endless number of lawsuits.
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On the heels of American Bar Association and Illinois State Bar Association efforts to discourage nonlawyer ownership of law firms, Michael L. Shakman and Diane F. Klotnia describe in their November Illinois Bar Journal article, “Not-so-Firm Rules,” the rule changes adopted by other jurisdictions, those recently proposed in Illinois, ethical issues that arise under proposed and adopted new rules, and the multi-jurisdictional conflicts that inconsistent rules can generate.
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Read the Illinois Bar Journal’s November cover story to learn how the Illinois State Bar Association took a leading role in securing the American Bar Association’s reaffirmation this August that nonlawyer ownership of law firms and fee sharing with nonlawyers are contrary to the core values of the legal profession.
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The Biometric Information Privacy Act (“BIPA”) is the litigation gift that keeps on giving, writes Charles N. Insler in his October Illinois Bar Journal article, “Insurance Providers & BIPA Litigation.”
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In casual conversation, most lawyers, especially those practicing outside the constitutional law arena, would likely refer to the First Amendment as protecting free speech. However, the First Amendment also covers a host of other rights, one of which is that “Congress shall make no law … abridging … the right of the people … to petition the Government for a redress of grievances”—more commonly known as the Petition Clause.
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There is inherent tension between an accused’s fundamental rights and the government’s compelling interest in solving crime, write Christopher Keleher and Steven Becker in their October Illinois Bar Journal article, "To Remain Silent."
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Of the many ways the Illinois State Bar Association serves the public, judicial evaluations, high school mock trial competitions, and providing the public with legal information tops them all. But as the October Illinois Bar Journal cover story (“Public Service and the ISBA”) shows, there is much, much more.