The Public Interest Law Initiative (PILI) has announced the names of eight law student interns who will work at public interest law agencies in Chicago during the spring semester.
Interns work 200 hours part-time during the semester, with PILI providing a living stipend, as well as ensuring quality supervision by experienced attorneys and providing extra educational, networking, and advising opportunities.
Asked and Answered
By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC
Q. I am the administrator with a firm in Buffalo, New York. We have 14 attorneys – seven partners and seven associates. We are an eat-what-you-kill law firm. All the partners have to weigh in and agree on any and all management decisions. Our management team consists of “all partners.” While I have been hired as the administrator for management the firm, I have very little authority to do anything. The partners all have the freedom to do as they please, and there is very little accountability to each other. Recently we have been discussing the pros and cons of why we might want to change our governance and overall structure. I would be interested in your thoughts.
The Illinois Supreme Court announced the filing of lawyer disciplinary orders on January 29, 2019. Sanctions were imposed because the lawyers engaged in professional misconduct by violating state ethics law.
February’s Illinois Bar Journal includes the winning article of 2019’s Lincoln Award Legal Writing Contest. The article, “General and Boilerplate Objections: Curbing Routine Abuse of the Discovery Process” by Gregory R. Jones, an associate at Goldenberg Heller & Antognoli, P.C., in Edwardsville, examines distasteful discovery tactics that can directly conflict with the spirit of discovery and the concept of “full disclosure.”
The Illinois Supreme Court handed down eight opinions on Friday, Jan. 25. In People v. Witherspoon, the court considered whether a person who enters another person’s home in violation of a court order thereby enters “without authority” under the home invasion statute. In People v. Johnson, the supreme court concluded that the appellate court erred in considering the merits of a man’s sentencing challenge because he could not challenge it other than through withdrawal of his plea. The court ruled that a defendant was required to offer some affirmative evidence that the parking lot where he was arrested for DUI was not a public highway in People v. Relwani. In Rosenbach v. Six Flags Entertainment Corp., the court ruled that consumers do not have to demonstrate “injury or adverse effect” to sue companies under the state’s biometric privacy law. The supreme court upheld a trial court’s ruling granting a father who had joint custody of his children to relocate in In re Marriage of Fatkin and clarified the rules governing the admission of photographs in motor vehicle cases in Peach v. McGovern. In In re Appointment of Special Prosecutor, the court rejected arguments by the Better Government Association to release documents in a FOIA request. In Smith v. The Vanguard Group, the court determined that a man did not violate an injunction when he changed the beneficiary designation from his wife to his sons.
ISBA Director of Legislative Affairs Jim Covington reviews legislation in Springfield of interest to ISBA members. This week he covers the Vacancy Fraud Act, the Workplace Transparency Act, the Justice for Juveniles Program, and guardianship of minors.
Creates the Vacancy Fraud Act. House Bill 832 (Martwick, D-Chicago) allows a taxing body or its representative to file a vacancy-fraud complaint with the county board of review if the property is receiving vacancy relief and the property owner is not actively attempting to lease, sell, or alter the property. It sets forth factors in determining whether vacancy fraud has occurred and its penalties. House Bill 832 was just introduced.
Ryan Suniga, an attorney with the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office, discusses tips for effective brief writing. Tips include framing your issue at the beginning of a piece of writing, becoming proficient at designing text, and the use of caselaw.
Asked and Answered
By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC
Q. I am the owner of a criminal defense practice in Bloomington, Illinois. I have been practicing for 40 years and I have just turned 65. I have one associate who has been with me for two years and two staff members. I would like to retire by the end of this year, and I would like to receive some value from my practice. Would I be better off selling my practice to my associate or another firm?
Ensuring you get paid for your efforts on behalf of your client requires more than getting retained, performing legal services, and sending a bill. When a client disputes a fee or simply refuses to pay, how do you put yourself in the best position to obtain payment? It starts with your initial retention and lasts beyond your representation. In his January Illinois Bar Journal article, “What You Might Have Forgotten About Billing Clients,” David M. Neff revisits essential steps for billing clients and offers guidance from retention to collection.
Asked and Answered
By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC
Q. I am the owner of a six-attorney insurance defense firm. I started the practice 12 years ago with a paralegal and have grown the firm to where it is today – six attorneys, two paralegals, and two other staff members. While I have done well and am taking home around $350,000 a year, I am not sure if we are attaining the numbers that we should be. I have a 1,500-billable hour expectation with a per-hour bonus payable for each billable hour exceeding 1,500. I do not have any attorneys who have reached this expectation. Our billing rates average around $150 per hour. I am wanting to put in place a partnership track and am not sure where to start. Your thoughts would be appreciated.