Practice News

The fax machine is almost as quaint a relic as the typewriter, and Grandma loves her iPad. Isn’t it time for an Illinois statute that expressly provides for electronic wills? That’s the question Darrell Dies posed recently in the ISBA Trusts & Estates Section newsletter.

He notes that since 2002 the federal Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (E-SIGN) has “ensured the validity and legal effect of contracts entered into electronically.” In 2012, the Illinois Supreme Court promulgated statewide e-filing standards and encouraged circuit court clerks to implement them. Yet the probate process remains squarely in the world of “paper, lots of paper,” he writes.

Of course, just because no statute expressly authorizes digital wills doesn’t mean a court would refuse to recognize one. In fact, last year an Ohio judge recognized a will signed on a tablet with a stylus. But a statute is a far more efficient and comprehensive way to move the probate process into the digital age.

Thus far, only one state has an electronic will statute – Nevada, which, as Dies informs us, has no income or estate tax. And the statute also illustrates the many e-will obstacles that remain, including concerns about authentication, confidentiality, tampering, and fraud. Read his article for more, including a look at the Nevada statute.

Michael J. Tardy, Director of the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts, announced today that the Eighth Judicial Circuit judges voted to select Debra L. Wellborn as an associate judge of the Eighth Judicial Circuit.

Ms. Wellborn received her undergraduate degree in 1984 from the University of Missouri in Columbia, MO, and her Juris Doctor in 1986 from Washington University in St. Louis, MO. Ms. Wellborn is currently affiliated with the State of Illinois Attorney General's Office in Quincy, IL.

Illinois Supreme Court Justice Thomas L. Kilbride is seeking public comment on three finalists who have applied to fill a judicial vacancy in the Tenth Judicial Circuit.

Under the Illinois Constitution, judicial vacancies are filled by Supreme Court appointment. Justice Kilbride uses an extensive application, evaluation, and interview process to make a recommendation to the Court for judicial vacancies in the Third Judicial District.

Q. Many years ago I represented a husband in a divorce. The ex-wife just came to me and wants me to represent her in a personal injury matter. Can I?

A. RPC 1.9 prohibits a lawyer from representing someone in a matter that is the same or substantially related to a matter in which the lawyer previously represented a client. Although there are many facets of this rule when applying it to specific situations, one of the major concerns is to protect confidential information that may have been gained in the prior representation that could be used to the detriment of the former client.

For a discussion of this point see In re Estate of Klehm, 363 Ill.App.3d 373, 299 Ill.Dec. 825 (1st Dist. 2006). View the case on Fastcase

ISBA members can browse past ISBA Ethics Opinions, access our Ethics Hotline, and other resources on the ISBA Ethics Page.