Practice News

When legal issues arise at home, Servicemembers are often unable to find the help they need. The aid and advice of a trusted attorney located in or near their home community can be a lifeline of support.

JAG Corps attorneys can only provide limited counsel.

Military Families may need assistance dealing with divorce, child custody, bankruptcy, probate and financial issues. Attorneys in the Judge Advocate General’s Corps (JAGs) are able to provide limited counsel to Servicemembers, but heavy caseloads, and numerous demands compete for their time. 

When Servicemembers return, they need legal help near their home communities.

Only 37 percent of our military Families live on installations while the remaining 63 percent live in over 4,000 communities nationwide. Our troops need legal assistance closer to home. Give them someone to turn to for help.

Learn how you can help Servicemembers in your community.

To sign up please go to – http://militarylegalsupport.com

Believed to be 1st time court will hear full term outside Springfield

The Supreme Court will convene for its September 2013 Term in the Michael A. Bilandic Building, 160 N. LaSalle Street, Chicago. The first oral arguments are scheduled for Tuesday, September 10 in the 18th floor Courtroom.

Traditionally, the Supreme Court convenes to hear oral arguments in Springfield. It is believed that this is the first time that a full Term of the Court will be held outside the 105-year-old building since it opened in 1908.

Gov. Pat Quinn announced June 6 the release of $12.6 million to rehabilitate the historic Illinois Supreme Court Building in Springfield. During the construction period which began June 17, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in Chicago. Rehabilitation is scheduled to be completed at this time next year. The Springfield office of the Supreme Court Clerk and other Springfield Supreme Court staff moved to an interim location at the Herndon Building, 421 East Capitol Avenue in Springfield. Telephone numbers remain the same.

This will not be the first time that the Supreme Court has heard oral arguments outside Springfield. Five years ago, the Supreme Court heard two oral arguments at the Mt. Vernon courthouse as part of events marking the 150th anniversary of the court building and the 2009 bicentennial celebration of Abraham Lincoln's birth. That courthouse was used by the Supreme Court from 1857 until 1897, when the Court was consolidated in Springfield. The Court then met in the current state Capitol building until the Supreme Court Building at its present location opened nine years later.

Demands on Military Attorneys Limit Their Ability to Take Servicemember Cases

The Judge Advocate General's (JAG) Corps serves as the military's "in-house counsel." The attorneys that serve in the Corps (the Judge Advocates) have a wide range of duties that consist mainly of providing legal advice and representation for their command and for their units. Some of their responsibilities include assisting individual Servicemembers (SM) with civil legal matters, but resources are tight and time constraints are rigid.

There is a great need for private attorneys from the state bar to step forward to fill the void. Major Alma L. Whitelaw, Command Judge Advocate, 287th Sustainment Brigade, Kansas Army National Guard, discusses below the difficult role of Reserve and National Guard Judge Advocates in trying to provide legal assistance to non-active duty SMs and their Families.

Read more...

State Bar Associations Step Up to Help Servicemembers and Veterans Servicemember

As thousands of military men and women return from deployment, state bar associations are gearing up to provide greater access to legal assistance for Servicemembers, Veterans and their Families.

Two states, Virginia and Kansas, participated in an Army OneSource (AOS) pilot project, and along with a third state, Arizona, they helped to shape the program so it can be implemented nationwide. Read more...

Virginia Law Schools Help With Coordinated Approach

ISBA Director of Legislative Affairs Jim Covington reviews legislation in Springfield of interest to ISBA members. In this episode he covers Access to Justice Act (Public Act 98-351), Automobile liability insurance (Senate Bill 1898), Privacy and the workplace (Public Act 98-501), Visitation (Public Act 98-462) and Body attachments and child support (Public Act 98-417). More information on each bill is available below the video.