The Illinois Supreme Court has appointed Marcus R. Salone, Associate Judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County, to the Appellate Court of Illinois, First Judicial District, Fourth Division. This vacancy was created by the retirement of the Hon. Sheila M. O'Brien. This appointment is effective March 8, 2011, and terminates December 3, 2012.
Practice News
-
February 10, 2011 |
Practice News
-
February 10, 2011 |
Practice News
Retired Cook County Judge Sheila M. Murphy has written a letter to the editor published by the Chicago Tribune urging Gov. Quinn to sign the death penalty ban. Read it here.
-
February 9, 2011 |
Practice News
Asked and Answered By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC Q. I am the founding partner of a 17 attorney firm in Missouri and I serve as the managing partner. We have 12 partners and 5 associates. Our practice is entirely defense - personal injury and workers compensation. The majority of our clients are insurance companies and third party administrators. We represent a handful of self insured companies. While we have had a successful past 15 years our firm is now struggling. We have lost market share and our case counts are way down due to the economy and regulatory changes in Missouri. Our profitability has suffered as a result. We need to make some changes but are unsure where to start. Could you share your thoughts? A. The present state of the insurance defense practice presents numerous challenges to the law firm. These challenges simply cannot be ignored – they will have to be faced head-on. The solutions are complex and will require time to sort through. While solutions can come in different varieties, they will take the form of one of two general strategic approaches.
- Reinvent the Practice - Stay in the Game
- Exit or Diversify the Practice
-
February 8, 2011 |
Practice News
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit is accepting applications from all qualified applicants for the position of Federal Public Defender for the Central District of Illinois headquartered in Peoria. The current Federal Public Defender, Richard Parsons, will be retiring on Aug. 18, 2011, after 16 years of service. The appointment is for four years at a current salary of $155,500. The Federal Public Defender provides federal criminal defense services to individuals unable to afford counsel. The courts are an equal opportunity employer. An applicant should have the following qualifications: (1) a member in good standing in the bar of each state in which admitted to practices; (2) a minimum of five years criminal practice experience, preferably with significant experience in federal criminal defense at the trial and appellate levels, which demonstrates an ability to provide zealous representation of consistently high quality to criminal defendants; (3) the ability to effectively administer the office; (4) a reputation for integrity; (5) a commitment to the representation of those unable to afford counsel; and (6) have demonstrated a commitment to equal justice under the law. Applications can be obtained by accessing the website of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit at www.ca7.uscourts.gov Complete applications are due before the close of business on April 1, 2011, and are to be sent to: Collins T. Fitzpatrick Circuit Executive United State Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit 219 S. Dearborn Street, Rm. 2780 Chicago, Illinois 60604
-
February 8, 2011 |
Practice News
The Illinois Supreme Court announced today that John F. McAdams received most of the votes cast by the circuit judges in the Sixteenth Judicial Circuit and is declared to be appointed to the office of associate judge. Mr. McAdams received his undergraduate degree in 1991 from Eastern Illinois University in Charleston and his Juris Doctor in 1995 from Northern Illinois University in DeKalb. Mr. McAdams is currently engaged in practice with McAdams & McAdams in Yorkville. The 16th Judicial Circuit is made up of Kane, Kendall and DeKalb counties.
-
February 5, 2011 |
Practice News
HJRCA 5 (Madigan, D-Chicago) any governmental entity that seeks to increase a pension benefit to receive a 3/5 super-majority vote of its legislative branch for that benefit to become effective. If the chief executive vetoes an increase in a pension benefit, then the body's legislative branch must have 2/3 votes to override that veto. Speaker Madigan's fact sheet in support of this amendment may be found here. A copy of the proposed amendment may be found here. This applies to the General Assembly, school boards, and any other unit of local government.
-
February 4, 2011 |
Practice News
The Illinois Supreme Court announced today that Sheldon R. Sobol, received a majority of the votes cast by the circuit judges in the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit and is declared to be appointed to the office of associate judge. Mr. Sobol received his undergraduate degrees in 1984 and 1986 from Northern Illinois University in DeKalb and his Juris Doctor in 1990 from John Marshall in Chicago. Mr. Sobol is currently affiliated with the Grundy County State’s Attorney’s Office in Morris.
-
February 3, 2011 |
Practice News
Our panel of leading appellate attorneys review today's opinions in the civil case Carr v. Gateway, Inc. and criminal cases People v. Skryd, People v. Beauchamp and People v. Manning.
-
February 3, 2011 |
Practice News
Gov. Quinn signed the civil unions bill into law this week, and it takes effect June 1. So, who's eligible to enter into a civil union? Should Illinois-based same-sex couples who got married in, say, Iowa seek a civil union here? These are just two of the questions Rick Felice and Camilla Taylor take up in their overview of the new law in the latest ISBA Family Law newsletter.
-
February 3, 2011 |
Practice News
Asked and Answered By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC Q. I am the managing partner for a 8 attorney firm located in San Diego. During the past several years we have invested significantly in continuing education - primarily conferences and seminars - for our lawyers and staff. We have just completed a review of our expenses in this area and we are concerned that we are not getting a satisfactory return on this investment. Please advise as to your thoughts. A. Training and skill development is not easy. Studies reveal that 90 percent of the people who attend seminars and training sessions see no improvement because they don't take the time to implement what they learn. Practices create habits and habits determine your future. Up to 90 percent of our normal behavior is based on habits. The key to skill learning is to get the new skill to become a habit. Once the new habit is well developed it becomes your new normal behavior. This requires practice. Unfortunately, law firms do not give employees time to practice and experiment. Research on memory and retention shows that upon completion of a training session, there is a precipitous drop in retention during the first few hours after exposure to the new information. We forget more than 60 percent of the information in less than nine hours. After seven days only 10 percent of the material is retained. Most memory loss occurs very rapidly after learning new information. Your employees can improve their memories:
- Engage in rehearsal/practice
- Schedule distributed practice
- Minimize interference
- Engage in deep mental processing
- Emphasize transfer
- Organize information