The Senate Special Committee on Workers' Compensation Reform held a hearing in Chicago Wednesday. The written testimony submitted may be found here.
Practice News
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December 10, 2010 |
Practice News
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December 9, 2010 |
Practice News
The Illinois Supreme Court has appointed Shelbyville Judge Michael P. Kiley as Chairperson of the Special Supreme Court Committee to Study Courtroom and Judicial Security.
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December 9, 2010 |
Practice News
The Illinois Supreme Court has recalled retired Circuit Judge Glenn H. Collier to hold court in the Circuit Court of the Tenth Judicial Circuit through July 6, 2011.
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December 8, 2010 |
Practice News
Remember Berry v. American Standard? Here's how NIU Professor Emeritus Jeffrey A. Parness described the sad Berry facts in an IBJ column from September 2008 (his quotes are from the case): Berry's claim failed, Parness wrote, because he "died before his evidence deposition could be taken, his discovery deposition was inadmissible, and there was insufficient other evidence on liability even though defendants seemingly 'were in control of the discovery deposition' and had taxed the claimant, a terminally ill man, in ways that made 'it impossible for him to give an evidence deposition.'" Well, the Illinois Supreme Court just amended Rule 212, effective January 1, to give the trial court discretion to admit the discovery deposition of the next plaintiff in Berry's shoes. Quoting the Committee Comments: "It appears that there may be rare, but compelling, circumstances under which a party's discovery deposition should be permitted to be used. In the Committee's view, Berry presents such circumstances."
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December 8, 2010 |
Practice News
By Peter LaSorsa In a recent survey more young people are utilizing text messages than email as a form of communication. In fact, both Google and Facebook are investing heavily in the text message application space. The difference between SMS (a text message) and email is not just the weight and friction of the user interface and cognitive load of having a subject line. The main difference is in social and mental framing of that medium of communication. Sending a text message to someone’s Gmail or Yahoo mail does not make it an email. Most young people (read this as your clients for the next 30 years) believe email to be too slow and formal and prefer to text. As an attorney, a decision has to be made as to whether to fully engage in the world of text messages and if so, how will you preserve the client communication? There are times when a text message makes sense, your client is running late, do to a late train, the train is crowded and a phone call probably will sound garbled—instead a quick text (stuck on train is 15 min late k for appt?). Whether we like it or not that is the way the 20 something generation thinks and communicates. I quick text response of (fine) and the issue is solved. The advantage to this type of communication is that you may be out of the office and rushing back for the appointment and now you can relax knowing you will have extra time. I know many will argue an email will accomplish the same task but only if both parties have smart phones with email capability. Additionally, if you are just getting out of court you may have 10 or 20 emails in your inbox and by the time you get to them, it is too late to take advantage of your extra 15 minutes.
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December 7, 2010 |
Practice News
Time was when Illinois nursing homes were not allowed to include provisions in their contracts with residents under which the resident waived his or her right to a jury trial. So said the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act. Well, it doesn't say that anymore. The Illinois Supreme Court's ruling earlier this year in Carter v. SSC Odin Operating Co. voided the anti-waiver provision of the Act. The court found that "the Federal Arbitration Act ('FAA') preempts Illinois state law restrictions on arbitration agreements and they are enforceable, as long as they do not run afoul of the state’s laws that apply to any contract," writes Edward Clancy in the latest issue of ISBA's Health Care Law newsletter. Read his analysis.
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December 7, 2010 |
Practice News
Purpose of Redeploy Illinois: The purpose of Redeploy Illinois [(P.A. 93-0641) December 2003] is to create financial incentives to keep youth in the local community rather than commit them to the Department of Juvenile Justice. According to the current statute, each site is required to reduce juvenile commitments of non-violent offenders to the Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) by 25% in one year. The program excludes murder and Class X forcible felonies. On April 7, 2009, Governor Quinn signed in to law Senate Bill 1013 (P.A. 95-1050) which will enable counties with fewer than an average of 10 commitments over the previous 3 years to access a pool of funding to enter in to an agreement to provide services to juveniles to avoid commitment to the Department of Juvenile Justice. Redeploy Illinois Sites: The original four Redeploy sites include: Second Judicial District (includes 12 counties in Southern Illinois: Crawford, Edwards, Franklin, Gallatin, Hamilton, Hardin, Jefferson, Lawrence, Richland, Wabash, Wayne, and White), Macon County, Peoria County, and St.
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December 6, 2010 |
Practice News
The Senate and House have created special committees to review and recommend changes in Illinois' Workers' Compensation system before the 96th General Assembly adjourns on Jan. 12, 2011. The next hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 8, at the Thompson Center in Chicago at 10:00 in Room 16-503. The Senate has posted some of the written testimony received by some of the groups that have appeared, which may be found here. The business community's recommendations include the following: (1) Require causation that the accident was the prevailing factor in causing the medical condition or disability. (2) Change the rules on wage-loss differential awards. (3) Change the medical fee schedule. (4) Allow employers to choose the treating physician. (5) Require use of the AMA guidelines for ratings of disability.
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December 3, 2010 |
Practice News
Circuit Court of Cook County Chief Judge Timothy C. Evans announced today major changes in the Circuit Court that include the appointment of new Presiding Judges and Supervising Judges in almost half of the court's divisions and districts and the creation of a new division dedicated to elder law matters, the Elder Law and Miscellaneous Remedies Division. "I want to be clear that these changes I am undertaking in the court system are designed to ensure that the Circuit Court of Cook County remains on its current trajectory as a model court for the nation," Chief Judge Evans said. In addition to the 10 appointments announced today, Chief Judge Evans said he expects to announce additional adjustments at the court's executive management level in the near future. He also indicated that reviews of the structure and operations within the court's divisions and districts are forthcoming. In addition to the creation of the new division dedicated solely to elder probate matters, he said, "Further significant changes to the court are to be expected." The Circuit Court is made up of six geographical districts and 10 divisions: Law, Chancery, County, Domestic Relations, Domestic Violence, Juvenile Justice, Child Protection, Probate, Criminal, and Elder Law and Miscellaneous Remedies.
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December 2, 2010 |
Practice News
CRIMINAL
People v. Becker
By Kerry J. Bryson, Office of the State Appellate Defender Defendant, on trial for sexual offenses against his then 3-year-old daughter, sought to introduce the testimony of an expert witness concerning the credibility of hearsay statements made by the daughter. The trial court barred the expert testimony, and a divided appellate court reversed.