Jennifer Purcell of Chicago, Senior Labor & Employment Counsel at Cook County Health & Hospitals System, is the first place winner in the ISBA’s 2016 Lincoln Award Legal Writing Contest. Jennifer received a cash award of $2,000, and her article, “Representing Clients under the New Illinois Pregnancy Accommodation Act,” appeared in the February Illinois Bar Journal. The contest is sponsored by the Young Lawyers Division and open to YLD members.
Second place winner is Joseph Nichele, Naperville, who wrote “The Shield Turned into a Sword: A Plaintiff’s Perspective of Negligent Spoliation of Evidence Claims after Martin v. Keeley & Sons, Inc.” Third place goes to Brandon Wise, O’Fallon, for “Evaluating an Unpaid Minimum Wage Claim in Illinois.” The second place winner gets a $1,000 cash prize, and the third place winner received $500.
Thirty-two manuscripts were submitted in the 2016 contest. The contest judges were Justice Mary Seminara-Schostok, Libertyville, presiding justice of the second district appellate court; Hon. Thomas V. Lyons, II, Chicago, a trial judge in the law division of the Circuit Court of Cook County; Donald Bigham, a partner at Seibert, Bigham & Tanner in Pinckneyville; Lisa L. Dunn, a partner at Massucci, Blomquist, Anderson & Dunn in Arlington Heights; and Edward “Ted” Graham, Jr., a partner at Beavers, Graham & Calvert in Taylorville.
Watch for information in the coming months about next year's Lincoln Award contest.
ISBA members, sign up to receive The Bar News' biweekly e-newsletter by emailing emailpreferences@isba.org
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February 16, 2016
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February 16, 2016 |
Events
The ways in which we are delivering legal services are evolving like never before. To stay on top of these changes, we as a profession must create dialogue. That’s how the inception of The Future is Now: Legal Services 2.016 came to be. On April 6th, ISBA will co-sponsor a conference with the ABA Commission on the Future of Legal Services, the Chicago Bar Association, and the Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism. The event will take place at the Chase Bank Auditorium in Chicago from 2-5:15 p.m. with a reception immediately following. The conference will feature several leaders in the legal profession from in and outside of the state, including ISBA President-Elect Vincent F. Cornelius, ISBA Past President Tim Eaton, LegalZoom General Counsel Chas Rampenthal, Washington State Bar Association Executive Director Paula Littlewood, and several more. The event is free and attendees are eligible to receive three hours of professional responsibility CLE in Illinois. However, seating is limited, so register early. You won’t want to miss it out on this conversation. We hope to see you there.
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February 16, 2016 |
CLE
Get the best practice tips and practical tools you need to work smarter in today’s technologically-advanced world with this full-day seminar in Bloomington on Friday, March 11, 2016! Attendees will gain a better understanding of: how legal competence and technological competence go hand-in-hand; how to implement cost-effective and easy-to-use technology in your practice; how to find and keep valuable clients; which tools and technologies enable you to run your practice remotely; how technology can help you improve client and workplace communication; how to avoid communication overload in our digital world; the ethical pitfalls of everyday law office computing; and much more!
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February 12, 2016 |
Practice News
By Beverly Allen, ISBA Standing Committee on Delivery of Legal Services Legal aid programs have been at the forefront of the war on poverty and the fight for equal access to justice for all since its inception. Historically, legal aid played a crucial role in ensuring equal protections under the law involving social security, housing, health care, education, employment, and anti-discrimination issues for those who could not afford legal representation. In 1965, the federal legal aid programs focused efforts on what was coined, “The War on Poverty.”[1] In 1975, the Legal Services Corporation Act refocused the purpose of the programs from addressing poverty to achieving equal access to justice.[2]1 comment (Most recent February 19, 2016)
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February 12, 2016
The Lesbian and Gay Bar Association of Chicago (LAGBAC) installed Cecilia Horan as its new president. Illinois Supreme Court Justice Mary Jane Theis and celebrity chef Art Smith served as special presenters. -
February 12, 2016
The ISBA Bench and Bar Section hosted a Civility CLE and Reception at the Chicago Office on Feb. 10. Panelists included ISBA President Umberto S. Davi, Illinois Supreme Court Justice Lloyd A. Karmeier, ARDC Administrator Jerome Larkin and LAP Executive Director Robin Belleau. Cook County Judge Jeanne M. Reynolds served as moderator. -
February 11, 2016 |
Practice News
ISBA Director of Legislative Affairs Jim Covington reviews legislation in Springfield of interest to ISBA members. This week he covers The Land Trust Beneficiary Rights Act (House Bill 4697 ), The Mechanics Lien Act (Senate Bill 2450), Product liability (House Bill 5596), Tenants Radon Protection Act (House Bill 4528), Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act (Defines terms. House Bill 4648) and Punitive damages (Senate Bill 2509). More information on each bill is available below the video. The Land Trust Beneficiary Rights Act. House Bill 4697 (Nekritz, D-Buffalo Grove) provides that the rights of a beneficial owner may not be impaired in any way by the change of trustees if the identity of the trustee of a land trust has been changed by virtue of sale, assignment, appointment, or otherwise, but the beneficial owner or owners of the land trust remain unchanged. Provides that a change of trustees by a sale, acquisition, or appointment governed by the Corporate Fiduciaries Act is not a bar or defense to any pending court action filed by or in the name of either the previous trustee or the new trustee, regardless of whether the court action was originally filed in a representative capacity on behalf of the beneficial owner or owners. Referred to House Rules Committee.
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February 11, 2016
The Illinois Bar Foundation hosted a Lake County Fellows Reception on Jan. 28 to honor attorneys Deborah Goldberg and Bernard Wysocki for their leadership and dedication to the law. The proceeds from this event help the Foundation further its mission to ensure meaningful access to the justice system, especially for those with limited means; assist lawyers who have fallen on hard times; and provide legal Fellowships to recent law school graduates. -
February 10, 2016
In a recent post to the ISBA family law discussion group, Nancy Dryden of Newton posed this question: "I represent a mom in a modification of custody battle. The 13-year-old half-brother of the minor at issue is very eager to testify on behalf of the parent I'm representing. He wishes to respond to allegations of actions by my client that involved him as well as his half-sibling who is the subject of the custody battle. Would the court allow him to testify? If so, are there any drawbacks?" Eric Frobish of Morris wrote this: "If the child is competent to testify, then the judge technically doesn't have any choice in the matter. CAVEAT: my experience has always been that judges will bend over backwards to avoid putting a minor on the stand in a custody hearing. You're taking a chance of really ticking the judge off by putting this kid on the stand, which would presumably not be to your client's benefit. It may be a bit less upsetting to the judge since it's not the child who is the subject of the litigation, but...." Read more in the February Illinois Bar Journal, and find out more about ISBA discussion groups here.2 comments (Most recent February 12, 2016)
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February 10, 2016 |
ISBA News | Events | Practice News
Volunteers are needed for the 2016 ISBA High School Mock Trial Invitational at the University of Illinois College of Law in Champaign. It will be held the weekend of April 2-3. If you would like to volunteer for the 2016 Invitational, please register by going to: www.isba.org/teachers/mocktrial and clicking on the red button that says “Sign up to volunteer.” If you have already registered, thank you! You will receive e-mails closer to the event providing you with more information about the program, a schedule, and logistics, such as parking information.