(L-R) ISBA Member Emily Masalski, ISBA Director of Legislative Affairs Jim Covington, ISBA President James F. McCluskey, ISBA Women and the Law Committee Chair Lori Levin, ISBA Board of Governors Member Julie Johnson, ISBA Women and the Law Committee Ex-Officio Melissa Olivero, ISBA Women and the Law Vice Chair Kelly Bennett, ISBA Member David P. Eldridge.   The Illinois State Bar Association was among several groups that recently received the Illinois Women’s Institute for Leadership Training Academy’s Trailblazers Award. The recipients of this year’s awards were organizations that helped pass the Equal Rights Amendment to the United States Constitution in Illinois. The amendment, which outlaws discrimination based on gender nationwide, was ratified in May.

The Illinois Supreme Court handed down nine opinions on Thursday, Nov. 29. The court determined that amendments to Supreme Court Rule 604(d) do not apply retroactively in People v. Easton, confronted whether a defendant who is able to retain counsel to prepare and file his post-conviction petition is entitled to any guaranteed level of assistance from that counsel in People v. Johnson, and articulated the contours of “waiver by conduct” in regard to appointed counsel for post-conviction petitions in People v. Lesley. The supreme court also determined that two corporate defendants were both liable in tort and their relative culpability was equal in Sperl v. Henry, opined that “transactional test” for res judicata should also be applied to the separate doctrine of the single refiling rule to determine whether two or more lawsuits assert the same cause of action in First Midwest Bank v. Cobo, and held that an injured worker was barred from intervening in her employer’s subrogation action brought against third-party tortfeasors in A&R Janitorial v. Pepper Construction Co. The supreme court also weighed in on statutory changes to the Illinois Pension Code and their impacts upon affected employees in Carmichael v. Laborers & Retirement Board Employees’ Annuity & Benefit Fund of Chicago, discussed the court’s jurisdiction, supervisory authority, and the framework for a circuit court to address the constitutionality of an Illinois statute in Gonzalez v. Union Health Service, Inc., and addressed judicial review of executive power in Gregg v. Rauner.

Asked and Answered  By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC Q. I am the owner of an elder law firm in Jackson, Mississippi. There are three associate attorneys who have been with me less than five years. All three were hired directly out of law school. While I try to mentor and train each of the associates as needed in “real time,” I also conduct annual performance reviews with each associate and provide them with a written performance evaluation. I am getting frustrated as it seems that the feedback that I provide does not stick and they continue to make the same errors. I welcome any thoughts that you may have.

The ISBA’s Family Law Update in the French Quarter is back. The conference is open to ISBA members and limited to the first 150 registrants. Join us in New Orleans April 4-5, 2019, for this highly popular biennial event featuring two days of premium family law presentations, a complimentary reception to network with friends and colleagues, 12.25 hours of MCLE credit, and many opportunity to enjoy the area’s food and fun. Family law attorneys, general practitioners, and lawyers working in the child law area who attend this conference will better understand: the rights of unmarried people living together in Illinois; how to secure your fees as a family law practitioner; the caselaw updates and changes you need to be aware of; how to analyze a forensic mental health report; how judgment and bias are used throughout the decision-making process; the Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Confidentiality Act; how family law issues are impacted when individuals file for bankruptcy; how the newly revised IRC affects the practice of family law; how maintenance is calculated and what impacts the bottom line; the necessary evidence in presenting a child support hearing; and the science behind relocation. The conference closes with an interactive segment that lets you show off how well you know the Illinois Rules of Evidence and the Code of Civil Procedure.