ISBA Director of Legislative Affairs Jim Covington reviews legislation in Springfield of interest to ISBA members. In this episode he covers Statutes of limitation (House Bill 5512), Pregnancy and discrimination (House Bill 8), Power of attorney for health care (Senate Bill 3228), Dissolution of business entities (Senate Bill 1098) and Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act (Senate Bill 1941). More information on each bill is available below the video.

Statutes of limitation. House Bill 5512 (Nekritz, D-Buffalo Grove; Mulroe, D-Chicago) stays the limitation periods for personal actions until a person’s legal disability is removed if a person is not under a legal disability at the time the cause of action accrues but becomes legally disabled before the limitation period expires. These changes don’t invalidate any applicable statute of repose provisions and affect only actions commenced or pending on or after January 1, 2015. Drop date, tk; effective January 1, 2015.

Pregnancy and discrimination. House Bill 8 (Flowers, D-Chicago; Hutchinson, D-Chicago Heights) amends the Illinois Human Rights Act to prohibit unlawful discrimination by an employer for pregnancy and require reasonable accommodation to a job applicant or employee for issues related to pregnancy or childbirth. Drop date; tk; effective January 1, 2015.

Power of attorney for health care. Senate Bill 3228 (Haine, D-Alton; Williams, D-Chicago) is a major rewrite of the power of attorney for health care law that does the following: (1) Replaces the current notice with a new notice styled more in the FAQ format and replaces the current form with a new form. No specific format is required the statutory health care power of attorney other than the notice must precede the form. Retains current law that authorizes principals to use other forms instead of using the new statutory one as long as they comply with Illinois law. (2) Clarifies that a witness must be at least 18 years old and that employees who are not owners of a health care facility may serve as a witness, specifically listing chaplains or social workers, and nurses. (3) The savings clause provides that Senate Bill 3228 doesn’t invalidate existing powers of attorney for health care. Drop date, tk; effective January 1, 2015.

Dissolution of business entities. Senate Bill 1098 (Harmon, D-Oak Park; Currie, D-Chicago) amends several acts governing business organizations regarding director and officer liability during periods of dissolution. Reinstatement of the organization reinstates the corporate liability shield for directors, officers, employees and agents of the organization for actions taken during the period of dissolution. Clarifies that directors are not liable for actions that are necessary and appropriate to wind up and liquidate a corporation’s business and affairs. Drop date, tk; effective January 1, 2015.

Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act. Senate Bill 1941 (Mulroe, D-Chicago; McAuliffe, R-Chicago) creates the Uniform Legal Material Act to regulate the authentication, publication, and availability of Illinois’ legal sources in electronic format. Drop date, tk; effective January 1, 2015.