The 142nd Annual Meeting was held last week, June 14-16, at The Abbey Resort in Fontana, Wisconsin. Attendees celebrated the accomplishments of the past year, planned for the year ahead, expanded their professional networks, and earned CLE credit. During section meetings and at the Assembly meeting, various members of the ISBA community were recognized with awards. At the Friday reception and program, James McCluskey was installed as ISBA president for 2018-19.
Congratulations to the winners of the Annual Meeting bingo contest:
The Honorable P. Scott Neville, Jr. was sworn in to the Illinois Supreme Court today during an installation ceremony at the James R. Thompson Center in Chicago.
He is filling the seat of retiring Supreme Court Justice Charles E. Freeman. Justice Neville’s appointment is effective today through Dec. 7, 2020. He said he plans to seek reelection.
A graduate of Washington University’s School of Law, Justice Neville has practiced law in Illinois since 1974, when he became a law clerk for Illinois Appellate Court Justice Glenn T. Johnson. Throughout his career as an attorney, Justice Neville has specialized in appellate, employment, civil rights issues, and complex litigation.
Asked and Answered
By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC
Q. Our firm is a 12-attorney firm – eight partners and four associates – in Phoenix. It was founded by the current partners 20 years ago. We are an eat-what-you-kill firm – partners receive their fees, overhead is allocated, and their compensation is their individual profit. While we have an administrator who handles the day-to-day management of our operations, we have done a poor job of long-term management and planning. One of our partners has suggested that we develop a strategic plan. However, I believe this would be difficult for us given that we never meet, have different ideas about our future, have never been able to agree on any major decisions, are unwilling to be accountable to each other, and have a general attitude of mistrust. I do not believe we even have a firm culture. In essence we are eight separate practices operating under the guise of a partnership. Your comments are most welcomed.
