By Beverly A. Allen 

The Neighborhood Law Office, is just that — a law office that serves the legal needs of its neighbors. The Neighborhood Law Office (NLO) provides free legal services to low income residents in St. Clair County and its surrounding counties. Implemented in 1996, Kathleen O’Keefe, a former staff attorney at Land of Lincoln Legal Assistance Foundation, Inc., was its first director. NLO falls under the auspices of Catholic Urban Programs (CUP). CUP was founded in 1973 as a department of the Catholic Diocese of Belleville and has provided charity services throughout Southern Illinois for over 40 years. The mission of CUP and NLO is to advance the dignity of the human person through compassionate responses to human needs, advocacy for justice, and to empower individuals and families to reach their full potential by ensuring access to justice for their clients. 

Voting is now underway in the 2018 ISBA election, and the last day to request a paper ballot is this Friday, April 13.

ISBA's election provider Election America e-mailed ballots to members with valid e-mail addresses and mailed paper ballots to members without valid e-mail addresses two weeks ago, on Monday, March 26.

Only attorney members who have paid their dues by March 1, 2018 are eligible to vote. Voting ends at 4:30 p.m. CT on April 30.

Join your fellow colleagues and local judges in Chicago on May 9, 2018 for an in-depth look at the nuts and bolts of a mechanics lien claim! Learn what it takes to prosecute liens on private and public projects and avoid common pitfalls encountered with claims under the Illinois Mechanics Lien Act.

The Illinois Judges Foundation and the Illinois Bar Foundation will honor retired Justice Philip J. Rarick, Hon. Carole K. Bellows, and attorney Harvey B. Stephens for their exemplary careers and dedication to advancing the legal profession on Tuesday, May 15, at the Legal Luminary Reception at the Illinois State Library in Springfield, Ill.

The Illinois State Bar Association’s Lawyer Finder Service provides referrals to local lawyers Mondays through Fridays. The Service makes referrals in a number of areas of law. For the month of March 2018 there were over 900 referrals given.

Here are the results for March 2018:

The U.S. Attorney's Office Northern District of Illinois is accepting applications for an assistant United States attorney opening in its Civil Division, primarily to handle bankruptcy and commercial lien cases and matters.

Applicants must possess a J.D. degree, be an active member of the bar (any jurisdiction), and have at least two years post-J.D. experience in bankruptcy practice. U.S. citizenship is required.

Preferred qualifications: Excellent academics, significant litigation experience, bankruptcy law experience, strong legal writing skills, and commitment to public service.

The Illinois Supreme Court handed down one opinion today in People v. Pepitone. At issue in this case was whether Section 11-9.4-1(b) of the Criminal Code of 2012, which prohibits sexual predators or child sex offenders to knowingly be present in any public park building or on real property comprising any public park, is facially violative of substantive due process. Jay Wiegman of the Office of the State Appellate Defender reviews the court's ruling.

People v. Pepitone

Section 11-9.4-1(b) of the Criminal Code of 2012 prohibits “sexual predators” and “child sex offenders” from being knowingly present in any public park building or on real property comprising any public park. 720 ILCS 5/11 9.4 1(b) (West 2016). In People v. Pepitone, 2018 IL 122034, the Illinois Supreme Court considered whether this statute was facially violative of substantive due process and determined that it was not. 

The defendant in Pepitone, who had been convicted in 1999 of predatory criminal sexual assault of a child and sentenced to a six-year prison term, was arrested in 2013 while walking his dog in a public park in Bolingbrook. A jury found him guilty of being a child sex offender in a public park, and he was sentenced to 24 months’ conditional discharge, 100 hours of public service, and $400 in fines and costs. 

Please join us at the ISBA Young Lawyers Division Bean Bag Tournament on Saturday, May 12 to show off your bean bag tossing skills. Groups will compete for first place in this annual tournament. Interested participants can register as a team or individually to be paired with another YLD member. We hope you help us continue this tradition of giving by joining us this year at our new location, the Firefighters Lake Club in Springfield.

Eric J. Anderson, partner with Info Law Group, LLP in Chicago, discusses how to keep social media advertising legal.