The Illinois Supreme Court recently adopted new rules that establish a more stringent process for debt collection companies to file civil cases, allow the court to more easily dismiss cases filed by those companies, and establish a process for purported victims of identity theft to contest liability. 

Illinois Supreme Court Rules 280-280.5 go into effect Oct. 1.

Rules 280 and 280.1 define applicability and definitions of legal terms for civil action. Rule 280.2 establishes a uniform affidavit that courts will accept to identify basic information in civil complaints filed by debt collection companies.

Attorneys defending a village against a sidewalk slip-and-fall case are caught off guard when the plaintiff produces images from Google Map’s Street View allegedly showing the sidewalk had been in poor condition for years prior to the plaintiff’s fall. If the court accepts the images, the plaintiff has a much stronger case that the village had constructive notice and plenty of time to make the repairs before the plaintiff fell. But do the images actually prove anything at all?

Join us Sept. 14 in Chicago for an in-depth look at a number of key changes to the family law arena, including the litigation updates that may impact your next client.

Family law practitioners, child law attorneys, and civil practice lawyers with all levels of practice experience who attend this seminar will better understand: how to apply the Illinois Rules of Evidence and the Illinois Code of Civil Procedure to your family law litigation case; the judicial perspective on proper pleadings; how to apply equitable remedies to a family law case; the impact of normalizing income as part of the valuation process when determining fair market value; how to calculate appropriate maintenance (and how the new maintenance statute may impact that calculation); and the importance of providing the necessary evidence in a child support hearing.

The Illinois State Bar Association is hosting a Presidents Golf Retreat Oct. 5-7 in Lake Geneva, Wis.

The lodging deadline is Sept. 5. A block of rooms has been held for attendees at the Grand Geneva Resort & Spa at a rate of $169 per night. Reservations can be made by calling (855) 833-5345.

The Illinois Supreme Court handed down one opinion on Thursday, August 2. The court reversed a summary judgment in favor of the City of Danville in a case in which a plaintiff sued the municipality after tripping and falling on an uneven seam in a sidewalk.

Monson v. City of Danville

By Joanne R. Driscoll, Forde Law Offices LLP

On a subject frequently visited by the Illinois Supreme Court, tort immunity, the Court was called upon to refine the contours of sections 2-109 ad 2-201 of the Local Governmental and Governmental Employees Tort Immunity Act (Act) (745 ILCS 10/2-109, 2-201 (West 2012)) and to determine whether section 3-102(a) of the Act (id. § 3-102(a)) supersedes those provisions. The majority opinion and the concurrence provide an interesting read on statutory interpretation.

The Forms Committee of the Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Access to Justice is seeking new committee members.  

The Forms Committee itself does not draft forms. It has overall responsibility for deciding what forms should be developed and creating subcommittees to develop them, reviewing forms to ensure that they comply with the mandate of the Supreme Court, and giving final approval for the forms to be published for use.

Marta Delgado, attorney and co-founder of the firm Delgado Rompf Bruen LLC, discusses how a client’s immigration status can impact the legal advice you provide and best practice tips for helping clients remain in the U.S. lawfully. 

Asked and Answered 

By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC

Q. I am a solo practitioner in upstate New York and I hope to retire in three years and move to Florida. I have been talking with a larger firm with 20 attorneys in Albany that has an interest in me either merging my practice with their firm or joining as Of Counsel. My plan would be to work three more years, gradually phase back, and transition clients and referral sources.

I have had several meetings with the partners in the firm and they are now asking me for detailed due diligence information – tax returns, financial statements, etc. I have no problem providing these documents, but I was wondering if I should be asking them for information. What do you think?

The Illinois Supreme Court has adopted a rule that allows divorcing couples to work with lawyers on a limited-scope basis to try to reach an amicable settlement and avoid litigation.

Illinois Supreme Court Rule 294 was adopted June 8 and went into effect July 1. It was an important companion rule to ISBA-sponsored legislation establishing the practice of the collaborative process in dissolution cases. That legislation became effective on Jan. 1.

The new rule, also proposed by the ISBA, disqualifies attorneys serving in a collaborative process from representing clients if the process fails and the case goes to litigation. The rule also stipulates that when an attorney is discharged from a collaborative process, that lawyer’s entire law firm is also disqualified from representing the client.