Making sure the family house gets properly transferred in a divorce should be high on every lawyer's to-do list, according to Adam Whiteman in the ISBA's November 2017 Real Property newsletter. That means seeing to it that "the property gets quitclaimed and recorded as necessary and…the mortgage is refinanced or…some other agreement is put in place to remove the non-owning spouse from any mortgage that encumbers the property," he writes. Waiting till the divorce is over is asking for trouble.

A few of his tips:

The Candidate Report for the 2018 ISBA Election is below. All ISBA attorney members with their dues paid by March 1, 2018 are eligible to vote.

2018 Candidate Report

(N.B.: Pursuant to the Policy and Procedures for Election approved by the ISBA Assembly, in those instances where there are more candidates than positions to be filled, nominees are listed on the ballot by the date of filing. Where two or more people filed on the same date, ballot positions were determined by lot. Ballot positions are listed next to the candidate’s name.)

Third Vice-President (1 to be elected; 3 candidates)

• Stephen M. Komie 2
• Anna Krolikowska 1
• John Nisivaco 3

Asked and Answered

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

Q. I am a partner in a law firm in Walnut Creek, California. There are four other partners and three associates. We are a general practice firm and our clients are primarily individual clients. I have a good relationship with the other partners. I have decided to leave the firm and join a larger firm in San Francisco. I have notified my partners in writing of my intention to leave. They are supportive of my decision, and I anticipate an amicable withdrawal. This is the first time a partner has left the firm for any reason, so we are not sure what the next step is. Please share with us any thoughts that you have.

The 2018 Annual Meeting will be held at The Abbey Resort located in Fontana, Wisconsin from June 14–16, and you can now make your hotel reservations. To make reservations at The Abbey, please call 800.709.1323 then press #2 and reference the Illinois State Bar Association Annual Meeting. The deadline for making reservations for lodging is on or before May 11. Reservations received after this date will be subject to availability.

The Illinois Supreme Court Rules Committee is scheduled to hold a public hearing at 10:30 a.m. on Monday, March 26, 2018, at the Michael A. Bilandic Building, 160 N. LaSalle Street, in Chicago.

Illinois Supreme Court Rules proposals or proposed rule amendments are offered by the bench, bar, or public. They are then reviewed by the Rules Committee and placed on the agenda for public hearing if the proposal is determined to have merit. Public comments on the proposals are invited. Written comments and testimony scheduling requests should be submitted to the committee secretary by e-mail at jzekich@illinoiscourts.gov or mailed to Committee Secretary, Supreme Court Rules Committee, 222 N. LaSalle Street, 13th Floor, Chicago, IL 60601.

At the Jan. 26 Board of Governors meeting in Rockford, the Board adopted two ethics opinions.

Opinion 18-01 considers whether the use of undisclosed "tracking" software (e.g., "web bugs," web beacons," or "spymail") in electronic communications with other lawyers or clients is ethically permissible. The opinion concludes that a lawyer may not use such software in e-mails or other electronic communications with other lawyers or clients in the course or representing a client without first obtaining the informed consent of each recipient to the use of such software. 

Update your knowledge on a number of important workers’ compensation issues with this full-day seminar in Chicago and O’Fallon on Feb. 19. Labor and employment attorneys and workers’ compensation practitioners attending this seminar will better understand how orthopedic injuries are diagnosed, evaluated, and treated in workers’ compensation claims; the 2017 appellate court decisions that have impacted workers’ compensation law; how to avoid ethical dilemmas in your practice; how to present effective oral arguments before the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission; integrating Medicare and workers’ compensation benefits; and how status as employee or independent contractor can affect employment benefits and liability.

Land of Lincoln Legal Assistance Foundation, Inc. (LOLLAF) seeks to hire a staff attorney at LOLLAF's Central (East St. Louis) and Western (Alton) regional offices. LOLLAF is a non-profit organization that provides free legal services to low-income individuals and groups in civil cases.  The program has a strong history of high quality and innovative advocacy for our clients.

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 January 2018 there were over 1,000 referrals given.

Here are the results for January 2018:

Mark your calendars for Saturday, March 17! The ISBA Standing Committee on Marketing & Communications would like to invite you to represent ISBA by marching in the St. Patrick's Day Parade in Chicago. The parade begins at noon.

Details for a central meeting location for all interested participants will be available soon. 

Contact Sara Anderson for additional information.