Book your cruise and airfare for the ISBA Mediterranean Cruise with President Russell W. Hartigan by Thursday, Nov. 30, to receive a $500 per person airline credit. 

The cruise is a nine-night voyage aboard the Amazara Quest, departing from Barcelona, Spain, on May 15 and arriving in Nice, France on May 24.

Additional details about the cruise and its itinerary are available through the Member Marketplace. To take advantage of the early booking promotion, fill out the Mediterranean Cruise Registration Form and follow the submission instructions.

If you're looking for something to be thankful for this Thanksgiving, check out the wide selection of ticket discounts nationwide brought to you by Tickets At Work. From theme park admissions to Broadway musicals, Tickets at Work has a discount for you.

These offers are provided to you through the Illinois State Bar Association’s Member Marketplace.

Want to sign up? It's free and easy: 
1. Visit www.ticketsatwork.com
2. Use your company code: ISBA
3. Read and follow the easy steps on our site, and once registered you can access all tickets, events, hotels and more online for free.

The annual Distinguished Counsellors Luncheon honoring ISBA members who have been admitted to the bar for a period of 50 years was held yesterday, Thursday, Nov. 16, at the Union League Club in Chicago. Justice John B. Simon, appellate judge for the First District, spoke on behalf of the Class of 1967. In total, there were 168 honorees. 

Honorees in attendance were joined by family, friends, and ISBA leadership. One by one, the Class of 1967 was invited to the stage to be presented with a certificate of recognition by Hon. Russell W. Hartigan, ISBA president, to show our respect and admiration for those who have dedicated their lives to the profession and serve as living examples of the profession's highest ideals. James McCluskey, ISBA president-elect, and David Sosin, ISBA second vice president, joined Hartigan in presenting the awards. 

The tradition of conferring the title of "Distinguished Counsellor" dates back to 1940, when ISBA held its first ceremony at the Sangamon County Circuit Court. 

Congratulations to the 1967 Class of Distinguished Counsellors:

Mental illness in children is more common than many may think, with anxiety disorders, depression, and attention deficit disorders being among the most prevalent. Developmental and psychotic disorders are less common, but can impact the child and their families in much greater ways. Don’t miss this seminar on December 13, 2017 in Chicago or via live webcast that discusses a number of key issues that attorneys need to be aware of when handling cases involving mentally ill children, including: how the Illinois Mental Health and Developmental Disability Act addresses children’s rights; the confidentiality of minor’s mental health records; the communication barriers with children who are diagnosed with mental illness; and how to promote better dialogue between attorneys and mental health professionals.

The program is presented by the ISBA Mental Health Law Section and co-sponsored by the ISBA Standing Committee on Disability Law. It qualifies for 3.0 hours MCLE credit, including 1.0 hour Professional, Civility, or Legal Ethics PMCLE credit.

Learn more and register on the ISBA CLE page. 

Chicago Bulls vs. New York Knicks
United Center, Sat., Dec. 9 at 7:00 p.m.

Chicago Bulls vs. Orlando Magic
United Center, Wed., Dec. 20 at 7:00 p.m.

You're invited to experience great NBA action, non-stop entertainment, and the energy of a sellout crowd! Enjoy the excitement of the Chicago Bulls as they battle the Knicks and the Magic.

Illinois State Bar Association members, family, and friends have the opportunity to purchase Chicago Bulls tickets at a discount.

Jeff Salling of Complete Discovery Source discusses the basics of e-discovery.

Asked and Answered

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

Q. I am a partner in a six-attorney estate planning firm in Dallas, Texas. For many years, our primary marketing activity has been seminars that we put on for clients, prospective clients, and referral sources. These seminars have been put on solely by our firm, or in partnership with other organizations such as nursing homes, hospitals, etc. These seminars have been free of charge. We provide a lot of value at these seminars and have been wondering whether we should charge a fee. We would appreciate your thoughts.

Last Thursday, Nov. 9, 1,335 new attorneys were admitted to practice law in Illinois after taking the attorney's oath at five separate ceremonies across the state, bringing the total number of licensed attorneys in Illinois to approximately 98,000. Illinois Supreme Court and Illinois Appellate Court justices presided over the ceremonies.

ISBA staff members were in attendance at all five ceremonies to welcome the state's newest attorneys to the profession, take photos, and talk about the benefits of ISBA membership, which is free for one year for new admittees. Member benefits can be activated by filling out the New Admittee Membership Form. 

The photo galleries of highlights from the ceremonies are listed below:

1st District Admission Ceremony, November 2017

2nd District Admission Ceremony, November 2017

3rd District Admission Ceremony, November 2017

4th District Admission Ceremony, November 2017

A postnuptial agreement is "an important and effective tool in Illinois and should not be forgotten by practitioners," writes Chicago lawyers Joshua S. Singewald and Kellie Rose Bylica in the September ISBA Family Law Section newsletter.

As in the case of any contract, a postnup must be entered into voluntarily by the parties, and the familiar contract-law protections against coercion and mistake apply, Singewald and Bylica note. And Illinois law "require[s] a full disclosure of each party's assets and liabilities for every postnuptial agreement," allowing each "to make an informed decision."

So when would a married couple use one? "[I]f one spouse intends to start a business during the marriage, the business-owning spouse may want to protect his or her business in the event of divorce," Singewald and Bylica write. "Similarly…a spouse [who] makes a substantial non-marital contribution to a marital asset," such as making the down payment on a house, might want to assure reimbursement, they write. Postnups also enable the parties to allocate debt, deal with bequests to children of previous marriages, and even "[r]evise a prenuptial agreement based on current/changed circumstances."

Learn more about postnups in the September Family Law newsletter.