When patients get a life-changing medical diagnosis, they often seek a second opinion. When clients have questions about the direction that their legal counsel takes, they may think they have nowhere to turn.

In fact, attorneys can provide clients with second opinions, although most do not advertise them as a service. Valorem Law Group in Chicago is one of the first law firms to feature second opinions as part of its practice. Valorem, also known for its alternative fee agreements (see the October 2014 IBJ cover story), has been providing legal second opinions to individuals and companies for the past two years.

Nicole Auerbach, one of Valorem's founding partners, says that clients can "save a lot of money and angst" by seeking second opinions. Clients seeking second opinions can ask a wide range of questions. Some want to know if a proposed settlement is acceptable. Others want to get a second opinion about the direction their counsel is taking in a specific matter. Some want a reality check on what they're being billed and what they're told it will cost to complete a representation. Auerbach says that "there is really no topic that doesn't lend itself well to a second opinion."

Find out more in the July Illinois Bar Journal.

Two Assembly members were elected at the ISBA Annual Meeting to vacant seats on the Assembly Agenda and Program Committee. The committee has primary responsibility for preparing agendas for Assembly meetings. The winners were Carl R. Draper of Springfield and Nicholas J. Feda of St. Charles. Both seats are for two-year terms.

He's been a litigator for 33 years, a Cook County Circuit Court judge for 6½ years, and currently works as a mediator and arbitrator - with a side gig as a high school football referee for 40 years - but perhaps the most consistent, year in and year out feature of Russell Hartigan's career has been his deep involvement in the Illinois State Bar Association.

So dogged has been his advocacy of bar membership that he has been kiddingly dubbed "the pied piper of the Illinois bar" by his older son, Michael, who stepped into his father's shoes with the Chicago-based firm of Hartigan & O'Connor when the elder Hartigan became a judge in the Fifth Municipal District in southwest suburban Bridgeview in 2010.

And now that pied piper has become the bar's president after being sworn in June 16 at the ISBA Annual Meeting. Hartigan plans to spend his year prioritizing issues like helping solos and small firms with succession planning, finding ways for the legal profession to help combat gun violence in his native Chicago, addressing law student debt, and - in keeping with his son's nickname for him - attracting young attorneys to ISBA membership.

Find out more more in the July Illinois Bar Journal.

The 141st Annual Meeting was held last week, June 15-17, 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 dinner and program, the Hon. Russell Hartigan was installed as ISBA president for 2017-18. 

The photo galleries of highlights from the Annual Meeting are listed below:

Asked and Answered 

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

Q. I’m a second-generation attorney with about five years of experience at a small liability defense firm in Southern California. My father is the managing partner and we have three total attorneys. My father and his partner probably have five to seven years left practicing. We only do California workers’ compensation defense. I’m planning on taking over the practice but am concerned about trends in the industry that will affect profitability, such as more stringent billing guidelines/bill audits, cuts to travel time, etc. What are the characteristics of a successful liability defense firm that I should strive towards?

Chief Judge Kathryn E. Creswell announced that the Court is accepting applications to fill a vacancy for the Office of Associate Judge of the 18th Judicial Circuit Court of Illinois, DuPage County.  This vacancy is the result of the retirement of Associate Judge Bruce R. Kelsey effective July 7, 2017. Applications are now being accepted for this vacancy which will be filled by vote of the circuit judges of the 18th Judicial Circuit.

Pursuant to Supreme Court Rule 39, any attorney, who is a U.S. citizen, is licensed to practice law in the state of Illinois, and is a resident of the 18th Judicial Circuit may apply by electronically filing a signed application with the Director of the Administrative Office of Illiinois Courts on the form prescribed and furnished by the Director.  The instructions for submitting an application electronically are available on the supreme court's website.

If unable to submit an application electronically, an applicant must submit two (2) signed originals of the prescribed application with the Director of the Administrative Office of Illinois Courts at the address listed below:

Michael J. Tardy, Director
Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts
3101 Old Jacksonville Rd.
Springfield, IL  62704-6488

Congratulations to the winners of the Annual Meeting bingo contest:

• $200 Amazon Gift Card - Roza Gossage
• Affinity Tech $50 Gift Card - Rosemary Collins
• $100 Gift Card - Nancy Easum
• $100 Gift Card - Jeanie Pearlman
• $100 Amazon Gift Card - John Voorn
• $50 Amazon Gift Card - Bridget Schott
• Gift basket with tickets & a day of golf - Jan Strzalka
• Yoga mat & water bottle - Emma Dorantes
• Gift basket with ISBA logo items and books - Lisa McLeod
• Coffee-themed logo basket with Starbucks gift cards - Ron Menna
• Custom website assessment ($99 value) - Freddi Greenberg
• Google Home - Mark Wolf
• OPI nail polish gift basket ($100 value) - Marylou Kent

Illinois Supreme Court Justice Mary Jane Theis has begun an application process for a judicial vacancy in the Fifth Judicial Subcircuit of Cook County. The vacancy is created by the retirement of the Hon. Edward Washington, II.

Under the Illinois Constitution, judicial vacancies are filled on an interim basis by supreme court appointment. Justice Theis will make recommendations to the supreme court after applicants undergo a screening and evaluation process.

That process will include an evaluation by the Alliance of Bar Associations, which is made up of 11 bar groups in the Cook County area, and the Chicago Bar Association. Further review will be conducted by a special judicial screening committee that Justice Theis established in 2013 and is co-chaired by retired U.S. District Court Judge Wayne R. Andersen and retired Illinois Appellate Court Judge Michael J. Gallagher.

To be eligible for consideration for appointment, the applicant must be a lawyer in good standing licensed to practice law in Illinois and a resident of the Fifth Subcircuit.

The deadline for submission of applications is 4 p.m. on Monday, July 17, 2017.

Notice of the vacancy and details of the application process are posted on the Illinois Supreme Court's website. From there, follow the instructions on the "Latest News" scroller announcing the Fifth Subcircuit vacancy.