Eight Chicago residents have qualified as candidates for the open Republican seat on the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners, Chief Cook County Circuit Judge Timothy C. Evans announced today.

Under a state statute, the composition of the three-member board is to include one member from the state’s two leading political parties. Currently, the board must have one Democrat, one Republican and one member from any political party. The current opening is the Republican seat. The qualified candidates are (in alphabetical order):

Asked and Answered

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

Q. I am the managing partner of a 16 attorney business transactional firm in Chicago. Over the last five years, we have lost several core clients due to consolidation of their outside law firms and mergers of the clients themselves. Competition is getting fierce in our market, our services are being viewed as commodities, and it is getting harder to stand out. What can we do to differentiate ourselves from everyone else? We welcome your thoughts.

A. Creating a competitive advantage that is sustainable over time is difficult at best. It is so easy for your competitors to copycat your recent innovations. Clients of law firms advise us that they hire the lawyer - not the firm. However, this is only partly true. The firm - its image and brand - provides a backdrop for the individual attorneys marketing efforts as well and provides backup and bench strength that many clients require before retaining a lawyer.

In general the law firm is faced with the dual challenge of developing a reputation (brand) at both the firm and the individual lawyer level. In general, client delivery practices and behaviors that are part of the firm's core values and have been burned into the firm's cultural fabric are the hardest to copycat.

Areas in which you can consider differentiation strategies:

Volunteer hotline attorneys wanted to give advice to Chicago-area low-income clients in the areas of landlord/tenant, consumer debt, and family law. Day and night shifts are available. Daily hotline shifts are Mondays-Fridays 9:00 a.m.-1 p.m. or 1-5 p.m. A minimum commitment of 1 shift per week over a 10-week session is requested. Evening shifts are Mondays and Wednesdays from 5:30 p.m.–8 p.m. We seek a minimum commitment of 36 hours over a one-year period. Training (with CLE credit and dinner!) and malpractice insurance provided.

Our next training cycle begins Wednesday, November 4, 2015 from 4 p.m.-8 p.m.  For more information, contact Leslie Wallin at 312/421-4427 or lwallin@carpls.org or go to https://www.carpls.org/getinvolved/pro-bono-opportunities/

Learn the ins and outs of navigating an enforcement case under Section 31 of the Illinois Environmental Protection Act (415 ILCS 5/31), including the requirements and process from start to finish with this live webcast on October 22, 2015. Hear from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency and the Illinois Attorney General’s Office regarding what each agency looks for when making decisions and how they handle a Section 31 case.

The program is presented by the ISBA Environmental Law Section and qualifies for 1.25 hours MCLE credit.

Click here for more information and to register.

The Illinois Supreme Court announced today the adoption of several rule changes designed to bring attorney ethics rules up to date with advances in technology and developments in global legal practices.

During its September Term, the Court approved amendments to the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct and Supreme Court Rules 705 and 716. The Supreme Court Rules Committee recommended the changes to the Court after reviewing the proposals and holding a public hearing on July 22, 2015, in Chicago.

All of the rule changes take effect January 1, 2016.

"It's well into the evening and you're alone in the office, catching up on a few things," malpractice prevention maven Karen Erger writes in the October Illinois Bar Journal. "You're feeling tired, but virtuous: Is that the top of your desk you're seeing? Awesome! Staying late to take care of lingering tasks was a great idea, even if the greasy dinner you ordered in was not.

"Then it appears. The Mistake. The one you made. It does not matter what it is - blown deadline, failure to file a document, violation of a rule - each area of practice has its own special traps and snares.

"At first, you can't believe your eyes. Your face flushes, and you break out in a cold sweat. You would not, could not make such an error. Shock and disbelief give way to fear and shame as you become more and more certain you goofed up.

"This dark night of the soul comes to many lawyers. What you do in these fraught hours matters so much more than whatever it was you did to bring about this situation. In the words of Nikki Giovanni, 'Mistakes are a fact of life. It is the response to the error that counts.'"

So how should you respond? Read Erger's column and find out.

The Illinois State Bar Association will honor the Class of 1965 Distinguished Counsellors on Thursday, Nov. 12. This title is conferred annually upon those ISBA members who are completing their 50^th year of practice.

The 2015 Class will be honored at a special luncheon at The Standard Club located at 320 South Plymouth Court, Chicago on Nov. 12. A reception will begin at 11:15 a.m., and lunch is scheduled for noon.

Tickets to the luncheon are available and may be purchased online at www.isba.org/distinguishedcounsellorsluncheon. Any questions regarding the luncheon may be directed to Kim Weaver at kweaver@isba.org.

Congratulations to the 1965 Class of Distinguished Counsellors: