Cook County Circuit Judge LeRoy K. Martin Jr. will be the next presiding judge of the Criminal Division of the Cook County Circuit Court.

Chief Cook County Circuit Judge Timothy C. Evans announced the appointment today, which takes effect immediately. Martin succeeds Paul P. Biebel Jr., who retired in July.

“For the last 13 years, I have observed Judge LeRoy Martin emerge as a rising star in the judiciary,” Chief Judge Evans said.

Asked and Answered

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

Q. I am the owner of an estate planning practice in Chicago's northwest suburbs. I have two associates and four staff members. I am 67 and would like to retire when I am 70 (3 years). I have no idea as to where I should start and the approach I should take. I would appreciate suggestions.

Join us on Sept. 25 in Chicago or online for "Practical Information about New Models for Health Insurance: Types of Provider/Payor Arrangements including Provider Ownership of the Plan, Employer-Sponsored Coverage, and Private Exchanges."

Don’t miss this discussion regarding how health care providers and employers are changing the way they provide and arrange for health care. Health care providers and employers are reforming the way they provide health care for their prospective patients and employees, all in an effort to improve both quality of care and their bottom lines. Integrated health care delivery systems have been getting into the insurance business – a trend that could affect the health care delivery and reimbursement system for the foreseeable future – while employers are simultaneously pushing for innovative solutions to the skyrocketing costs of providing quality health care benefits to their employees. Attorneys representing health care providers, health insurers, and employers who offer health insurance plans to employees will benefit from attending this half-day seminar that discusses: the legal and operational issues of provider/health plan arrangements; fee-splitting prohibitions; Anti-Kickback and Self-Referral laws; the advantages and disadvantages of provider owned plans; how physicians and employers have responded to provider owned plans; the innovative approaches to employer-provided health plans; and ERISA, HIPAA, and COBRA compliance issues with employer-provided plans.

The program is presented by the ISBA Health Care Law Section and qualifies for 4.0 hours MCLE credit.

Judge Michael J. Chmiel brought the "Courtroom to the Classroom" program to members of the Huntley Rotary club this week. Approximately 100 judges and 100 attorneys across the state through the Illinois State Bar Association and the Illinois Judges Association, donate their time to present facts about our government and to answer questions to enhance civic classes in our high schools and middle schools. ISBA President Umberto S. Davi has made it a priority to expand the "Courtrooms in the Classroom" program to adult groups such as Rotary Clubs, the VFW and the Jaycees.

Pictured: Judge Chmiel gave highlights from the Civics of Illinois outline provided to Huntley Rotarians including (from left) Rudi Welvers, Judge Chmiel, Jim Uszler, Ken Black and Jim Robinson on Sept. 10.

The Illinois Bar Foundation, the fundraising arm of the Illinois State Bar Association, will hold its 16th annual black-tie Gala fundraiser on Friday evening, October 16, 2015, beginning at 6:30 p.m. at the Four Seasons Hotel, 120 E. Delaware Place, Chicago. During the event, ISBA Past President Todd A. Smith, founding partner of the personal injury law firm of Power Rogers & Smith, will receive the foundation’s 2015 Distinguished Award for Excellence.

Included in the ticket price of $500 per person is a reception, dinner and dancing to the Ken Arlen Orchestra. For more information, or to purchase tickets, call (312) 726-6072 or visit www.illinoisbarfoundation.org/#!2015gala/c2en.

Gala Co-Chairs

• Leonard Amari (Amari & Locallo)
• John Cooney (Cooney & Conway)
• Kevin Conway (Cooney & Conway)

Gala Board Co-Chairs

• Shawn S. Kasserman, (Tomasik, Kotin, Kasserman)
• Mark L. Karno (Mark L. Karno & Associates)

Holland & Knight announced Thursday that it has established a pro bono program for lawyers in financial need facing Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission (ARDC) proceedings. Called the “Attorney Defense Initiative,” the new program is the first of its kind in the nation.

Recent amendments to the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act create a formula for calculating spousal maintenance that factors in the spouses' incomes and the length of their marriage. The amendments also affect child support because an increase in maintenance now corresponds to an -- often dramatic -- child-support decrease.

The new maintenance formula is triggered only if a judge first determines that maintenance is appropriate, and only if the combined gross income of the parties is less than $250,000 and no multiple family situation exists.

But though the formula was supposed to make outcomes more consistent, the statutory language creates its own puzzles. Questions about how to calculate gross income, the implications of deviating from the guidelines, and other factors are probably headed for the reviewing courts. Find out more in the September Illinois Bar Journal.

By Marisa Wiesman

Are you a retired, inactive, out-of-state, or in-house corporate attorney? Did you know that you can perform pro bono services in Illinois? 

Illinois Supreme Court Rule 756(k) (formerly 756(j)) allows retired, inactive, and out-of-state attorneys to perform pro bono services through a not-for-profit legal services organization, governmental entity, law school clinical program, or bar association sponsoring entity. (For a partial list of sponsoring entities, click here.). The process is simple: the pro bono attorney and sponsoring entity file a pro bono authorization form with the ARDC; the pro bono attorney completes any training the sponsoring entity requires; and the pro bono attorney and sponsoring entity annually file a pro bono renewal form with the ARDC.  It’s that easy!