Election results are in and Jessica A. O'Brien of Chicago has won a contested race for a seat on the Illinois State Bar Association's Board of Governors. Electronic voting was again the preferred method of voting - this time by a greater than 10-1 margin (1,451 electronic; 123 written). All terms begin at the 2012 Annual Meeting.

Umberto S. Davi of Willowbrook was the previously announced winner in the uncontested race for 3rd Vice President. He will become president of ISBA in 2015 after serving a year in each of the three vice presidential posts. Five Board members ran uncontested: James F. McCluskey (Lisle); Lisa M. Nyuli (South Elgin); Sonni Choi Williams (Peoria); Charles Y. Davis (Springfield); and Russell K. Scott (Belleville).

Here are the Board and Assembly election results (winners in bold):

Board of Governors - Cook County - 1 to be elected

Mark L. Karno, Chicago            667
Jessica A. O’Brien, Chicago        811

Illinois State Bar Association Executive Director Robert E. Craghead has won a contested election for a two-year term on the board of the National Association of Bar Executives.

Craghead has spent his entire professional career with ISBA, from starting out as the Young Lawyers Association Director to the past 18 years as Executive Director. He was the 2003 recipient of the NABE Bolton Award for Professional Excellence.

The National Association of Bar Executives, an affiliate of the American Bar Association, was founded in 1941 to serve the management staff of bar associations and law-related organizations.

About 100 lawyers and judges attended a cocktail reception for the Prairie State Legal Services Law Day event held at the Rockford Art Museum. Illinois State Bar Association President John G. Locallo, the keynote speaker, talked about the importance of lawyer pro bono work and his recent trip to Washington to encourage legislators to support increased funding of Legal Services Corp.

President Locallo (right) is shown with Mike O’Connor, executive director of Prairie State Legal Services.

ISBA Director of Legislative Affairs Jim Covington reviews bills in Springfield of interest to ISBA members. This week he covers HJRCA 29 (Victims' rights), Senate Bill 1808 (Eavesdropping) and House Bill 5434 (Post-judgment Collection of debts). More information on each bill is available below the video.

An Illinois legislative proposal would give members of a civil union the same benefits enjoyed by married couples under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act. Find out more in the May Illinois Bar Journal.

Early Booking Discount Extended! Save $500 per couple if you register by May 18!

Join President-elect John E. Thies and his wife Terry on the fall 2012 ISBA President’s Trip to China. Take a moment away from your busy day, close your eyes and picture yourself in a land steeped in thousands of years of history. Picture a place where the echoes of distant empires can still be heard above the urban roar of modern technology, where natural landscapes stand in stark and beautiful contrast to contemporary cityscapes. You are in a land rich in tradition and ripe with possibility.

See yourself in the cosmopolitan atmosphere of Shanghai admiring the reflections of the city in the Huangpu River while strolling along the famous Bund. Listen to the chatter of colorful markets filled with unexpected treasures, savor the refined flavors of a dim sum lunch, and let the floral aromas of ancient gardens wash over you.

Senate Bill 1808, which would allow citizens to audio and video record police performing their public duties in public places, passed out of the House Judiciary Committee unanimously this morning on a vote of 10-0. This bill differs from a previous effort (HB 3944) in that it mandates that recordings alleging wrongdoing by police to be referred to the state’s attorney for possible prosecution if the recordings are intentionally altered to misrepresent an event. SB 1808 is sponsored in the House by Rep. Elaine Nekritz, D-Des Plaines, and is supported by the Illinois State Bar Association.

SB 1808 now moves to the full House of Representatives. Josh Sharp, director of government relations for the Illinois Press Association, urges newspaper publishers to call their legislators now and ask them to vote ‘yes’ on SB 1808. This bill would allow journalists to film police without consent during protests and similar events or to use videos that have been submitted by citizen journalists.

SB 1808 is also supported by the Illinois Press Association, the American Civil Liberties Union, the Chicago Headline Club and others.

The Illinois Bar Foundation cordially invites you to a reception hosted by the Lincoln Legacy Society on May 23 at 5:30 p.m. at the law offices of Tabet DiVito & Rothstein LLC, 209 S. La Salle, 7th floor. Guests will enjoy a tasting of fine wine, whiskey, hors d'oeuvres and cocktails at this event. Admission is free.

Please respond by Friday, May 18, to Karen Kossart at kkossart@isba.org or by phone at (312) 726-6072.