ISBA Statehouse Review for the week of February 18, 2015
ISBA Director of Legislative Affairs Jim Covington reviews legislation in Springfield of interest to ISBA members. This week he covers IMDMA Rewrite (Senate Bill 57), The Uniform Interstate Depositions and Discovery Act (Senate Bill 45) and Interest on judgments (Senate Bill 1248). More information on each bill is available below the video.
IMDMA Rewrite. Senate Bill 57 (Mulroe, D-Chicago) is a rewrite of the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act. It passed out of Senate Judiciary Committee Tuesday to the Senate floor. It is a multiyear effort of the General Assembly’s Family Law Study Committee.
The Uniform Interstate Depositions and Discovery Act. Senate Bill 45 (Barickman, R-Bloomington-Normal) simplifies the procedures for an Illinois person who is subpoenaed for discovery purposes from an out-of-state court. The Act creates establishes a simple, clerical procedure under which a subpoena from an out-of-state court can be used to issue a discovery subpoena in Illinois. Since its introduction in 2007, 33 states and the District of Columbia have adopted this Act, including our neighboring states of Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan, and Iowa.
Under the Act, the out-of-state subpoena will be presented to an Illinois circuit court clerk. The clerk will then issue an Illinois subpoena that incorporates the terms of the out-of-state subpoena. The Act specifically states that a request for the issuance of a subpoena doesn’t constitute an appearance in an Illinois court.
Motions brought to enforce, quash, or modify an out-of-state subpoena or for protective orders would be brought in Illinois and governed by Illinois’ discovery laws. The Act specifically states that the relevant Illinois Supreme Court Rules and statutes apply to this Act, such as Rules 204 and 237 and 735 ILCS 5/2-1101.
Interest on judgments. Senate Bill 1248 (Biss, D-Skokie) amends the Code of Civil Procedure on judgments and supplementary proceedings to do several things. (1) Repeals the 9% interest on judgments and replaces it with a maximum rate equal to the weekly average one-year constant maturity treasury yield for the preceding calendar year. It doesn’t amend the 6% interest rate for units of local governments. (2) Reduces what can be deducted from a debtor’s wages from 15% to 10% of gross weekly wages or the amount by which the disposable earnings for a week exceed the total of 50 (now, 45) times the federal minimum wage or the Illinois minimum hourly wage or the local minimum hourly wage law to which the debtor’s employer is subject, whichever is greater. (3) Makes exempt from execution moneys held in education expense accounts and similar education savings accounts, such as ABLE accounts and 529 funds. (4) Makes exempt from execution an amount not to exceed $6,000, held by the debtor in the form of cash, a bank account, accrued interest, dividends, the loan or redemption value of a life insurance policy, or other account. A financial institution may not freeze the debtor’s access or turn over to the judgment creditor funds in the account if less than $6,000 but must inform the court and the judgment creditor of the exempt amount. The judgment creditor may, upon notice to the financial institution and the debtor, petition the court for a hearing to establish that the funds in the account are not exempt. (5) Increases the exempted amounts in Section 12-1001 annually per the Consumer Price Index if there is a 10% increase in the CPI for the preceding year. Just introduced.