The Bar News

Bar News Sections

Illinois Bar Journal

  • April 8, 2019 | Practice News
    It’s Not All About Death and Taxes: Preventing Elder Financial Exploitation Through Estate Planning

    As financial exploitation of the elderly becomes a growing social concern, estate planners have a responsibility to address the issue. In their April Illinois Bar Journal article, “It’s Not All About Death and Taxes: Preventing Elder Financial Exploitation Through Estate Planning,” Darcy J. Chamberlin and Janna S. Dutton review trust and estate issues involved in exploitation of the elderly and suggest provisions that can be used to protect clients whose quality of judgment may be declining. Chamberlin and Dutton look beyond our role as document creators and provide practical guidance on how best to protect our impaired clients from con artists, bad trustees, and untrustworthy relatives.

  • March 25, 2019 | Practice News
    Defusing the Courtroom

    In a profession that requires people to argue all day, in an era when arguing easily turns to shouting, it’s time for some self-reflection. April’s Illinois Bar Journal asks judges throughout the state and at all levels whether we’re all doing enough to keep calm. It turns out things aren’t all that bad, even if we can always do better.

  • March 18, 2019 | Practice News
    It's Okay, I'm a Lawyer! How the Expansion of the Attorney-Litigation Privilege is Changing the Game

    In 2015, the first district significantly expanded the attorney-litigation privilege, finding that it immunized attorneys from claims in addition to defamation and, in addition to an attorney's communications, protected an attorney's conduct. While it is axiomatic that "with great power comes great responsibility," Amanda Hamilton notes in March's Illinois Bar Journal that "recent expansions of the attorney-litigation privilege demonstrate why attorneys must be increasingly vigilant in their commitment to ethical principles to ensure they do not abuse their power."

  • March 11, 2019 | Practice News
    Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve: Ineffective Assistance of Counsel and Plea Bargaining in Illinois

    Recent plea-bargaining related decisions in the U.S. and Illinois Supreme Courts have complicated the landscape for ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claims brought in the state. With various tests for ineffective assistance now in tension, questions may become more difficult to resolve when such tests can be applied to the same case. In his March 2019 Illinois Bar Journal article, “Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve: Ineffective Assistance of Counsel and Plea Bargaining in Illinois,” Nate Niemann traces the developments leading to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Lee v. United States and the Illinois Supreme Court’s in People v. Brown.

  • March 4, 2019 | Practice News
    To Pay or Not To Pay: The Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act

    Effective Jan. 1, 2019, Illinois employers are required to reimburse employees for expenses incurred while performing their jobs. This new requirement is an amendment to the Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act. Failure to comply with the new law can result in damages equal to the reimbursement amount, a 2-percent penalty for each month the expenses were not paid, and attorneys’ fees and costs incurred by the employee. In her article, “To Pay or Not to Pay: Should You Reimburse Your Employee’s Expenses?,” business and employment law attorney Helen Bloch provides practical takeaways and advice for ensuring you and your clients are complying with the new requirement. 

  • February 25, 2019 | Practice News
    Manage Your Time, or It Will Manage You

    No time-management system magically, and overnight, turns you into a lean, mean, efficiency machine. But becoming more productive also doesn’t require mastering every page of a two-inch-thick time-management manual. Instead, try acquiring a single new skill and developing it over time, says Affinity Consulting partner Paul Unger in the Illinois Bar Journal’s March cover story, “Manage Your Time, or It Will Manage You.” In the article, Unger, who will be the featured speaker at the ISBA Solo & Small Firm Practice Institute on March 15 in Springfield, where he will present on time management, declutters the topic and also recommends his favorite best practices and methods.

  • February 19, 2019 | Practice News
    Problems Blockchain Doesn’t Solve

    Blockchain may dramatically reduce the cost of processing mortgage applications and provide for transparent, secure transactions and efficient recordkeeping. But the strengths and limitations of blockchain should be better understood before replacing a title system that has been in place for more than 140 years in Illinois, argues Paul Peterson in his February 2019 article, “Problems Blockchain Doesn’t Solve,” for the Illinois Bar Journal. Peterson, vice president and senior underwriter for the Fidelity Family of Title Insurers, vice-chair of ISBA's Construction Law Section Council, and a member of ISBA's Real Estate Law Section Council, outlines record-validating problems that blockchain technology has yet to crack.

  • February 11, 2019 | Practice News
    The Malpractice Maze: Bringing a Healing-Arts Malpractice Suit and the Requirements of Section 2-622

    To limit the number of frivolous malpractice claims and thus lower insurance costs, Illinois and 27 other states require attorneys to consult a health-care professional before filing a medical-malpractice suit. But for those bringing a medical-malpractice case, such prelitigation requirements can present a daunting, complex maze. In February’s Illinois Bar Journal, Christopher Michels explores the required steps for bringing a healing-arts malpractice claim in Illinois in his article, “The Malpractice Maze: Bringing a Healing-Arts Malpractice Suit and the Requirements of Section 2-622.”

  • February 4, 2019 | Practice News
    18 Quick and Easy Tech Tips for 2019

    Research suggests we tap only a small fraction of our brain’s cognitive powers. Same with our computers and the internet. If only we could exploit more of the immense computing power of our laptops and smartphones. But who has the time to explore all the features buried deep in our manuals and menus? The February Illinois Bar Journal’s cover story gets you started by providing easy-to-use tips for getting more out of the technology at your fingertips. The story, “18 Quick and Easy Tech Tips for 2019,” also is a sneak preview of a larger set of tips provided by Affinity Consulting partner Barron Henley’s one-hour ISBA CLE webinar available in ISBA's Free On-Demand CLE catalog.

  • January 29, 2019 | Practice News
    General and Boilerplate Objections: Curbing Routine Abuse of the Discovery Process

    February’s Illinois Bar Journal includes the winning article of 2019’s Lincoln Award Legal Writing Contest. The article, “General and Boilerplate Objections: Curbing Routine Abuse of the Discovery Process” by Gregory R. Jones, an associate at Goldenberg Heller & Antognoli, P.C., in Edwardsville, examines distasteful discovery tactics that can directly conflict with the spirit of discovery and the concept of “full disclosure.”