The Illinois Supreme Court on July 19 entered an order amending Rule 280.2, which updates the requirements for complaints in credit card or debt buyer collection actions. The amendment is effective immediately. Additionally, the court amended the accompanying affidavit form for actions under the Rule.

The owners of law firms may consider merger options as part of their succession planning. While periodically reviewing merger options can be an effective part of long-range strategic plans, it’s important that firms do not rely on mergers as a life raft. Instead, mergers should incorporate a well-thought business strategy and create greater client value.

The Illinois Bar Foundation (IBF), Illinois Legal Aid Online (ILAO) and Public Interest Law Initiative (PILI) have announced their combined efforts to further the impact of Free Legal Answers in Illinois. After establishing this project in Illinois in 2017 and building a solid foundation for its future, ILAO will transition the state administrator role for the site to PILI as of Aug. 1, 2019. At that time, PILI will take over the day-to-day operations of the site including volunteer recruitment, management and training with the help of funding from the IBF. ILAO will continue to contribute support through www.IllinoisLegalAid.org by providing client referrals and being a resource for pro bono volunteers answering questions through the site. 

Emily S. Sutton has been appointed as an at-large circuit judge in the Ninth Judicial Circuit. The appointment is effective Aug. 12 and will conclude Dec. 6, 2020, when the position will be filled by the November 2020 general election. Sutton has worked in private practice since 2008, first as an associate with Scholz, Loos, Palmer, Siebers & Duesterhaus, LLP, and most recently as a partner at Lucie, Scalf, Sutton & Bougher, Attorneys at Law, P.C. From 2012 to 2015, she was also a contract author for Thomson Reuters Corporation, and served as co-author of the Illinois Civil Trial Handbook. Sutton was a law clerk to Fourth District Appellate Justice Robert W. Cook from 2004-2008 and has also served on the adjunct faculty at Quincy University.