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Our panel of leading appellate attorneys review Thursday's Illinois Supreme Court opinions in the civil case Nelson v. Artley and the criminal case People v. Stapinski.CIVILNelson v. Artley By Alyssa M. Reiter, Williams, Montgomery & John Ltd.The liability of a rental car company who obtains a certificate of self-insurance from the Secretary of State is limited to the same minimum coverage provisions applicable to rental car companies who meet their financial responsibility obligations through purchasing an insurance policy. Mr. Nelson was injured by an Enterprise rental car driven by Mr. Artley, who was uninsured. Nelson sued Artley, resulting in a default judgment of $600,000.  Nelson brought a supplementary action against Enterprise.Enterprise asserted various affirmative defenses, the most pertinent dealing with its financial exposure.  Enterprise argued that because it was self-insured, its total financial responsibility per occurrence was $100,000 (the statutory minimum coverage requirements for insurance).  Because $75,000 already had been paid or allotted to other claims arising out of the same incident, the circuit court issued a turnover order of $25,000 to Nelson. 

Michael J. Tardy, Director of the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts, announced today that the Twenty-Second Judicial Circuit judges voted to select Jeffrey L. Hirsch as an associate judge of the Twenty-Second Judicial Circuit.Mr. Hirsch received his undergraduate degree in 1991 from Indiana University in Bloomington and his Juris Doctor in 1994 from The John Marshall Law School in Chicago. Mr. Hirsch is currently affiliated with The Gitlin Law Firm in Woodstock.

Asked and AnsweredBy John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMCQ. We are a two-partner firm located in Rochester, Minn. We have been approached by a solo practitioner that wants to sell us his practice. The price and terms seem fair, but we are concerned about staffing and managing the other office. His practice consists of himself and two staff members. We would have to maintain a second office, hire an associate or two for the office, and then manage both operations. We have recently tried to hire an associate without success by reaching out to targeted lawyers that we knew in our local area. Frankly, acquiring this practice is a little daunting. We would appreciate your thoughts.A. I believe the first issue is whether you are looking to grow the firm and are willing to undertake the additional management responsibilities that comes with growth. Some firms are ready for growth and others are not. Larger is not necessarily better. I would not let your unsuccessful associate hiring attempts discourage you from acquiring the practice if you desire to grow and the price and terms are acceptable. You may need to cast a wider net and be more focused in your efforts. Recently a two-attorney firm in Mid-Missouri hired an associate from St. Louis. A two-attorney firm in Central Kentucky hired an associate from Lexington, Kentucky. It may take some time but a concentrated recruiting effort usually pays off regardless where you are located - even in small communities. Click here for our blog on career management