Section Newsletters

Articles From 2011

Setting up in Flanders—Part 2 By Ian Robberechts International and Immigration Law, December 2011 Some points for a foreign investor to consider when starting commercial operations in Belgium.  
Seventh Circuit certifies questions to Illinois Supreme Court on tenured teachers’ recall rights By Roland Cross Education Law, October 2011 The Court of Appeals concluded that the Illinois Supreme Court should be offered the opportunity to review the construction and application of Illinois law on the issue surrounding tenured teachers’ recall rights and certified three questions to the court.
Seventh Circuit strikes down ruling affecting enforcement of the Clean Air Act By Gene Schmittgens Environmental Law, February 2011 A look at the case of United States of America v. Cinergy Corporation.
Seventh Circuit vacates FMCSA EOBR rule By William D. Brejcha Energy, Utilities, Telecommunications, and Transportation, October 2011 With this court ruling, it is anticipated FMCSA may need to restart the entire mandatory EOBR rulemaking process and rewrite the rule or issue some supplemental ruling that addressed the harassment issue and other issues that have been raised in evaluating the new rule.
Shades of gray matter: Serving the client with diminishing capacity By Daniel M. Moore Elder Law, February 2011 The likelihood elder law attorneys will be dealing with greater numbers of clients with diminished capacity continues to increase. New Rule 1.14 of the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct and the ABA/APA Handbook for Lawyers can work together to best maintain the normal client-lawyer relationship.
Shared interest negotiation By Hon. Bruno J. Tassone Tort Law, April 2011 Principled negotiation is simply a common sense method to decide issues on their merits rather than through a contest of will power.
1 comment (Most recent May 8, 2011)
Signing a Voluntary Acknowledgement of Paternity is not fatal By Rebecca E. Cahan Young Lawyers Division, June 2011 It is our job and duty as lawyers to make sure we know the law and ask the right questions to determine whether a voluntary acknowledgment of paternity may be challenged on the grounds of fraud, duress, or material mistake of fact.
1 comment (Most recent June 23, 2011)
Single employer defined benefit plan fiduciaries’ exposure to risk of liability to participants under the Pension Protection Act of 2006’s mandatory benefit restrictions By Michael Bartolic Employee Benefits, September 2011 Plan sponsors and fiduciaries should be careful to take precautions to avoid unnecessary impositions of the Pension Protection Act’s mandatory benefit restrictions because of statutory presumptions of the Adjusted Funding Target Attainment Percentage.
A snowy day and exempt employees’ pay By Richard A. Russo Labor and Employment Law, March 2011 Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, do exempt employees have to be paid their salary for days they are absent on account of their employer closing the business due to inclement weather? May an employer require exempt employees to use vacation days/paid-time-off for time missed as a result of the employer closing its business due to inclement weather? Apparently “yes,” according to the United States Department of Labor and applicable case law.
“So You Want to Be an Attorney”: The REM Committee Cable TV program By Daniel R. Saeedi Racial and Ethnic Minorities and the Law, February 2011 The Rational and Ethnic Minorities and the Law Committee recently sponsored a cable TV program, "So You Want to Be an Attorney." View it at here.
So your client has given you physical evidence of a crime… By J. Randall Cox Traffic Laws and Courts, May 2011 On the one hand, the delivery to the attorney is a communication which the attorney is required to protect. (Rule 1.6) However, an attorney is not to unlawfully obstruct another party’s access to evidence. (Rule 3.4) How is this conflict resolved? The courts of Illinois do not appear to have directly addressed this.
Some comments from Arizona By Kathryn E. Eisenhart Human and Civil Rights, August 2011 Some thoughts about SB 1070 from author Kathryn Eisenhart.
Someone you should know: Debbie Simpson, Assistant Attorney General By Ronald A. Rascia Government Lawyers, March 2011 As someone who has devoted her career to government work and public service, Debbie Simpson is someone you should know.
Someone you should know: Lisle A. Stalter, Assistant State’s Attorney, Lake County By Pablo Eves Government Lawyers, October 2011 Get to know Lisle Stalter, a Civil Assistant State's Attorney in the Lake County State's Attorney's Office and a past chair of the Standing Committee on Government Lawyers.
“Sorry, my mistake”: Correcting putative testamentary errors By Malcolm L. Morris Trusts and Estates, September 2011 Upon application of any interested person, the court may reform the terms of a will, even if unambiguous, to conform the terms to the testator’s intent if it is proved by clear and convincing evidence that both the accomplishment of the testator’s intent and the terms of the will were affected by a mistake of fact or law, whether in expression or inducement.
Southern District Of California finds home delivery drivers to be independent contractors, not employees By William D. Brejcha Energy, Utilities, Telecommunications, and Transportation, June 2011 The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California analyzed each of the ten "common law factors" relating to the drivers’ employment/contractor status, ultimately concluding that plaintiffs’ evidence was insufficient to overcome the Georgia law presumption of independent contractor status for the plaintiff drivers.
Spain—Year in review By Richard Silberstein International and Immigration Law, June 2011 Changes in Spanish law.
Specialty healthcare: The NLRB rewrites rules on bargaining units By Michael D. Gifford Labor and Employment Law, December 2011 As a result of the recent decision of Specialty Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center of Mobile, unions will be able to organize a minority share of an employer’s workforce although a majority of workers may not favor the union.
Specific examples of why tax reform is needed By Michelle L. Heller Federal Taxation, September 2011 A summary of specific examples illustrating why tax reform is needed.
The Spircoff loophole to the Peterson bar to retroactive college educational expenses By Michael W. Kalcheim Family Law, December 2011 After Petersen and Spircoff, practitioners must be extremely careful in drafting college expense provisions. When the provisions are examined when the children reach college age, the court will presume that the drafter was aware of both cases and their meaning.
Spring legislative round-up By Amy A. Breyer Animal Law, June 2011 Highlights of the animal law bills that came before the Illinois Legislature this spring.
2 comments (Most recent June 23, 2011)
Stalking No Contact Order Act By Lori G. Levin Women and the Law, November 2011 Since the Stalking No Contact Order Act is relatively new, its effectiveness in addressing this behavior has not been fully measured. It does provide a legal remedy to address what can be an alarming and concerning situation
Standing of purchasers of finished products containing price-fixed components: In re Refrigerant Compressors Antitrust Litigation By Eileen Flynn September 2011 The district court’s focus on a defendant’s having both manufactured the compressors and used the compressors it manufactured in a finished product suggests that a manufacturer might not be liable to purchasers of finished products if the manufacturer did not use its own parts in the finished product.
Stanley J. Roszkowski United States Courthouse dedicated By John J. Holevas Federal Civil Practice, December 2011 The beautiful Stanley J. Roszkowski Courthouse is a six-story building which features a glass atrium entrance and a glass enclosed jury assembly room. The facility will house the United States Clerk’s Office, two bankruptcy courtrooms, three district courtrooms, as well as offices for the U.S. Marshals, U.S. Attorney, probation and pre-trial services, the United States Public Defender, Department of Homeland Security, and GSA.
Straight from the horse’s mouth: IRS Meeting Summary with Attorney Liaison By Robert Weber Trusts and Estates, February 2011 A summary from the December meeting between IRS representatives and members of the Practitioners Liaison.
Summary of DRA changes that will affect your clients and how you process their Medicaid applications By Kerry R. Peck & Diana M. Law Elder Law, December 2011 A summary of the major changes going into effect on January 1, 2012.
Summary of Illinois Practitioner Liaison Committee meeting—May 2, 2011 By Robert Weber Trusts and Estates, July 2011 A summary of trusts & estates-affecting portions of the Practitioner Liaison Committee meeting.
Summary of the Estate, Gift, and Generation-Skipping Transfer Tax Provisions of the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 By Ryan A. Walsh Federal Taxation, February 2011 A look at transfer taxes under the new Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010.
Summary of workers’ compensation legislation By Darrell Widen Administrative Law, August 2011 A summary of the major provisions of the recently passed Workers' Compensation reform legislation.
Summary suspension after a motor vehicle accident By Lisa L. Dunn Traffic Laws and Courts, August 2011 A discussion of the recent appellate case of Odom v. White, in which the injuries suffered in two motor vehicle accidents met the statutory definition of a type A injury, which confers implied consent for a blood-alcohol test.