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. 

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.

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.

Gregory R. Jones, an associate at Goldenberg Heller & Antognoli, P.C., from Edwardsville, is winner of first place and $2,000 in the ISBA’s 2019 Lincoln Award Legal Writing Contest. His article, “General and Boilerplate Objections: Curbing Routine Abuse of the Discovery Process,” appears in the February issue of the Illinois Bar Journal.

Second place winner is Daniel C. Katzman, a partner at Katzman & Sugden, LLC, in Belleville. His article is “Can You Record Me Now? Tapping into the Illinois Eavesdropping Act and its Effect on Attorneys, Employers, and Individuals.” Daniel won $1,000.

Third place and $500 goes to Chicagoan Jake Crabbs, for “Responding to Affirmative Defenses.”