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  • December 30, 2010 | Practice News
    The true value of Fastcase
    By Peter LaSorsa LexisNexis unveiled a new legal research platform created exclusively for solos called remarkably, Lexis Advance for Solos.  You can access it at: http://www.lexisnexis.com/newlexis/advance Advance is offered at the flat-rate subscription price of $175 a month and a second lawyer is an additional $140 a month.  You cannot add a third as this program is only for one and two person law firms.  Also included under this price is access by your paralegal at no cost.  For zero dollars a month ISBA members get free access to Fastcase.  Let’s look at the features you get with Advance and you can determine on your own if you believe the extra $175 a month (you have to sign a 1-year subscription so the commitment is for $2100 a year) has value to you. The main features of Advance include primary law from all 50 states and U.S. territories, including all federal and state case law available on traditional LexisNexis, all LexisNexis headnotes and case summaries, and all available statutes and constitutions.
  • December 29, 2010 | Practice News
    Osterberger and Rickmon appointed associate judges in Will County
    The Illinois Supreme Court has announced that the Twelfth Judicial Circuit judges voted to select Domenica A. Osterberger and Roger D. Rickmon as associate judges of the Twelfth Judicial Circuit. Ms. Osterberger received her undergraduate degree in 1988 from the University of Illinois and her Juris Doctor in 1991 from the University of Illinois. Ms. Osterberger is currently affiliated with the Will County State’s Attorney’s Office in Joliet. Mr. Rickmon received his undergraduate degree in 1977 from Lewis University and his Juris Doctor in 1980 from John Marshall. Mr. Rickmon is currently engaged in practice with the Rickmon Law Firm in Joliet.
  • December 29, 2010 | Practice News
    Best Practice: Year end staff bonuses and raises
    Asked and Answered By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC Q. Our firm is meeting later this month to discuss year end bonuses and raises for our staff personnel. Due to the economy we did not give raises and bonuses last year. While we have been holding our own with the present economy we have been trying to watch our overhead very closely. However, we want to be fair to our staff and we don't want to lose key employees to our competitors. We are a five attorney firm and have four staff members that have been with us for many years. Do you have any ideas for us? A. Your situation sounds quite familiar. Many law firms deferred raises and bonuses last year and are wondering what to do this year. Here is what we are seeing:
    • Many firms that deferred raises and bonuses last year are doing something this year - raises, bonuses or both.
    • Typically raises are in the 3% range.
    • More firms are examining ways to hold the line on base salary and shift a larger component of compensation into variable pay based upon performance based bonuses.
    We are recommending to many of our clients that they use 2010 raises and bonuses to launch new performance base systems for 2011.
  • December 28, 2010 | Practice News
    Quick takes from Thursday, Dec. 28, Illinois Supreme Court opinions

    CIVIL

    Cookson v. Price

    By Karen Kies DeGrand, Donohue Brown Mathewson & Smyth LLC
  • December 22, 2010 | Practice News
    ISBA backs unlimited coverage of IOLTA accounts
    The Transaction Account Guarantee (TAG) Program, through which the FDIC provides unlimited deposit insurance coverage of client funds in IOLTA accounts at participating financial institutions is set to end on Dec. 31, 2010. The Illinois State Bar Association supports continuing unlimited coverage of IOLTA accounts for the following reasons:
    • IOLTA accounts provide revenue for the states at no cost to clients. Lawyers often handle money that belongs to clients; however, the amount of money held for a single client is often quite small or held for only a short period of time, and cannot therefore earn interest for the client.  IOLTA accounts allow lawyers handling client funds that cannot earn net income for the client to place these funds in a single, pooled, interest-bearing trust account.  Banks in turn forward the interest earned on these accounts to the state IOLTA program, which uses the money to fund a variety of charitable causes.
    • IOLTA programs provide funding critical to maintaining and improving access to the justice system in communities across the United States. IOLTA dollars go to support civil legal assistance for the poor, efforts to improve the administration of justice by our courts, initiatives to educate the public about legal issues, and scholarships and clinical instruction for law students.  All states benefit from IOLTA, and 41 states require lawyers to place client funds unable to earn interest for the client into an IOLTA account.
    • IOLTA accounts need full FDIC coverage to protect client funds.
  • December 22, 2010 | Practice News
    Simonian appointed in 19th Circuit
    The Illinois Supreme Court has announced that James K. Simonian received most of the votes cast by the circuit judges in the Nineteenth Judicial Circuit and is declared to be appointed to the office of associate judge. Mr. Simonian received his undergraduate degree in 1986 from DePauw University and his Juris Doctor in 1989 from Indiana University. Mr. Simonian is currently affiliated with the Law Office of Stephen Simonian in Waukegan.
  • December 17, 2010 | Practice News
    Liu appointed Cook County Circuit Judge
    The Illinois Supreme Court has appointed Laura Cha-yu Liu as Circuit Judge of Cook County, Eighth Subcircuit, Judgeship A. This appointment is effective Dec. 17, 2010, and terminates on Dec. 3, 2012.
  • December 16, 2010 | Member Services | Practice News
    Sign up now to be admitted to the U.S. Supreme Court
    Join ISBA members for a group admission at the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday, June 6, 2011. Only 40 out of 50 spots are available so sign up now! For an application for admission, event and hotel reservation form, contact Janet Sosin, jsosin@isba.org, or (800) 678-4009 or (312) 726-8775. Applicants will be placed on the list on a first come basis. A special group rate is available at the Willard InterContinental Hotel for the admittee, family and guests. Planned Events:
    • Reception Sunday, June 5, 6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. at the Willard InterContinental Hotel for admittees and guests
    • Group Admission to the U. S. Supreme Court, Monday, June 6
    • Continental Breakfast at the U. S. Supreme Court for admittees and guests
    To be eligible, you must be an active lawyer member of the ISBA and admitted to practice more than 3 years.
  • December 16, 2010 | Practice News
    ARDC alert: Email scams and lawyer trust accounts

    The ARDC sent out an alert this week, warning all licensed attorneys in Illinois of scams targeting lawyers.

    "We've had a number of lawyers contact us saying 'this happened to me,' " said ARDC Deputy Administrator and Chief Counsel Jim Grogan. "We feel that an educated bar is a protected bar."

    Grogan added that the scams targeting lawyers have become more sophisticated.

    "There are instances where people are now actually going into offices in person and setting up the scams," Grogan said. "Lawyers need to take protections and follow protocols when handling these checks."

    The full alert is below.

  • December 16, 2010 | Practice News
    2010 year-end estate planning: Navigating the uncertainty
    "While many of the usual planning techniques remain viable, the current state of the transfer tax laws provides for additional opportunities, but makes 2010 year-end planning a bigger challenge than in past years," writes Gregg Simon in the December ISBA Trusts and Estates newsletter. Read his rundown of the status of various gift taxes, the generation-skipping transfer tax, and more.