A survey of more than 40,000 people in 22 countries conducted jointly by the University of Southern California, the London Business School, and PwC (PricewaterhouseCoopers) found that 80 percent of millennials and members of Generation X prefer face-to-face meetings with colleagues. Also, 80 percent said in-person interactions, more than any other individual form of communication, are critically important to maintaining relationships and 96 percent preferred face-to-face meetings with their supervisors regarding professional growth. In “Branching Out,” the cover story for the May 2019 Illinois Bar Journal, we note that while traditional face-to-face interactions at bar association events (e.g., golf outings) remain part of the culture, social media and online interactions have become increasingly important and have altered expectations and preferences for networking in general. Granted that networking preferences may differ across generations, the IBJ asks whether meaningfully connecting with colleagues in person remains a high priority for attorneys of all ages.
Practice News
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May 13, 2019 |
Practice News
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May 9, 2019 |
Practice News
Illinois Supreme Court justices welcomed 335 new attorneys to the legal profession on May 9 during admissions ceremonies held at four different locations across the state.
ISBA staff members were in attendance at all five ceremonies to welcome the state's newest attorneys to the profession, take photos, and talk about the benefits of ISBA membership, which is free for one year for new admittees. Member benefits can be activated by filling out the New Admittee Membership Form.
All of those who were sworn in have passed the Illinois State Bar Examination and a required ethics examination and were certified by the Supreme Court Committee on Character and Fitness. They bring the total number of licensed attorneys in Illinois to approximately 96,300.
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May 8, 2019 |
Practice News
Attorney Glenn Gaffney discusses 10 ways to win an unemployment compensation hearing.
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May 6, 2019 |
Practice News
New attorneys will be admitted to practice in Illinois on Thursday, May 9, with Illinois Supreme Court justices presiding and administering the attorney's oath to 335 new attorneys across the state.
All of the candidates set to be sworn in have passed the Illinois State Bar Examination and a required ethics examination and were certified by the Supreme Court Committee on Character and Fitness. They will bring the total number of licensed attorneys in Illinois to approximately 96,300.
The largest group, 245, will be admitted in the First Judicial District during three ceremonies at the James R. Thompson Center Assembly Hall, located at 100 W. Randolph St., in Chicago. The ceremonies will be at 9 a.m., 11:30 a.m., and 2 p.m. Illinois Supreme Court Justice Anne M. Burke will preside over the 9 a.m. ceremony, Illinois Supreme Court Justice P. Scott Neville, Jr. will preside over the 11:30 a.m. ceremony, and Illinois Supreme Court Justice Mary Jane Theis will preside over the 2 p.m. ceremony.
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May 6, 2019 |
Practice News
Trial practice is a fast-moving endeavor; practitioners must make frequent decisions, often without access to all the facts. At the end of all that preparation and hard work, a judge or jury inevitably anoints a winner and a loser. But the trial outcome need not be the final word on the matter. In her May 2019 Illinois Bar Journal article, “(Why) I Object!,” Ruth Masters, who has practiced appellate law for the past 20 years and is the principle attorney at MastersLaw, provides 10 tips to preserve some commonly occurring issues for appeal in Illinois courts. One takeaway: Parties often get into trouble on appeal because they didn't specify the basis of an objection during trial or they raise new arguments for exclusion on appeal.
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May 2, 2019 |
Practice News
On May 2, 2019, Illinois lawyer Charles A. Connor was held in minor indirect criminal contempt of court by the Circuit Court of Cook County for engaging in the unauthorized practice of law. Mr. Connor, a disbarred lawyer, was prosecuted by the ARDC for appearing in court on several occasions on two separate matters after his disbarment in 2011. In those matters he held himself out as a lawyer and being able to practice law. Mr. Connor had also been convicted of the unauthorized practice of law in 2014. Among other relief, the Circuit Court permanently enjoined Mr. Connor from engaging in any further acts of the unauthorized practice of law and sentenced him to one year of probation but with the first 90 days to be served in the Cook County Department of Corrections. The case is ARDC v. Charles A. Connor, Cook County No. 16 MC1-600091 (May 2, 2019)
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May 2, 2019 |
Practice News
PILI seeks a managing attorney, who will serve as a member of PILI’s Programs Team, with primary responsibility for overseeing PILI’s statewide efforts to expand and enhance pro bono outside of the Chicago metropolitan area. This is a dynamic position that requires both the ability to organize and manage at a high level, while also being actively engaged in administration and implementation. The ability to do regular and significant statewide travel, and limited national travel, is required.
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May 1, 2019 |
Practice News
The Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission (ARDC), the administrative agency that regulates licensed Illinois lawyers, has filed its year 2018 Annual Report with the Supreme Court of Illinois. The report was released to the public this morning when a copy was posted on the ARDC website.
A summary of the annual report is available at Highlights of the 2018 Annual Report.
The ARDC annually evaluates the effectiveness of the disciplinary system. Complete and comprehensive statistics concerning the disciplinary caseload are submitted to the Illinois Supreme Court and are published in the Annual Report. Few professions account for their regulatory activity in such detail.
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April 29, 2019 |
Practice News
The typical settlement occurs at the end of a long day of mediation. The exhausted parties pen the basic terms in a memorandum of agreement. But unless the attorneys are careful to create an enforceable settlement agreement, a case that appears to be settled can unexpectedly spring back to life. Can a “settled” case come alive again? Sadly, yes. Failing to pound the last nail into a case’s coffin can leave enough of an opening to allow an apparently settled case to rise from the dead. Read Hon. Geraldine Soat Brown’s (ret.) and Lorence H. Slutzky’s article, “Zombie Settlements,” in May’s Illinois Bar Journal.
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April 24, 2019 |
Practice News
Asked and Answered
By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC
Q. I am the sole owner of a six-attorney personal injury firm in San Francisco with five support staff. My father started the firm 25 years ago and has since retired from practice. I took over the practice five years ago. At the time I took over the practice, we had just my dad, myself, a couple legal assistants, and no technology. Since then I have done a lot to grow the practice, including adding attorneys and staff as well as implementing technology. My biggest problem is training new attorneys and staff. We have no written documentation as to how we do things, so training has to be done orally by myself or others every time a new attorney or staff member joins the firm. Can you offer any suggestions?
1 comment (Most recent April 25, 2019)