The Illinois Supreme Court has announced the appointment of Chicago attorney Joan M. Eagle and Belleville attorney James R. Mendillo to serve as chair and vice-chair of the Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission (ARDC).

Asked and AnsweredBy John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMCQ. I am a non-equity partner in a large law firm in LA. I have been practicing for 15 years and with the recent economic turmoil we have experienced in our firm, downsizing, and overall uncertainty I have recently been considering starting my own firm. What are initial steps in starting up a law firm?A. While there is an entire list of start-up steps that need to be taken when launching a law firm here are a few to get you started and the order to be taken:

The ISBA Assembly on Saturday adopted a proposed rule governing recusal of judges in cases in which a party has made a campaign contribution to the judge. The Assembly meeting capped off the annual Midyear Meeting held at the Sheraton Chicago Hotel & Towers.The ISBA will recommend the proposed rule to the Illinois Supreme Court as an amendment to the Illinois Code of Judicial Conduct. The proposed rule provides that a judge shall disqualify himself or herself when, after considering all relevant circumstances, there exists a probability of bias. Relevant circumstances include items such as the amount of campaign support, both monetary and non-monetary, and the timing and impact of the support.The Assembly also voted to support the Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act pending in the Illinois state Legislature. The bill provides same-sex and different-sex couples and their children equal access to the status, benefits, protections, rights, and responsibilities of civil marriage.The Assembly also endorsed Illinois legislation that would allow patients who suffer from a debilitating medical condition to use and possess small amounts of marijuana if certified to do so by their regular physician.