As President of the Illinois State Bar Association (ISBA), I stand with Ukraine and its people as they defend their sovereign nation from the Russian Federation’s unlawful and unprovoked attack and invasion. Since its founding, the Association has been committed to supporting, defending, and promoting the rule of law and democracy. There is no greater threat to the rule of law than allowing to go unchecked one nation’s unprovoked and unlawful invasion of a sovereign, democratic nation that it shares a border with.

The Illinois Supreme Court today removed a requirement that individuals in attendance at Illinois courts wear masks, effective February 28, 2022. Each circuit court may adopt rules requiring masks based off of local health conditions. 

During the pandemic, consumers flocked to local farms in hopes of finding reliable food products and safe outdoor entertainment. Farms expanded to meet this increasing demand and operations re-tooled to enter the agritourism and direct-sales market. But, this expansion also creates more legal vulnerability than many farmers realized. Get the information you need to help correct the common misconceptions that your farmer clients have about forming an LLC or corporation to manage their liabilities.

by Mary F. Petruchius

Mary: Within the last couple of years, Prairie State Legal Services, Inc. has made some dramatic changes to its overall pro bono program and structure. Kim Thielbar, Prairie State’s Director of Pro Bono Services, heads up its new Pro Bono Unit. In this article, we’ll get to know Kim and what this new unit is all about, how it came into existence, and what Prairie State hopes to achieve with this innovative approach to pro bono client services.

Join us for Civility and Professionalism 2022: Pivoting for the Pandemic  (Parts 1 & 2).

In their February Illinois Bar Journal article, “Restorative Justice Privilege,” Hon. Stuart Katz (ret.) and Patrick Keenan-Devlin examine Public Act 102-100, which provides that any statement made during a restorative justice practice is privileged, meaning that it is inadmissible in any court or administrative proceeding. Additionally, the authors note that since restorative justice practices often involve pre- and postconference meetings, anything said in preparation for, or as a follow-up to, a practice is also privileged. 

With the increased number of tenants experiencing financial hardship over the last two years due to the pandemic, many people are facing evictions, but the eviction process has shifted a bit in the wake of the COVID-19 moratorium, making it doubly important that attorneys stay abreast of these changes.

Don’t miss this opportunity to gain new insight as our accomplished speakers draw upon their unique experiences to answer important questions that will motivate your career and guide your professional growth. Learn how each of them approached familiar problems, what they learned from their mentors, how they have avoided common mistakes, how the legal practice has changed since they were sworn in, their tips for maintaining civility (even in the face of adversarial counsel), what shaped their success, and much more!

The Candidate Report for the 2022 ISBA Election is below. All members of the association (except non-lawyer members) with their dues paid by March 1, 2022 are eligible to vote.

(N.B.: Where more candidates filed for a position than vacancies available, ballot positions were determined by lot. Ballot positions are listed next to the candidate’s name.)

The Illinois Supreme Court issued one opinion on Thursday, February 3.