After the U.S. Supreme Court ordered that Miller be applied retroactively regarding de facto life sentences for juveniles, the Illinois Supreme Court in People v. Buffer created a bright-line rule: Any sentence of incarceration greater than 40 years is a de facto life sentence and must comply with Miller and its progeny. This caused a stir in Illinois trial courts, as myriad postconviction petitions were filed by juvenile offenders who were serving terms longer than 40 years and seeking a resentencing under the new rules stemming from Miller. In Joseph T. Moran’s March 2021 Illinois Bar Journal article, “Juvenile Life Sentences After Miller,” Moran notes that practitioners can draw from a substantial amount of caselaw to effectively identify when resentencings are required to address a juvenile offender’s youth and attendant circumstances during a sentencing or Miller resentencing hearing.

Our panel of leading appellate attorneys reviews the two Illinois Supreme Court opinions handed down Thursday, March 18. In People v. Burge, the Supreme Court denied a defendant’s motion to withdraw her guilty plea after she asserted that it was involuntary because she was unaware she would lose her job if she pled guilty. In Ciolino v. Simon, a defamation case that arose from a documentary about an exoneration scandal, the Supreme Court considered whether the one-year window when the suit could be filed opened when the movie premiered at a publicized film festival.

The 2021 ISBA High School Mock Trial Invitational was held March 12-14. For the first time in its history, the event was held virtually.  

Teams representing 46 high schools from across Illinois participated in trials via Zoom. The winning team was Evanston Township High School, which will represent Illinois at the National High School Mock Trial Competition in Evansville, Indiana, which will also be held virtually this year. 

The ISBA will host a virtual program at 4 p.m. on March 25, which will feature presentations by ISBA Third Vice President candidates Perry J. Browder and Sonni Choi Williams.

The online program will be emceed by Carl Draper, chair of the ISBA Bar Elections Supervision Committee. The program allows for a 10-minute presentation from each candidate.

The Illinois Supreme Court announced the filing of lawyer disciplinary orders on March 16, 2021. Sanctions were imposed because the lawyers engaged in professional misconduct by violating state ethics law.

Join the Illinois State Bar Association (ISBA) and Cook County Bar Association (CCBA) from noon until 1:30 p.m. on Friday, March 26 for the GAL Diversity Program.

This online program will include a panel discussion about the role and benefits for GALs and the importance of cultural competency and diversity in representation of children in domestic relations cases. 

Attend any or all of this four-part series!
Expand your understanding of the issues that can arise when representing elder clients with this online program.

In his March 2021 Illinois Bar Journal article, “A Promise of Clear Title,” Philip J. Vacco asks whether the term “warranty deed” must be interpreted as imposing upon the seller an obligation to provide a general warranty deed. In the author’s opinion, the answer is “no.” If we give the language used in these contracts its plain meaning, Vacco writes, the seller is obligated to provide a warranty deed but, without further specification, the seller is left to his own accord as to what type of warranty deed he will deliver to meet this obligation. Given these options, Vacco asks why anyone would allow their client to provide a general warranty deed when the use of a special warranty deed meets the seller’s contract obligations.

The Illinois Supreme Court issued one opinion on Thursday, March 11. In Jones v. Municipal Officers Electoral Board, the court examined the decision of the Municipal Officers Electoral Board for the City of Calumet City that disqualified the plaintiff as a candidate for mayor of Calumet City because he filed his nomination papers 13 days after a referendum passed that disqualified him.