The following state and local bar associations have expressed unified and strong opposition to the American Bar Association’s Law Connect pilot program which was launched by the ABA in partnership with Rocket Lawyer on October 1, 2015. The ABA’s Law Connect Rocket Lawyer program provides online legal advice to small businesses operating in Pennsylvania, Illinois and California at a cost of $4.95 along with free advice for online follow-up questions.

In its October 1 press release announcing the program the ABA stated, “The new ABA service called Law Connect, will be an affordable way for small businesses in those states to get answers to fundamental legal questions. For $4.95 a small business owner or representative can ask a question online of an ABA-member lawyer as well as a follow-up question. Those interested in additional legal advice can discuss legal matters further in a lawyer-client relationship.” ABA President Paulette Brown stated, “ABA Law Connect is an exciting opportunity for the ABA and Rocket Lawyer to assist small businesses, connecting them with ABA members, and represents one of many efforts by the ABA to improve access to legal services.”

Asked and Answered

By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC

Q. I am the owner of a five attorney firm in Austin, Texas. My accounting/office manager has just advised me that she is resigning her position as a result of her husband's job being relocated. She is the best employee I have had the pleasure of working with and I am not sure where to start regarding finding her replacement. She will be hard to replace - not just her skills - but her manner, relationship with me and other members in the firm, clients, etc. She is truly a class act. I would appreciate any thoughts that you may have.

Illinois Supreme Court Chief Justice Rita B. Garman (left) swore-in Springfield attorney Jennifer M. Ascher as a Sangamon County Associate Judge on Monday. Ms. Ascher was appointed to fill the vacancy created by the impending retirement of Associate Judge Steven H. Nardulli.

Ascher received her undergraduate degree in 1999 from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and her Juris Doctor in 2003 from Saint Louis University School of Law. She is currently a partner at Sorling Northrup, where she has practiced family law nearly exclusively for the past 12 years. During her tenure, she represented clients in Sangamon County and surrounding counties. She is a Springfield native where she resides with her family.

Ms. Ascher previously served as president of the Central Illinois Women’s Bar Association and the Sangamon County Bar Association.

The Judicial Council of the Seventh Circuit is seeking applicants for a bankruptcy judge position for the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. Applicants must also be willing to travel to other locations in the Seventh Circuit to handle cases as need arises. Interested applicants may obtain an application by accessing the Court of Appeals website at www.ca7.uscourts.gov. Persons interested in applying for this position should send their applications to:

Get the Illinois legislation updates you need to effectively advise your clients on important state tax issues with this three-hour seminar on January 29, 2016! Tax attorneys, CPA’s practicing state tax, and attorneys with clients that are subject to or exempt from Illinois state and local income, sales, or property tax – with intermediate practice experience – who attend this seminar will better understand: the sales, income and property tax issues still being considered by the State, Cook County, and the City of Chicago to address preexisting fiscal problems; the legislative items that state businesses support; the recent Illinois court decisions that address state and local tax issues; the property tax issues currently being considered by the Illinois General Assembly; and the income, franchise, and sales tax changes enacted during the 2015-2016 legislative session.

The program – which will be held at the ISBA Chicago Office and via Live Webcast – is presented by the ISBA State & Local Tax Section and qualifies for 3.0 hours MCLE credit.

Click here for more information and to register.

United States Bankruptcy Judge Pamela Hollis of the Northern District of Illinois has applied to be reappointed by the United States Court of Appeals to a new 14-year term when her current term expires on January 26, 2017. A United States Bankruptcy Judge is a judicial officer of the United States District Court who exercises the authority of the district court with respect to any action, suit, or proceeding under Chapter 6 of Title 28 of the United States Code. 28 U.S.C. § 151.

The Nominating Committee of the Cook County Circuit Court decided today to postpone the Associate Judge selection process until after the March 15 primary election.

The Nominating Committee took this action to avoid the potential appearance of impropriety because several applicants for Associate Judge are also running for Circuit Judge in the March primary.

Asked and Answered

By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC

Q. I am a member of our firm's executive committee. We are an 18-attorney firm in Baltimore with four equity partners, five non-equity partners, and nine associates. Recently we asked one of our non-equity partners to join the equity ranks and he said no. We were shocked and taken by surprise. Is this a common occurrence? We would like to hear your thoughts

Several significant changes to Illinois law regarding how juveniles are charged – either as delinquents or adults – became effective on January 1, 2016. This one-hour online seminar on January 27, 2016 offers you an in-depth look at how these changes can impact your client and your practice. Prosecutors, defenders, judges, and juvenile court practitioners with intermediate practice experience who attend this seminar will better understand: the impact of HB 2567 on juvenile detention of children age 10-12; transfer reform issues and changes in HB 3718; and the impact of SB 1560, which ends commitment of misdemeanants to juvenile prison and also sets limits for juvenile parole. The seminar is presented by the ISBA Child Law Section and qualifies for 1.0 hour MCLE credit.

Click here for more information and to register.

The Illinois State Bar Association’s Lawyer Finder Service provides referrals to local lawyers Mondays through Fridays. The Service makes referrals in a number of areas of law. For the month of December 2015, there were 741 referrals. ISBA helped people in need of legal services find lawyers in the following areas:

Here are the results for December 2015:

• 741 phone referrals made by Lawyer Finder staff
• Most requested areas of law: Family (118), Personal Injury (116), Employment Law (72), Criminal Law (63), Civil Disputes (61), Real Estate (55) and Civil Rights (37).
• 18,158 visits to IllinoisLawyerFinder.com (15,925 unique visitors)