Forum non Madison County
By Terrence M. Madsen
General Practice, Solo, and Small Firm,
November 2003
For those of us who practice outside the world of jury actions for damages in excess of $50,000, it may seem unusual that a plaintiff in a traffic crash case would choose to file the action in a county where neither driver resides, where the accident did not happen and where there are 10 times the number of similar cases pending on the docket and they take, statistically, nearly a year longer to resolve than the county of occurrence.
Practice tip: Not-for-profit resources
By Terrence M. Madsen
General Practice, Solo, and Small Firm,
June 2003
There is an unwritten but well known rule of the profession that every small firm and solo, regardless of their areas of practice, must plan for the day when their best client calls in the middle of the night--or Sunday afternoon--seeking emergency help for a spouse who can't drive sober or a child who shoplifts and is in jail.
People do notice: Professional passing
By Terrence M. Madsen
General Practice, Solo, and Small Firm,
December 2002
I recently attended the funeral of a former circuit clerk in a small rural county. This clerk had, as often is the case, served actively in his political party and had even once managed a campaign of a now-retired circuit judge.
The youth court option: Now that’s a young prosecutor
By Terrence M. Madsen
Child Law,
October 2002
The scene in the Knox County courtroom is pretty much the same as at any routine juvenile proceeding except that the prosecutor is 14, the defense "attorney" is 16 and a "jury" of 13-17 year-olds are hearing evidence in aggravation and mitigation in anticipation of imposing a very real sentence.
The youth court option: now that’s a young prosecutor
By Terrence M. Madsen
General Practice, Solo, and Small Firm,
May 2002
The scene in the Knox County courtroom is pretty much the same as at any routine juvenile proceeding except that the prosecutor is fourteen, the defense "attorney" is sixteen and a "jury" of 13 17 year old are hearing evidence in aggravation and mitigation in anticipation of imposing a very real sentence.
Ante-nuptial isn’t nuptial
By Terrence M. Madsen
General Practice, Solo, and Small Firm,
April 2002
An ante-nuptial agreement does not enjoy the traditional disclosure privileges associated with marital communications according to the Third District's recent opinion in In rel. Puterbaugh v. Puterbaugh, 3-01-0292 (2/14/02).
Termination: two and two for the spring
By Terrence M. Madsen
Child Law,
January 2002
The parental rights termination provisions of 750 ILCS 50/1 went two and two this spring in the constitutional challenge area.
GEE? No, GED!
By Terrence M. Madsen
Child Law,
October 2001
Consider the following two paragraphs from the same judgment of dissolution. The first paragraph appears under a section of the incorporated settlement agreement entitled "Maintenance."
Special use zoning and comprehensive plans
By Terrence M. Madsen
General Practice, Solo, and Small Firm,
September 2001
The Illinois Supreme Court has issued an important reminder to municipalities concerning the need for following through on comprehensive plans with appropriate zoning modifications in the opinion in City of Chicago Heights v. Living Word Outreach Full Gospel Church and Ministries, Inc., No. 87101, (March 22, 2001).
Practice trap: Baby Richard turns mischievous?
By Terrence M. Madsen
General Practice, Solo, and Small Firm,
December 2000
Has "Baby Richard" created jurisdictional land mines outside of the Adoption Act that could affect the integrity of sound and secure relationships developed pursuant to the Parentage Act?
Whoops—there goes that second worker’s compensation fee
By Terrence M. Madsen
General Practice, Solo, and Small Firm,
August 2000
The Illinois Supreme Court has either clarified or declared—depending on your perspective—that the statutory 25% attorney fees for recovery of reimbursement for an employer who has made a worker's compensation payment is, as a practical matter, at best a part of, and not in addition to, any fee amount contracted with an employee.
Spot an error in your article? Contact Celeste Niemann at cniemann@isba.org. For information on obtaining a copy of an article, visit the ISBA Newsletters page.
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