Section Newsletters

Articles From 2007

Practice in the Central District of Illinois By Hon. Michael P. McCuskey Civil Practice and Procedure, March 2007 The important thing that civil practitioners need to understand about federal court is that, unlike state court, their assigned district court judge has both a civil and criminal docket, which means that the Speedy Trial Act causes criminal trials to take priority over trial dates in civil cases.
A practice pointer for dealing with the Farm Service Agency Power of Attorney By Paul A. Meints Agricultural Law, September 2007 If you have any farming clients then you are aware of the Farm Service Agency’s push for having all “paperwork” in order.
Practice transition By Mary A. Corrigan Law Office Management and Economics, Standing Committee on, August 2007 Early in my career retirement was not something I thought about.
The Practitioner’s Guide to the Illinois Department on Aging By Kristi Vetri Elder Law, December 2007 As elder law attorneys, we are expected to know about numerous issues affecting our clients’ lives and put together a plan for their care and protection.
Preamble to the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa Racial and Ethnic Minorities and the Law, October 2007 The text of the preamble.
Presumed equal: What America’s top women lawyers really think about their firms By Lindsay Blohm & Ashley Riveira Women and the Law, January 2007 During our third year of law school, we stumbled upon a dated edition of a guide entitled Presumed Equal, which summarized women’s experiences at large law firms.
Prevailing parties and attorney fees By John H. Brechin Local Government Law, June 2007 In the January 2007 Local Government Newsletter, we reported on the decision of the Second District Appellate Court in the case of City of Elgin v. All Nations Worship Center, 369 Ill.App.3d 664 (2006).
Prevention of the Holiday Emergency Motion…is it possible? Maybe yes, maybe no. But, minimizing the possibility, absolutely! By Brigid A. Duffield Family Law, November 2007 Taking charge of your office policies and reviewing your own client control techniques and especially your office “lines in the sand” will go a long way to helping you plan your own stress-free holiday and enjoy it with your family instead of your client’s family.
Private investigator’s actions lead to invasion of privacy claim By Michael R. Lied Labor and Employment Law, November 2007 Private investigators can be a helpful tool for business. However, it is important to assure that the investigation does not cross over the line to create an invasion of privacy.
Privilege causes family feud By Sandra Rubin Business Advice and Financial Planning, December 2007 In this era of corporate transparency, protecting sensitive legal communications is becoming a tricky business.
Pro Bono and other legal information is just a click away By Michael G. Bergmann Child Law, March 2007 Celebrating its sixth anniversary in March 2007, Illinois Legal Aid Online (ILAO) brings together in-depth and up-to-date legal content, detailed information about legal aid agencies, training sessions and events and countless opportunities for attorneys to volunteer their time doing worthy pro bono publico.
Pro bono assistance needed By Jefferson Mok International and Immigration Law, April 2007 Attorneys interested in pro bono cases: Following is our current list of cases in need of pro bono representation.
Pro Bono Attorneys Needed International and Immigration Law, September 2007 The National Immigrant Justice Center is recruiting pro bono representation in asylum cases.
Pro bono opportunities International and Immigration Law, January 2007 The National Immigrant Justice Center, a Heartland Alliance partner, has provided us the following description of pro bono representation cases that are currently in need of assistance.
Pro Bono Recognition International and Immigration Law, January 2007 The National Immigrant Justice Center, in their recent Pro Bono project newsletter expressed their thanks and congratulations to attorneys who volunteered their time to assist in immigration relief matters.
Production of financial records by a Supreme Court Rule 213(f)(3) Expert Witnesses By Albert E. Durkin Tort Law, July 2007 The Illinois Appellate Courts have not created a bright line rule as to whether production of extrinsic evidence to support financial claims made by expert witnesses should be required, although this issue has been hotly litigated elsewhere.
Promoting Illinois Education Exports International and Immigration Law, November 2007 The U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Commercial Service in Chicago publishes the U.S.A. Trade World Illinois. In their Fall 2007 issue, they included “Promoting Illinois Education Exports.”
Proposed Illinois legislation of interest to farmers and small rural communities By Paul A. Meints Agricultural Law, April 2007 Resource: Illinois General Assembly— http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/default.asp
Proposed regulations limiting estate tax deductions for uncertain claims against decedents and other administration expenses under §2053 By Steve R. Akers Trusts and Estates, September 2007 The IRS has issued proposed regulations dealing primarily with the deductibility of claims against a decedent’s estate that are uncertain in amount at the date of death.
Proposed regulations limiting estate tax deductions for uncertain claims against decedents and other administration expenses under §2053 By Steve R. Akers Federal Taxation, June 2007 The IRS has issued proposed regulations dealing primarily with the deductibility of claims against a decedent’s estate that are uncertain in amount at the date of death.
Public employee free speech rights—Are there any left after Garcetti? By John H. Brechin Local Government Law, May 2007 The Garcetti decision disturbed earlier precedent which had established that a public body cannot condition public employment on a basis that infringes on an employee’s constitutionally protected interest in freedom of expression.
Public sector discipline: Two Illinois prosecutors disciplined for Brady violations during May term of the Supreme Court By Rosalyn B. Kaplan Government Lawyers, September 2007 In re Murphy and Campbell, Commission Nos. 06 SH 74 and 75 (consolidated), S. Ct. No. M.R. 21566 (May 18, 2007).
Public sector discipline: Two Illinois public sector attorneys disciplined during March term of court for criminal conduct By Rosalyn B. Kaplan Government Lawyers, June 2007 In re Arrigo, Commission No. 06 CH 45, S. Ct. No. M.R. 21373 (March 19, 2007). John Arrigo was an officer in the United States Air Force and, as such, was subject to annual written evaluations of his job performance.
Public-private supply chain initiatives: The relationship between C-TPAT, CSI, and the WCO By Matthew DeFlorio International and Immigration Law, December 2007 The Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (“C-TPAT”) is a voluntary program established in November 2001 with the aim of engaging the global supply chain community and empowering participants to play a critical role in assisting Customs in achieving its dual objective of securing our nation’s borders and improving facilitation of trade.
Puleo v. Topel—A testament to the protection afforded by LLCs By Edward J. Jarot, Jr. Business and Securities Law, February 2007 When advising a client about the benefits of operating his business under the protective shell of a corporation or limited liability company, many advisors tend to focus on the tax and employee benefit differences between the two business forms, without much detailed attention paid to the differences from a liability and asset protection standpoint.
“Pull My Finger Fred” gets his day in court By Steven L. Baron & Lindsay H. LaVine Intellectual Property, September 2007 For years to come, Illinois courts will cite the JCW Investments case (or the “farting doll” case, as it is affectionately known) for the proposition that federal law does not preempt state law in the realm of punitive damages. Who would have thought that Pull My Finger Fred would be such a pioneer?
Pulling the Plug on “The Electric (Slide)” By Margo Lynn Hablutzel Intellectual Property, March 2007 Thousands of guests at weddings, bas mitzvah, Sweet Sixteen parties, company holiday gatherings, and other events have been cajoled into joining a line dance called “The Electric Slide” over the last thirty years.
Putting employers between a rock and a hard place with respect to verifying employment eligibility By Cindy G. Buys International and Immigration Law, December 2007 Earlier this year, the Illinois legislature passed and Governor Blagojevich signed into law H.B. 1744, which puts employers in an even more difficult position with respect to verifying their employees’ eligibility to work. H.B. 1744 amends the Illinois Right to Privacy in the Workplace Act to prohibit employers “from enrolling in any Employment Eligibility Verification System, including the Basic Pilot Program, 8 U.S.C. 1324a, . . . until the Social Security Administration (SSA) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) databases are able to make a determination on 99 percent of the tentative nonconfirmation notices issued to employers within three days, unless otherwise required by federal law.”
Questions and answers for 2006 / 2007 IDOR Practitioners’ Meetings State and Local Taxation, January 2007 Note: The answers by the Department of Revenue to the questions are not to be relied upon by taxpayers in lieu of a Private Letter Ruling and are not the kind of written information upon which a taxpayer may rely to request an abatement under the Taxpayer Bill of Rights.
Questions and complexities in disclosure By Daniel Kegan Intellectual Property, January 2007 A list of items to consider regarding disclosure.