Tort Trends

The newsletter of the ISBA’s Section on Tort Law

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2024 Articles

Become an Illinois Bar Foundation Champion By Jessica R. Durkin December 2024 At least twice a year at ISBA Annual and Midyear Meetings, we are pitched by colleagues and the Illinois Bar Foundation to become a “Champion.” But what is a Champion really, and what’s in it for us?
Condition vs. Creation? Determining Which Jury Instructions to Use in a Negligence Case Against a Landowner By Judge Eileen Marie O’Connor January 2024 An overview of the development and changes to Illinois premises liability law, beginning with the adoption of the Restatement (Second) of Torts, and finishing with a discussion of the law’s practical application at trial.
Dealing with the “Fatal Gap” in Causation Problem in Medical Negligence Cases By Brion W. Doherty October 2024 One issue that plaintiffs may encounter in proving proximate cause, especially in failure to diagnose cases, is the issue of a “fatal gap” in causation. 
Evaluating Mid-Level Providers Today By Nicholas T. Motherway October 2024 Plaintiffs’ counsel knows the general rule in medical malpractice cases: to even get started, you must have an expert in the same field as the defendant to prove a breach of the standard of care. The experts must also do the proverbial “stay in your lane” for breach and causation.
Fraudulent Concealment and the Agency Relationship By Mark Benfield & Kathryn Johnson-Monfort October 2024 Fraudulent concealment in Illinois does not itself create a cause of action, rather, it operates as an exception to the time limitations imposed on a separate, underlying cause of action. 
Illinois Supreme Court Rule 219 and Exclusion of Witnesses By Mark Benfield & Kathryn Johnson-Monfort June 2024 An overview of Illinois Supreme Court Rule 219(c), which allows the court to impose sanctions for failure to comply with court rules — including barring a witness from testifying.
Key Distinctions Between Illinois’ Discovery and Evidence Depositions By Gregory R. Jones January 2024 An analysis of the key distinctions between discovery depositions and evidentiary depositions in Illinois civil practice.
Look Closer at That Healthcare Lien for Unpaid Bills When a Client Has Health Insurance By Nicholas T. Motherway April 2024 The Health Care Services Lien Act  has settlement procedures for providers so that a plaintiff will receive some compensation in a settlement if the medical bills are higher than the settlement amount.
The Often-Overlooked Power of ‘In-Concert Liability’ in Personal Injury Cases By Thomas . M Connelly June 2024 Illinois law regarding in-concert liability is not well developed, but it remains a powerful theory of liability in complex personal injury cases.
The Pandemic’s Indelible Mark By Hon. Jasmine V. Hernandez, Mackenzie Ryndak, & Hon. E. Kenneth Wright, Jr. January 2024 Judges and attorneys in the academic sector share how the pandemic has impacted their work.
Plaintiffs Recover First: How to Reduce Health Care Providers’ Liens Below Statutory Limits By Kevin E. O’Reilly & Jake McCormick December 2024 This article will address alternative measures one can take to reduce liens beyond the confines of the Health Care Services Lien Act – 770 ILCS 23/et seq.
Primer on Negligent Hiring, Supervising, and Retention Claims By Dominic C. LoVerde October 2024 Prosecuting and defending negligent hiring, supervising, and retention claims can be fraught with various legal and factual landmines and issues. Employers have a duty to act reasonably in hiring, supervising, and retaining their employees.
Reexamining Illinois Patterned Jury Instruction (I.P.I.) 20.01 Issues Raised by the Pleadings By Judge Eileen Marie O’Connor April 2024 In Galich v. Advocate Health & Hospital Corp., the appellate court held that the trial court properly instructed the jury and section 2-1303(c) of the Code of Civil Procedure is constitutional. 
“Relating Back” Additional Allegations Against a Defendant for the Conduct of a Previously Unnamed Employee/Agent After the Statue of Limitations Has Expired By Jeffrey A. Schulkin & Madison Lewandowski December 2024 Under certain circumstances, additional allegations may be added against a defendant after the statute of limitations has expired for the conduct of a previously unnamed employee/agent. The Illinois “relation-back” statute, 735 ILCS 5/2-616(b) (2002), allows additional allegations against a defendant for one of its previously unnamed agents/employees filed after the statute of limitations has expired, if the allegations arise out of the same, or substantially similar occurrence as stated in the timely filed pleading. 
Rule 277 and Personal Jurisdiction By Michael Cortina April 2024 An analysis of why Illinois Supreme Court Rule 277 — the rule pertaining to supplementary proceedings — does not grant courts personal jurisdiction over out-of-state entities.
Uniform Interstate Depositions and Discovery Act By Martin L. Glink June 2024 The Uniform Interstate Depositions and Discovery Act facilitates issuing subpoenas in Illinois for out-of-state depositions, inspections, and discovery.
What Can You Do If Your Client Signed a Release? By Brion W. Doherty April 2024 A release may be unenforceable if neither plaintiff nor defendant understand the true nature of the plaintiff's injuries on the date the release is signed.