Illinois

Lovells to Shutter 20-Lawyer Chicago Office

Lovells expects to close its approximately 20-lawyer Chicago office by the end of October. The decision was made after the firm conducted a strategic and financial review in conjunction with its planned May 1 merger with Hogan & Hartson. The news follows announcements within the past month that 56 lawyers…

Mar 30, 2010 7:38 PM CDT

Plaintiff: Movie Theater Armrest Struck Me As I Answered My Cell Phone

A plaintiff in an Illinois lawsuit is seeking damages for a head injury she says she suffered when a movie theater armrest struck her as she was “discreetly” leaning down to answer her cell phone during a screening of The Incredible Hulk. Taj Showers says she suffered a concussion and…

Mar 25, 2010 9:19 PM CDT

Former Law Student Is Banned From Court After Knife Arrest

A former law student who is being held in lieu of $1 million bail after authorities reportedly found 1,600 handguns, knives and other weapons in his Chicago home last week has been banned from all Cook County courthouses unless he is required to be there by law. Kevin Long, 48,…

Mar 24, 2010 4:56 PM CDT

Greenberg Firm to Repay All $3.2M Related to Ex-Partner’s Work for Chicago Suburb

Greenberg Traurig has agreed to pay Calumet Park $3.2 million following news that a now-former partner of the firm is believed to have billed the suburban Chicago municipality for over $1 million in fees for legal work that was never performed, reports the Southtown Star. “This is a repayment of…

Mar 22, 2010 4:54 PM CDT

Lawyer Charged in Alleged Courthouse Shoving Incident

In court in the Chicago area yesterday to represent the defendant in a hearing over a woman’s request for an order of protection in a domestic relations case, Dan Florey clearly didn’t obtain exactly the result he was hoping for. The 48-year-old practitioner was charged with misdemeanor battery after allegedly…

Mar 19, 2010 10:13 PM CDT

Greenberg Traurig Partner Charged With Overbilling Client By $1M to Gain Prestige in Firm

A now-former partner of Greenberg Traurig has been criminally charged with theft for allegedly overbilling a government client in the Chicago suburbs by more than $1 million. Mark McCombs, 50, is accused of taking advantage of longstanding professional and personal relationships with officials in Village of Calumet Park and charging…

Mar 6, 2010 2:23 AM CST

7th Cir Stays Infomercial Pitchman’s Jail Term for Crashing Judge’s Computer

A federal appeals court has stayed an infomercial pitchman’s 30-day jail term for urging fans to send e-mails that crashed a judge’s computer. The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals gave no reason for the stay, and will hear arguments on Kevin Trudeau’s case on Tuesday, reports the Chicago Tribune.…

Feb 18, 2010 11:54 PM CST

Infomercial Pitchman Gets 30 Days for Crashing Federal Judge’s Computer

Updated: During a criminal contempt hearing in Chicago last week, U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman said he was inclined to sentence infomercial pitchman Kevin Trudeau to a jail term for unleashing a flood of fan e-mail that crashed the jurist’s computer. And today, calling the deluge of some 300 e-mails…

Feb 17, 2010 9:34 PM CST

Radio Host in Contempt Case Urges Fans to E-Mail Court; Federal Judge Is Not Pleased

Updated: Facing a new ruling from U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman, after a federal appeals court instructed him to reconsider an earlier $37.6 million contempt sanction, infomercial pitchman Kevin Trudeau apparently thought the judge might take note of praise from his fans for his books. And Gettleman clearly did. Finding…

Feb 12, 2010 1:15 AM CST

Hockey Star’s Winning DUI Argument: Knee Surgeries Caused Field Sobriety Test Glitch

Saying that a videotape of field sobriety tests didn’t establish probable cause to arrest hockey star Chris Chelios for driving under the influence, an Illinois judge yesterday cleared the way for the expected dismissal of the DuPage County case against the former Chicago Blackhawks star. Attorney Terry Ekl, who represented…

Feb 11, 2010 6:26 PM CST

I’ll Use Prosecution Tapes to Win My Case, Says Impeached Ex-Ill. Gov

After pleading innocent today to charges made in a revised indictment in a federal corruption case, the impeached former governor of Illinois and his lawyers said he could seek to suppress government tapes of allegedly incriminating phone conversations on constitutional grounds but doesn’t intend to do so. That’s because playing…

Feb 10, 2010 8:04 PM CST

Lawmakers to Push for DNA Testing in Rape Cases That Aren’t Prosecuted

When an individual says he or she has been sexually assaulted, it’s routine today for a hospital nurse to open a rape kit and collect the suspect’s semen and other fluids from the victim’s body for DNA testing. But in Illinois (and, reportedly, other states as well) thousands of these…

Feb 9, 2010 6:13 PM CST

Ill. Supreme Court Strikes Down Caps on Med-Mal Awards

A divided Illinois Supreme Court has struck down caps on medical malpractice awards in an opinion today that showed little regard for the practice in other states. The opinion (PDF) said the tort reform law interferes with the judiciary’s power to assess and reduce verdicts, violating the separation of powers…

Feb 4, 2010 4:28 PM CST

Greenberg Traurig Enters San Francisco; Other Firms Grow in Chicago & Florida

Greenberg Traurig has opened a San Francisco office headed by two well-known litigators and expects to have a 12- to 15-attorney group practicing there within a few weeks. Joining the new office initially as co-managing shareholders are Kenneth Steinthal, a former Weil Gotshal & Manges partner of nearly 25 years…

Feb 3, 2010 8:33 PM CST

7th Cir. Skewers Judge Shadur Over Ex-Lawyer’s Sentence, Remands Case to Another Judge

In a stinging rebuke to a federal judge who sentenced a well-known former Chicago lawyer and politician to probation in a corruption case, the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals today not only reversed the sentence but remanded the case to a different judge. And, in an opinion (PDF) authored…

Jan 29, 2010 7:46 PM CST