Illinois

Bad News or Good News? Economy Cuts Asset Values, Creates New Divorce Issues

The rollercoaster ride that the economy has been on in recent months is creating new issues for divorcing couples. Real estate that was worth much more only a year or two ago has plummeted in value. And a number of soon-to-be-ex-spouses with high-paying jobs suddenly have no employment at all.…

Jan 23, 2009 6:14 PM CST

Blagojevich Lawyer Drafts Suit Challenging Impeachment Trial Rules

Lawyers for Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich are preparing a possible lawsuit to challenge procedures being used in his upcoming impeachment trial. But it may never be filed. On Thursday, lawyer Samuel Adam said he and his client were considering whether to file the suit, the Associated Press reports, but another…

Jan 23, 2009 2:37 PM CST

Masked Judge Orders Hotel Confinement, GPS Monitoring for TB Patient

An Illinois judge has ordered a tuberculosis patient to undergo treatment while confined to his residence and to wear a global positioning device to ensure compliance. Judge John Kennedy of Champaign and most of those at the hearing on Wednesday wore masks, the News-Gazette reports. Air circulation was cut off…

Jan 23, 2009 1:06 PM CST

US Judge Overturns Ill. Moment of Silence Law

A federal judge has overturned an Illinois law that requires a moment of silence in public schools. U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman said the law endorsed religion in violation of the First Amendment’s establishment clause, the Daily Herald reports. “The statute is a subtle effort to force students at impressionable…

Jan 22, 2009 7:02 PM CST

Lawyers Deny They Quit Blagojevich Impeachment Because of Fees

Lawyers who refused to defend Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich at his impeachment trial say their decision was made in protest of an unfair proceeding rather than over fear of unpaid fees. Prosecutors have indicated they will not allow legal fees for the impeachment proceeding to be taken from Blagojevich’s $3.6…

Jan 21, 2009 1:21 PM CST

Job Market for Visiting Faculty Shrinks, Along With Law School Endowments

It’s no secret that many law schools throughout the country have seen their endowments dip significantly over the past year because of a swooning stock market. So now they’re almost undoubtedly looking to cut their budgets, and perhaps the likeliest area on which to focus initially is visiting faculty, reports…

Jan 16, 2009 11:08 PM CST

Illinois Gov’s Lawyers Quit in Protest of Impeachment Trial

Private lawyers representing embattled Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich are reportedly protesting the unfairness of his upcoming impeachment trial in the state senate by refusing to defend him there. However, they still plan to defend him at trial in a federal corruption case. “Blagojevich’s lawyers believe the process has become ‘fundamentally…

Jan 16, 2009 9:46 PM CST

Defense Lawyer Accused of Smuggling Pot to Inmates at Chicago Jail

An Illinois lawyer was arrested Wednesday in a undercover operation at a Chicago courthouse and has been accused by prosecutors of smuggling marijuana to inmates in holding cells at the Cook County Jail. Dave Compton, 60, met with an inmate’s girlfriend inside a criminal courthouse at 26th Street and California…

Jan 16, 2009 6:37 PM CST

Less Work for Staff After Lawyer Layoffs, So Seyfarth Adds to Staff Layoff List

After laying off about 30 attorneys and paralegals in December, Seyfarth Shaw is now laying off another 25 or so staff members. In an internal memo reported by Above the Law, the Chicago-based firm announces the new layoffs and says 14 of those affected this time around work in its…

Jan 15, 2009 12:20 AM CST

Senate Will Seat Burris

Apparently ending a contentious fight over whether a new U.S. senator named by embattled Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich should be seated, Democratic leaders say they expect Roland Burris to be sworn into office by the end of the week. In a joint statement, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Assistant…

Jan 12, 2009 9:39 PM CST

Wildman Harrold Axes 10 Attorneys

Wildman Harrold Allen & Dixon has confirmed that the Chicago-based law firm has laid off “approximately” 10 attorneys. About half are non-equity partners and the rest are associates. In a written statement provided to the Above the Law, Wildman says the laid-off lawyers “will be transitioning out of the firm…

Jan 9, 2009 7:36 PM CST

Legal Recruiters Say Kirkland & Ellis May Lay Off 15 or More Attorneys

Legal recruiters in Chicago who have been hearing from Kirkland attorneys looking for work say the big-name firm is planning layoffs in its Chicago headquarters. “Kirkland & Ellis is edging some senior associates and income partners toward the door as part of its regular annual evaluation process, perhaps being carried…

Jan 9, 2009 5:59 PM CST

Oops. DOJ Spokesman Accidentally Sends Out Confidential Witness List

Uh-oh. A spokesman for U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald accidentally e-mailed to journalists yesterday a copy of a federal criminal complaint that also included a one-page list identifying almost 20 confidential witnesses in a $15 million fraudulent investment case. “The inadvertent disclosure of the sources—former One World employees, customers, and ‘other’…

Jan 9, 2009 2:32 AM CST

Ill. House Panel’s Draft Report: Impeach Gov. Blagojevich

Setting the stage for a historic trial, a special Illinois legislative panel investigating Democratic Gov. Rod Blagojevich has recommended, in a 69-page draft report (PDF), that he be impeached. The panel says that Blagojevich, who is a defendant in a federal corruption case, cannot govern Illinois effectively in this situation,…

Jan 8, 2009 7:43 PM CST

Burris Turned Away from Senate, Setting Up Constitutional Claim

Updated: The Senate has refused to seat Roland Burris, setting up the possibility of a constitutional showdown. The former Illinois attorney general said he would take legal action, the Chicago Tribune reports. His quest to become the next U.S. senator from Illinois may be helped by a 1969 U.S. Supreme…

Jan 6, 2009 1:45 PM CST