I developed a curiosity for the law when I was in high school. I remember having classes where we held mock debates and trials. I personally loved making arguments and enjoyed the process of crafting a counterpoint to address the opposing arguments.  …
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This June, the Illinois Lawyers’ Assistance Program (LAP) hosted its Annual Training  in both Chicago and Carbondale. In one of their largest trainings, LAP welcomed 260 attorneys on-site for the yearly event. Each year, Illinois LAP teaches attorneys how to…
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Last week, the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) and The John Marshall Law School announced big news for the city of Chicago. The two institutions joined forces to create the city’s first and only public law school – UIC…
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Mark your calendars. This October, the American Bar Association Law Practice Division is hosting its first annual ABA Lawyer Retreat in Vail, Colorado. The day-long program is called a retreat because it is designed to help attorneys improve their personal…
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Last week, Avvo, the fixed-fee, limited scope legal services provider announced that it will be closing its operation. The news comes after countless lawsuits filed against the company and eight different state bar associations issued ethics opinions in the last…
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This June, the Illinois State Bar Association (ISBA) won summary judgment in a lawsuit against the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) regarding whether an attorney representing a client in a property tax proceeding violates the Appraisal Act,…
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Why did you want to become a lawyer? I have an uncle in Kansas City who is a lawyer, and two of his children are my age, so whenever we visited I spent a lot of time at his house….
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Laid out in the Preamble to the Model Rules of Professional Conduct, lawyers are “public citizens” charged to seek improvement of the law, create access to the legal system, and ensure that justice is administered equally to all. When issues…
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Last weekend, at the Illinois State Bar Association Annual Meeting, the ISBA Special Committee on Succession and Transition Planning proposed Rule 781 to the ISBA Assembly. With the support of the ISBA Board of Governors and the Special Committee, the…
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Last year, the Legal Services Corporation (LSC) reported that 86% of civil legal problems reported by low-income Americans in the past year received inadequate or no legal help. A large segment of that population is veterans. Many different access to…
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Today, the Illinois Supreme Court announced it will adopt the Uniform Bar Exam (UBE). It becomes the 30th state and 32nd U.S. Jurisdiction to make the transition. The UBE has been up for discussion in Illinois for the last few…
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Court filings are down. Self-represented litigants are up.  Access to quality, affordable legal representation is hard to come by these days. In fact, according to the Legal Services Corporation’s 2017 Justice Gap report, 86% of the civil legal problems reported…
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