Illinois

1987 ABA Journal Illinois articles.

Examiner’s Report Goes Easy on Brown Rudnick for Botched Redaction

The law firm Brown Rudnick is unlikely to face serious sanctions for botching an attempt to keep confidential information out of a complaint filed on behalf of some creditors in the Chicago Tribune’s bankruptcy proceedings. A report filed by bankruptcy examiner Kenneth Klee concludes it is “implausible” that Brown Rudnick…

Aug 4, 2010 12:30 PM CDT

Judge Pleads Guilty in Reckless Driving Case, But His Lawyer Blames Mechanical Problems

A suburban Chicago judge pleaded guilty to misdemeanor reckless driving and apologized today, after an alleged hit-and-run encounter with a parked vehicle on June 29, reports the Chicago Sun-Times. “I deeply regret my conduct in this matter and intend to rededicate myself to the principles and values in my life…

Aug 3, 2010 11:40 PM CDT

Vet Lost Home After Lawyer Drafted Trust Rather Than Will, Ethics Complaint Says

A lawyer in suburban Chicago has been accused in an ethics complaint of helping a couple swindle an elderly veteran out of his home. Lawyer Gary R. Williams is accused of creating a living trust that gave control of the assets belonging to Angelo Biondo to the World War II…

Aug 3, 2010 4:08 PM CDT

Convicted of Theft, Ex-Lawyer Is Now an Advocate for Others with Background Issues

Back when his income of over $100,000 a year seemed like chicken feed, attorney Michael Sweig decided to leave his law firm and hang out his own shingle. The result was disastrous. A major client didn’t pay a legal fee, and Sweig turned to the firm’s trust account for operating…

Aug 2, 2010 5:01 PM CDT

7th Circuit Cites ‘Unreasonable Fury’ of Chief District Judge as Reason for His Mid-Trial Removal

Putting an end to speculation about why a chief federal district judge was suddenly removed from an ongoing criminal trial in Chicago, the federal appeals court that axed him earlier this week explained today in a written opinion that it acted because of the jurist’s “unreasonable fury” against prosecutors. Responding…

Jul 30, 2010 7:30 PM CDT

Ex-BigLaw Associate Faces Ethics Case Over Alleged Nonpayment of $78K Student Loan

A graduate of the University of Chicago Law School who was being paid over $200,000 a year as an associate at DLA Piper in 2009 is facing a legal ethics complaint that alleges he failed to pay his guaranteed student loan debt. Olufemi Nicol, 42, is accused of bad-faith avoidance…

Jul 29, 2010 9:14 PM CDT

Founder of Bankruptcy Law Firm Suspects Cleaning Workers in Dumpster Error

The founder of a Chicago-area bankruptcy law firm says cleaning workers may be to blame for putting sensitive client documents in a Dumpster shared by other businesses. The documents included client information sheets with Social Security numbers, names and addresses, driver’s license numbers and signed debit card authorizations, the Chicago…

Jul 29, 2010 12:54 PM CDT

7th Circuit Removes Chief District Judge Mid-Trial After Evidence Dispute with US Attorney

Updated: Ruling on an interlocutory appeal by U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald, a federal appeals court in Chicago not only agreed with the prosecutor that the chief district court judge had erred by excluding fingerprint evidence in a drug case but removed the jurist from the ongoing trial. “The case shall…

Jul 29, 2010 2:43 AM CDT

Defense Lawyer Tells Jurors Blagojevich Is ‘Not the Sharpest Knife in the Drawer’

Defense lawyer Sam Adam Jr. told jurors on Tuesday that former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich may not be “the sharpest knife in the drawer,” but he’s not corrupt. Jurors begin deliberations in the case today, the New York Times reports. Yesterday, Adam offered a dramatic closing argument that was “peppered…

Jul 28, 2010 12:02 PM CDT

Blagojevich Judge Unmoved by Presidential-Looking Dismissal Order

Is Barack Obama sending out judicial orders from Cedar Rapids, Iowa? The writer of a letter purporting to be from the president apparently hopes the judge overseeing the political corruption trial of former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich won’t see through the guise. U.S. District Judge James Zagel revealed the letter…

Jul 27, 2010 5:36 PM CDT

Blago Judge & Defense Lawyer Clash Over Closing; I’ll Go to Jail, Attorney Adam Says

A federal judge overseeing the political corruption trial of the former governor of Illinois sent the jury home early today, after he and a defense lawyer clashed over what can be said at the upcoming closing argument. After attorney Sam Adam Jr. complained that he should be allowed to mention…

Jul 26, 2010 11:46 PM CDT

Is Eye-Rolling Disorderly Conduct? City Attorney Ordered to Investigate

A city attorney in a western Chicago suburb has a new research assignment, thanks to a woman’s ejection from a city council committee meeting last month based on allegations she was rolling her eyes and yawning disrespectfully. The question for Elmhurst city attorney Don Storino: What are the legal definitions…

Jul 26, 2010 5:43 PM CDT

Conrad Black Released on Bond After Some $40M in Legal Bills; How Much More Can He Afford to Pay?

Freed today from a federal prison in Florida, onetime media mogul Conrad Black is seemingly potentially on track for a possible reversal of his fraud and obstruction of justice convictions. But a major roadblock remains: His legal fees. An estimated $40 million in defense costs for Black have been covered…

Jul 21, 2010 11:29 PM CDT

Death of Reed Smith Practice Leader Struck by Train Ruled a Suicide

A senior partner at Reed Smith committed suicide last week, dying of multiple injuries after being struck by a commuter train in Chicago. Stewart Dolin was a corporate and securities partner who headed practice groups both at Reed Smith and, before it merged with Reed Smith, at Sachnoff and Weaver,…

Jul 20, 2010 11:40 PM CDT

Blago’s Lawyers Mull Bold Defense: Presenting No Witnesses & Resting Case

Defense lawyers promised the jury in former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s federal political corruption trial that he would testify. But then they debating whether he should do so, as the moment of truth neared today in the Chicago trial. Sam Adam Sr. said prosecutors haven’t proven their case, so the…

Jul 20, 2010 9:56 PM CDT

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Illinois

Examiner’s Report Goes Easy on Brown Rudnick for Botched Redaction

Judge Pleads Guilty in Reckless Driving Case, But His Lawyer Blames Mechanical Problems

Vet Lost Home After Lawyer Drafted Trust Rather Than Will, Ethics Complaint Says

Convicted of Theft, Ex-Lawyer Is Now an Advocate for Others with Background Issues

7th Circuit Cites ‘Unreasonable Fury’ of Chief District Judge as Reason for His Mid-Trial Removal

Ex-BigLaw Associate Faces Ethics Case Over Alleged Nonpayment of $78K Student Loan

Founder of Bankruptcy Law Firm Suspects Cleaning Workers in Dumpster Error

7th Circuit Removes Chief District Judge Mid-Trial After Evidence Dispute with US Attorney

Defense Lawyer Tells Jurors Blagojevich Is ‘Not the Sharpest Knife in the Drawer’

Blagojevich Judge Unmoved by Presidential-Looking Dismissal Order

Blago Judge & Defense Lawyer Clash Over Closing; I’ll Go to Jail, Attorney Adam Says

Is Eye-Rolling Disorderly Conduct? City Attorney Ordered to Investigate

Conrad Black Released on Bond After Some $40M in Legal Bills; How Much More Can He Afford to Pay?

Death of Reed Smith Practice Leader Struck by Train Ruled a Suicide

Blago’s Lawyers Mull Bold Defense: Presenting No Witnesses & Resting Case

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