Illinois

Parents Convicted for Son’s Party

A suburban Chicago couple has been convicted for allowing an underage drinking party in their home that had deadly consequences. Jeffrey and Sara Hutsell were convicted yesterday of child endangerment and obstruction of justice, the Chicago Tribune reports. Prosecutors had contended the Hutsells were aware their son was hosting the…

Jul 23, 2007 3:46 AM CDT

Parents on Trial for ‘Quiet Gathering’

Officials describe a bacchanalian scene: a basement that smelled of alcohol and was littered with beer cans as teens played beer pong on the family ping-pong table. But Jeffrey and Sara Hutsell say they were shocked to find out, after teens who had been at the party in their suburban…

Jul 18, 2007 5:46 PM CDT

Girls in Jail Need Beauty, Kind Words

Throughout the country, prisons are run in a paramilitary manner that seems to work for men. But it’s not nearly as effective for young women, experts believe. So, as the number of girls in jail goes up, juvenile authorities in Illinois have been developing new kind of lock-up for young…

Jul 16, 2007 6:35 PM CDT

Form Contract Puts Sprint in Class Action

Sprint-Nextel Corp. essentially scored an own goal, an Illinois appeals court says, by including in its adhesionary form contract a choice-of-law provision that allows customers to bring a national class action. Upholding a Madison County trial judge’s class certification, the 5th District Appellate Court decided the case over the cell…

Jul 12, 2007 9:08 PM CDT

Midsize Firms Say Bigger Isn’t Better

It’s not always easy to stay the course as a midsize Chicago law firm. Some major corporate clients prefer to work with large law firms, and economies of scale that benefit the city’s biggest legal shops elude those with a comparatively small attorney roster of, say, 200 to 500. Meanwhile,…

Jul 11, 2007 6:22 PM CDT

Lawyers’ ‘Blue Flu’ Slows Chicago Courts

Criminal courts in the Chicago area are expected to operate in slow motion today, as up to two-thirds of the 520 prosecutors in Cook County’s felony courtrooms take the day off. The prosecutorial “blue flu” is intended to send a message to county administrators about a claimed 12 percent discrepancy…

Jul 10, 2007 6:00 PM CDT

Judge to Mob Trial Lawyer: Chill Blogging

It isn’t just defendants and jurors who have been pushing their luck lately by blogging about their case while it is at trial. An attorney representing an alleged mobster in an ongoing Chicago trial has reportedly been told in chambers by the judge to stop discussing his views of the…

Jul 10, 2007 1:06 AM CDT

Owners Blame Cities for Bad Homes

As builders throughout the country rushed to profit in the recent construction boom, a number of homes and developments went up that were badly built or otherwise created problems. But in the resulting blame game, many homeowners are now saying municipalities large and small gave builders free rein instead of…

Jul 7, 2007 12:39 AM CDT

Prosecutor Riding in DUI Car Disciplined

After a suburban Chicago prosecutor drank, drove and died May 11 in an auto accident that seriously injured another motorist, the top prosecutor in a neighboring county announced a strict new policy on drinking and driving. Even if they are not charged, Kane County Prosecutor John Barsanti told his staff,…

Jul 5, 2007 5:21 PM CDT

Fewer Empty Chicago Offices, Rents Up

A hiring spree by local law firms is in part responsible for a drop in office vacancies and a rise in office rents in Chicago. Financial services firms and law firms looking for more space in the downtown area are behind a business boom for commercial landlords, which is encouraging…

Jul 3, 2007 8:10 PM CDT

Chicago Lawyer Prowls Trash Dumpsters

By day, Todd Kooperman practices law with the Cook County public guardian’s office. But by night he can often be found prowling back alleys in affluent neighborhoods in and around Chicago, looking for treasure tossed in local trash dumpsters. The 28-year-old Chicago attorney is seeking bicycles and other salvageable items…

Jul 3, 2007 1:17 AM CDT

New Ice Shop Lures 14 Wildman Lawyers

Ice Miller has established a new presence in the Chicago suburbs in DuPage County by taking over a 14-lawyer satellite office of Chicago’s Wildman Harrold Allen & Dixon. The Indianapolis firm’s new office in Lisle will also include partner Bob Schillerstrom, from Ice Miller’s existing Naperville, Illinois, office, reports the…

Jul 2, 2007 10:21 PM CDT

IL Prosecutors + Low Pay = ‘Brain Drain’

Although it hasn’t yet caused a rush to the courthouse door, state prosecutors in Cook County, Illinois, due to a budgeting quirk, earn less than public defenders. On average, they have been making $63,000 annually to prosecute alleged criminals, compared to $73,000 for those who defend alleged criminals. And that…

Jul 2, 2007 8:51 PM CDT

Her Homework: Law Practice

After a busy day in the classroom, this teacher gets her solo practice going

Jul 1, 2007 11:31 PM CDT

3 Not-So-Little Pigs’ Upscale Home Saved

Three not-so-little pigs living in the upscale Chicago suburb of Lake Forest didn’t, of course, have to worry about a wolf huffing and puffing and blowing their rickety house down. But their owner and her children were plenty concerned about a judge’s potential ban of the 200-pound porkers from their…

Jun 27, 2007 7:25 PM CDT