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Recently read a decision from the First Appellate District that sends a clear message to lawyers electing to take voluntary dismissals – PROCEED WITH CAUTION!!!! In Kiefer v. Rust-Oleum, plaintiff Colin Kiefer filed a complaint in the Circuit Court of Cook County against Rust-Oleum, an Illinois corporation. Kiefer, a resident of British Columbia, alleged… Read More

Looks like former Motorola CFO Paul Liska is going to be at war against his former employer for some time. Liska is suing Motorola, claiming he was fired for his refusal to accept allegedly misleading financial projections by the Motorola Mobile Phone Division. Motorola, on the other hand, is claiming Liska tried to extort the company. The two sides were back… Read More

The First District Appellate Court recently handed down an opinion precluding lawyers from signing Requests to Admit responses for their clients, even if the client can’t be found. In Brookbank v. Olson, counsel for the plaintiff, Lauren Brookbank, served Requests to Admit regarding the reasonableness of Ms. Brookbank’s medical bills on the defenda… Read More

The Illinois Supreme Court recently handed down an important retaliatory discharge decision in Smith v. Waukegan Park District. The facts are pretty straightforward – Greg Smith worked as a seasonal park maintenance employee for the Waukegan Park District. On May 8, 2002, Smith suffered a work-related injury requiring medical treatment and some time away… Read More

Recently completed a case where my client was involved in a rear end collision with a large truck on a local highway. The case was tried to a judge and at the conclusion of my case the defense, as they always do, argued for a directed verdict. What I did not know at the time[but do now]is that the standard for a directed verdict motion in a bench trial is some… Read More

Illinois personal injury lawyers have their own version of the Five Day Notice. Pursuant to 815 ILCS 640/1, the Personal Injury Representation Agreement Act, any plaintiff who retains counsel to represent him/her in a personal injury case, WITHIN 5 DAYS OF THE INCIDENT, may, within 10 days after the occurrence, avoid the contract by notifying the attorney, in… Read More

The Illinois Supreme Court recently came down with a decision that should make make Illinois trial attorneys think twice about taking voluntary dismissals of their cases. The Hudson v. City of Chicago case involved allegations that the City failed to properly respond to a life-threatening situation. In November of 1998, George Hudson Jr., just three years old,… Read More

The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit recently weighed in on the “public policy” element Illinois retaliatory discharge plaintiffs must show. In Benders v. Bellows and Bellows, the plaintiff filed a three count complaint in federal court after her termination from the defendant law firm. The third count of her complaint alleged… Read More