What happens when an Illinois disciplinary investigation is referred to the Inquiry Board? […]
Inquiring Into Inquiry
Tag: legal ethics
RSMD’s Sari Montgomery Honored by Lawyers Trust Fund
On June 27, the Lawyers Trust Fund honored Sari W. Montgomery with its pro bono service award. The award recognizes Sari’s pro bono work with LTF, and with the Lawyers’ Committee for Better Housing, on a project geared toward increasing access to justice for Illinois tenants in our state. Sari’s work and dedication illuminates the […]
RSMD Lawyers Author IICLE Chapter on Jury Trial Ethics
Mary Robinson, Sari Montgomery, and Jim Doppke are featured authors in the recently-published IICLE® handbook Inside and Outside the Jury Box: Effective Trial Strategies, 2019 Edition. They were pleased to co-author the chapter entitled “Ethical Considerations in Jury Trials,” which covers such diverse issues as the use of social media in selecting juries; the pitfalls […]
Stephanie Stewart Elected Vice-Chair of CBA Professional Fees Committee
RSMD’s Stephanie Stewart was recently elected the Vice-Chair of the Chicago Bar Association’s Committee on Professional Fees. The Committee concerns itself with problems and disputes about legal fees, and it arbitrates such disputes when the parties agree to submit to arbitration. Stephanie looks forward to helping to lead the Committee, and to assisting in resolving […]
RSMD’s Sari Montgomery Presents at ABA Young Professionals Event
Sari Montgomery was a featured presenter at the ABA’s June 6, 2019 Young Professionals Event. She participated in a panel discussion on the professional responsibility implications of evolving technologies. Sari was pleased to be among other distinguished speakers, including Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, and to help provide professional guidance to young practitioners. […]
Inside the Numbers: ARDC Annual Report
by Jim Doppke As Rhys Saunders recently posted, the ARDC released its 2018 Annual Report a couple of weeks ago. I’m still digesting some of the information in it, but there are some observations about the Illinois disciplinary system that can be gleaned from the basic data. […]
Succession Planning: Representatives’ Risks
Some of the authority conferred on representatives by proposed Illinois Supreme Court Rule 781 could raise questions about potential disciplinary liability. […]
Things to Try: Disciplinary Complaints, Closures, and Alternatives
The recent amendment to Supreme Court Rule 756 was the kickoff for the ARDC’s foray into proactive management-based regulation, which we know will require lawyers without malpractice insurance to undergo an online self-assessment. As the contours of that process continue to be determined, the profession can and should examine existing methods the ARDC can employ […]
IL PMBR ASAP: Sea Change in Illinois Attorney Regulation
I wrote previously about the concept of proactive management-based regulation (“PMBR”), an attorney discipline concept that has been studied and implemented in some jurisdictions worldwide. The word was that Illinois was looking to be the first jurisdiction to adopt it in the U.S., and with our Supreme Court’s January 25 amendment to its Rule 756(e), that’s now happened. This […]
Funds of Other Lawyers: Separate to Divide
Recently, the American Bar Association promulgated Formal Opinion number 475, which addresses the obligations of lawyers who, having agreed to a fee split with another lawyer, come into possession of the settlement funds from which the fee will be drawn. Of course, we know what the lawyer’s obligations are to the client, and to third-party lienholders, with respect to the funds. […]
