While saying they recognize the fiscal crisis cited by lawmakers in Illinois is real, the justices of the Illinois Supreme Court have again slapped aside an attempt by state legislators to rewrite some public employee pension funding rules, saying the attempt by the state and the city of Chicago to ease the funding burden on the city and its taxpayers violates the state constitution’s prohibition on reducing public employees’ retirement benefits in any way.
Five attorneys were disbarred in Illinois and an addition dozen were suspended in the latest round of disciplinary actions handed down by the Illinois Supreme Court.
A state appeals panel has ruled a north central Illinois county is on the hook for legal costs incurred by a construction component company, because an assistant state’s attorney for the county – who has since been suspended from practice – told the court the county had secured a bond in connection with a building project, when it had not.
A state appeals panel has decided a Cook County judge was correct in slapping a stay on a legal malpractice claim against Chicago law firm Chuhak & Tecson over allegations the firm misled investors into sinking money into buying into federal nonconventional fuel tax credit partnerships, saying, while plaintiffs may wish to move ahead with their lawsuit, the case must take a backseat for now to a criminal tax case pending against an indicted lawyer.
A man who claimed someone had fraudulently run up more than $2,500 in debt on a credit card opened in his name without his knowledge has secured another chance to press a lawsuit against a suburban debt collection agency, after a state appeals panel found the agency may have broken federal debt collection laws by suing the man over the contested debt after the statute of limitations had expired.
A gay man who claims he was fired as music director at a northwest suburban Catholic church after publicly announcing his engagement has asked a federal court to order the Chicago Archdiocese to give him his job back, asserting federal, state and Cook County non-discrimination laws and past employment decisions by the Archdiocese trump the Roman Catholic Church’s prerogative under the so-called “ministerial exception” to fire church workers whose same-sex marriages may violate the Catholic churc
A Chicago federal judge has kicked drug retailers Walgreen and Rite Aid from an antitrust lawsuit against the maker of prescription pain killer Opana, saying the retailers must provide hard dollar figures to back up their allegations that the drugmaker improperly paid off another pharmaceutical company to delay the release of the generic version of its pain killer, and keep the price of its name brand drug high.
Illinois state lawmakers are in very early talks about giving retired government workers a choice much like lottery winners: Collect the pension benefits owed to them over several years, or cash out immediately but with a smaller lump sum.
Recently, the Illinois State Bar Association requested an amendment at the Illinois Supreme Court level, asking that legislation be reformed to allow law students more hands-on training, thus making them more equipped for the nature of working in law.
A potential class action lawsuit claiming Sprint violated consumer protection laws when it ran credit checks on job applicants will proceed, after a federal judge refused the company’s motion to dismiss.
CHICAGO — Employers now have a clearer path to thwart former workers’ unemployment applications thanks to amendments to the Illinois Unemployment Act that took effect last month and the outcome of a recent Illinois Supreme Court decision.
A class action lawsuit targeting the maker of a “wonder drug” nutritional supplement has been shelved after a federal judge tossed the complaint of two men who claimed they had been misled by the supplement makers’ claims regarding the product’s effectiveness at treating arthritis and other inflammation.
After the Illinois Supreme Court refused to hear the casino owners' appeal, Cook County now has the green light to collect $3 million in unpaid taxes from Midwest Gaming, owner and operator of Des Plaines’ Rivers Casino.
An American Airlines worker who was fired by the airline for helping a passenger secure a seating upgrade and some champagne for the flight has been cleared to collect unemployment benefits, after the Illinois Supreme Court found, since the worker did nothing illegal or obviously wrong, American Airlines’ lack of clear, written governing how to give passenger upgrades negated the airline’s claims it had the right to fire the worker for “misconduct.”
An Illinois appeals panel has backed a Cook County judge’s ruling that Bank of America and a Chicago advertising agency didn’t pull a fast one on a Skokie accountant, by reaching a zero-dollar settlement in a $1 million embezzlement lawsuit, saving the ad agency untold sums in legal fees and shielding the bank from the accountant’s countersuit.
Health care workers and others will undoubtedly carefully study the impact of a recent Illinois Supreme Court decision pertaining to the discoverability of physicians' credential applications held by hospitals. But the decision may not affect as much as some fear it might.
A Chicago federal judge will not slow down Cook County’s predatory lawsuit against HSBC, denying a request from HSBC to place the county’s legal action on hold to allow a federal appeals court to iron out differing opinions among local federal judges as to whether the county actually has standing under federal law to sue HSBC and other banks over allegations the banks discriminated against borrowers based on race and worsened local housing markets.
For decades, Illinois cities, villages, fire protection districts and others providing police, fire protection and ambulance services have enjoyed general immunity from lawsuits brought by plaintiffs who may accuse paramedics, firefighters and police officers of failing to provide the level of protection or response individuals may believe they should have. On Jan. 22, however, a majority of justices on the Illinois Supreme Court decided the time had come to undo the judicial rule.
A lawyer who allegedly took $15,000 from a client for his own use, was charged with criminal trespass for attempts to enter the Kane County Jail without proper attorney credentials, and then allegedly repeatedly threatened judges and other Kane County justice officials, accusing them of engaging in a racist conspiracy against him, was among five lawyers disbarred by the Illinois Supreme Court. The court suspended 14 others.
