Illinois Lawyer Now

Legal Tech: Data breach notification obligations apply to lawyers too

By Shamla Naidoo

Two weeks ago I wrote about the Houston lawyer’s client whose personal information was dumped in a parking lot. Most states have Breach Notification Statutes that compel companies to notify consumers of such “breach” incidents. Many states apply breach notification obligations where there is inappropriate disclosure of computerized personal information. This makes sense given how easy it is to expose large volumes of data that are stored, generated or shared by computer systems.

In Illinois, 815 ILCS 530, commonly known as the Personal Information Protection Act, governs the obligations for such incidents that affect an Illinois resident. The statute defines a data collector and the definition includes privately and publicly held corporations, and……”any other entity that, for any purpose, handles, collects, disseminates, or otherwise deals with nonpublic personal information”. By definition, this statute governs all law offices and even those of us who practice as private individuals are covered because we handle information of our clients that are non-public and personal. Attorneys are data collectors in Illinois!

So, you are covered by this statute but what does that mean for your practice? In short, when you are responsible (directly or indirectly) for the inappropriate exposure of your client’s personal information, you must notify them or you will be in violation of 815 ILCS 530 as an unlawful practice under the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act. The notification must be either a written notice, an electronic notice or a substitute notice may be issued if the data collector demonstrates that the cost of providing notice will exceed $250,000 or the number of people to be notified exceeds 500,000. 815 ILCS 530, Section 10 provides detailed information about your obligations to notify clients of a breach of their personal information. I encourage you to review the law and incorporate the requirements into your office operations.

Of course, I am a big proponent of prevention so I advise you to take steps to avoid data breaches. If you want to learn more about how to proactively protect the data to begin with, you should attend the session titled, “The Barbarians Are at The Gate: Securing Your Technology and Your Network” at the ISBA Solo and Small Firm Conference in October.

1st installment of ISBA’s Law Ed Faculty Development Series a huge success

Communications expert Steve Hughes showed lawyers how to look and sound smart in the first installment of the Law Ed Faculty Development Series last week at the ISBA Chicago Regional Office.

With over 140 attendees, the first installment of ISBA’s Law Ed Faculty Development Series: The Art of Effective Communication was a huge success!

The series is designed to further the personal and professional growth of our faculty speakers by expanding their legal communication skills. The program was held on Friday, August 27^th and taught by communications expert, Steve Hughes. As the founder and president of Hit Your Stride, a communications consulting company, Steve helps attorneys look and sound smart when they talk. The program covered topics such as establishing credibility; becoming an appealing legal presenter; strategies for creating an interactive audience; creating engaging PowerPoint slides; preparing effective presentations; delivering material in a compelling way; eye contact and confidence; and connecting with the legal audience.

ISBA would like to thank the faculty attendees for taking time out of their busy schedules to attend this program! Our faculty members’ unwavering commitment and contributions to ISBA Law Ed programming are invaluable to the Association and paramount to our success.

The Illinois State Bar Association is committed to cultivating an environment where Law Ed faculty members have access to the resources and tools they need to foster quality programming and excellence in learning. For this reason, ISBA has developed a faculty resources webpage containing links to informative articles, relevant websites, and information about becoming an ISBA Law Ed speaker. Be sure to check it out the new faculty resources webpage – and check back often – as new material and information will be added regularly.

Breaking legal news for Wednesday, September 1

Chicago area

Longtime judge announces retirement, Daily Chronicle
Kane County State’s Attorney eyes judgeship, Daily Herald
Lawsuit filed over emergency landing at O’Hare, Chicago Tribune

Nation

Court: University of Wis. must fund prayer activities, Chicago Tribune

This post is updated with breaking news throughout the day.

More Daily Legal News available at www.isba.org/dailylegalnews

Stanley Cup Champion Blackhawks make preseason ticket offer to ISBA members

Dear Illinois State Bar Association Members,

The 2010 Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks kick off their preseason in just a few weeks at the United Center. Come take a first look at the team for the 2010-11 season. A limited number of preseason tickets have just become available so act fast before they sell out!

Take advantage of the Illinois State Bar Association ticket offer below. Availability is limited so order today! Enter the special offer code of law, and then log in or create an account. Once you complete your order, you will receive an email confirmation to print your tickets.

If you have any questions or if you’re looking to purchase a group of 15 or more tickets, please contact TR Johnson at (312) 455-7095, tjohnson@chicagoblackhawks.com

Tickets available for the following preseason games:

Blackhawks vs. Detroit Red Wings – Sat., Sept 25, 7:00pm
Blackhawks vs. Pittsburgh Penguins – Fri., Oct 1, 7:30pm
Blackhawks vs. St. Louis Blues – Sun., Oct. 3, 5:00pm

To purchase your tickets to this offer, please click here.

McGlynn appointed in 12th Judicial Circuit

The Illinois Supreme Court on Wednesday appointed Stephen P. McGlynn as Circuit Judge at large in the Twentieth Judicial Circuit. Mr. McGlynn, who had served before by appointment on the Fifth District Appellate Court, will fill the Circuit vacancy created by the resignation of Judge Michael O’ Malley.

The appointment will take effect September 17 and will terminate December 3, 2012. Supreme Court Justice Lloyd A. Karmeier recommended Mr. McGlynn’s appointment after an application process which included review by a specially selected screening committee and interviews by Justice Karmeier of three finalists.

Nineteen persons applied for the position, one withdrew and the remaining applicants were screened by the six-person committee who presented Justice Karmeier with the names of the three finalists.

“I want to thank the Supreme Court and Justice Karmeier for the confidence they have placed in me, and the bipartisan selection committee that did its job in evaluating a number of very good people who applied,” said Mr. McGlynn. “I really enjoyed my prior tenure on the bench, and I’m very honored because I know that a judge can do a lot of good things, and it’s a marvelous way to serve my community.”

Schmidt appointed to 7th Circuit vacancy

The Illinois Supreme Court announced Wednesday that Sangamon County State’s Attorney John P. Schmidt has been appointed a circuit judge at-large in the Seventh Judicial Circuit.

Mr. Schmidt was appointed to fill the Circuit Court vacancy created by the appointment of Judge Thomas Appleton to the Fourth District Appellate Court. The appointment is effective October 1, 2010 and will expire December 3, 2012.

Justice Rita B. Garman recommended the appointment of Mr. Schmidt after a review process by a special citizen screening committee. The committee unanimously recommended Mr. Schmidt’s appointment to Justice Garman to fill the vacancy.

Mr. Schmidt graduated from Western Illinois University in 1987 with a B.S. degree in History. He received his juris doctor degree from University of Tulsa in 1990. Before his appointment to the bench, Mr. Schmidt served as special assistant U.S. attorney from 1990-1992; he was responsible for prosecution of federal law violations, advising federal law enforcement agencies and preparing briefs for the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals.

From 1992-1995, he served as Sangamon County assistant state’s attorney. While there, he prosecuted various types of traffic, misdemeanor and felony cases. Subsequently, Mr. Schmidt served as first assistant state’s attorney for four years until his appointment as Sangamon County State’s Attorney in 1999. He has since won election to that position three times, most recently in 2008.

Mr. Schmidt has served as member of the board of directors, treasurer and president of the Mental Health Centers of Central Illinois and as chairman of the Sangamon Child Advocacy Center.

A resident of Springfield, Mr. Schmidt is married with one child.

Tenancy by the entirety gets a boost

Thanks to new legislation effective January 1, 2011, spouses will no longer need to choose between the protection against creditors provided by tenancy by the entirety and the estate-planning advantages of a revocable inter vivos trust, Helen Gunnarsson reports in the September Illinois Bar Journal.

Best Practice: Characteristics of successful Law firms: Basic building block No. 2

Asked and Answered

By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC

Last week I discussed the characteristics of successful law firms and introduced the basic building blocks that successful firms typically have in place. These are:

Partner Relations
Leadership
Firm Management
Partner Compensation
Planning
Client Service
Marketing
Last week we focused on partner relations as a core foundational building block.

The second basic building block is leadership. Successful firms have good leadership in place. This may be a single individual or a core group of individuals. Leadership does not always come from the formalized management structure of the firm.

Leadership is one of the major problems facing law firms. Leaders are needed for managing partner posts, executive committee chairs, and practice group heads.

Leadership behaviors include:

Developing people
Being able to influence others
Encouraging teamwork
Empowering people
Using multiple options thinking
Taking intelligent risks
Being passionate about work
Having a strong clear vision.
Leadership skills will need to be included in compensation systems.

Seven traits of effective leaders include:

Cook appointed resident circuit judge in St. Clair County

The Illinois Supreme Court on Tuesday appointed Associate Judge Michael N. Cook to fill the Circuit Court vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Annette A. Eckert, resident Circuit Judge of St. Clair County in the Twentieth Judicial Circuit.

The appointment, made upon the recommendation of Justice Lloyd A. Karmeier, is effective October 1, 2010.

Judge Cook has served as an associate judge since 2007. Prior to his appointment to the bench, he served as an associate with the Belleville law firm of Cook, Ysursa, Bartholomew, Brauer & Shevlin; he was also an assistant public defender for St. Clair County.

Judge Cook graduated in 1999 with a juris doctor degree from the University of Tulsa. While there, he served on the Board of Advocates and in the Elder Law Legal Clinic. He graduated in 1994 with a bachelor of science degree in anthropology from Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville.

His is a member of the St. Clair County Bar Association and currently serves as its first vice-president. In addition, Judge Cook also serves as chairman of the paralegal scholarship program at Southwestern Illinois College.

Judge Cook is the only candidate seeking to succeed Judge Eckert, and will be unopposed on the November ballot.

Cox reflects on U.S. attorney tenure

Courtney Cox is stepping down from his post as a U.S. Attorney. Photo credit: Steve Jahnke/The Southern

Note: This story is reprinted with permisson of The Southern Illinoisan

By Becky Malkovich, The Southern

BENTON – When A. Courtney Cox got the call to serve as one of only 93 U.S. attorneys, he wasn’t sure answering it was the right thing to do.

“I wasn’t sure it was something I would be able to do,” he said. “As I thought about what I was being asked to do, I realized it was a job that was important and in the nature of service to country and that I did want.”

But the Benton native was still skeptical. He called a trusted friend who assured him he could and should do the job.

Still, there was the four-day-a-week drive from Benton to Fairview Heights to consider.

“I talked to my wife, who said, ‘Your brother, Jon, is going to Afghanistan to serve the country. I think you can drive to Fairview Heights,’ ” he said with a laugh. “So I accepted.”

Appointed by the judges of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois, Cox became the district’s top prosecutor in November 2007. His last day in office was Friday, when Stephen Wigginton was sworn in as the new U.S. attorney for the southern district.

Entering the office after a long career in private practice was a learning experience, Cox said.

“When I became U.S. attorney, I was naive about child exploitation,” Cox said. “I very quickly learned of the magnitude of the problem of child pornography and exploitation. It has changed the way I look at the Internet and how I view people in general. There are 50,000 predators online looking to molest children and it’s not talked about enough or dealt with enough by parents and educators. We vigorously prosecuted many but there are many, many more.

“I think a society is judged by how it treats its children and elderly and I think we can do more to protect our children from this epidemic, because that’s what it is … an epidemic.”

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