As employers across the Midwest ramp up staffing for the holidays, it’s easy to think of seasonal and temporary workers as short-term additions to the workforce. But when it comes to employment laws, a short-term hire is still an employee. Paid leave requirements, staffing agency rules, and health coverage obligations can arise soon after a worker starts. Thinking through those issues before onboarding can help employers avoid unwelcome surprises during the holiday rush.
Continue Reading Holiday Hiring Compliance: Employment Law Considerations for Seasonal and
Temporary Workers

Do-it-yourself divorce, also known as pro se divorce, has become increasingly common over the last several years. In fact, there are now entities that help divorcing couples complete their paperwork, which the couple must then file themselves. Many pursue this option because they think it will save them time and/or money. Others feel they can manage an amicable divorce better on their own than with an attorney. Unfortunately, both of these approaches often lead to problems.
At the Law Office of Vincent C. Machroli, P.C., our Hillside, IL divorce attorney understands the risks of DIY divorce better than most. When…
Continue Reading Understanding the Risks of a Pro Se Divorce

A luxury tequila in a hand-painted decanter and a tequila cocktail in a can may look nothing alike, but consumers could still think the same company makes both. That possibility sits at the center of the Clase Azul trademark dispute with Casa Azul, and it explains why different packaging, prices, and target customers did not end the lawsuit.

In Casa Tradición S.A. de C.V. v. Casa Azul Spirits, L.L.C., No. 24-20255 (5th Cir. Nov. 4, 2026), a divided Fifth Circuit vacated a judgment favoring Casa Azul following a bench trial. The majority directed the district court to “reassess”…
Continue Reading Clase Azul v. Casa Azul: Different Bottles Don’t End a Trademark Fight

The FDA warns Ozempic, Wegovy, and other GLP-1 drugs may cause permanent vision loss. It is requiring new safety warnings on the popular weight loss and diabetes medications after finding evidence of an increased risk of a serious eye condition that can cause blindness. The November 9, 2026, announcement affects medications including Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro, and Zepbound.

The warning concerns non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION), a rare condition that can cause sudden, painless vision loss. For patients who developed NAION while using these medications, the FDA’s decision raises important questions about drug safety, manufacturer warnings, and potential legal…
Continue Reading FDA Warns Ozempic, Wegovy, and Other GLP-1 Drugs May Cause Permanent Vision Loss

The letter arrives on a Tuesday. A former partner, a customer, or a competitor says you owe money, and near the end there is a paragraph telling you to preserve all documents. Meanwhile your email system purges old messages every 90 days, a departing employee’s laptop is about to be wiped for the next hire, and someone in the office is wondering whether a few of those text messages should stay around.
The safe answer is simple. Once a dispute is on the horizon, stop the routine destruction, keep what relates to the dispute, and do it in a way…
Continue Reading The Demand Letter Came. Stop Deleting Things: What an Illinois Business Should Do to Preserve Evidence

You learn about the lawsuit when the bank freezes the account. Or the summons went to a registered agent nobody has updated in years, or the insurer was supposed to respond and did not. Now there is a judgment against your company, for a number nobody tested, in a case you never defended.
A default judgment is serious, but it is often not the end. Illinois gives a defendant one route within 30 days of a final judgment and a harder route for up to two years after it, and a judgment entered without valid service stands on different footing…
Continue Reading A Default Judgment Was Entered Against Your Company. Here Is What the First 30 Days Mean, and What Comes After

A competitor tells your largest customer that your parts fail inspection. A former vendor posts that your product is unsafe. Or the attack is aimed elsewhere, and someone says your owner pays bribes. Each statement can cost you the same account. Illinois law does not treat them the same way, and picking the wrong theory can lose a case that should have had some life in it.
The dividing line is this: a false statement about the quality of what you sell points toward commercial disparagement and the Illinois Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act, and a false statement about the…
Continue Reading Lies About Your Product Are Not Always Defamation: Commercial Disparagement and Its Alternatives in Illinois

There was no lawsuit that you knew about, no summons, and no hearing. Yet a judgment for the full balance of a commercial note is on file, with your name on it, because a clause in the note you signed years ago authorized someone to appear for you and admit the debt. It feels like it cannot be legal.
In a commercial transaction, it usually can be. Illinois still permits a confession of judgment on a business debt, and a clause authorizing one is enforceable within limits. But the judgment is not beyond challenge. A borrower or guarantor with a…
Continue Reading You Signed a Note With a Confession of Judgment. Now There Is a Judgment You Never Saw Coming

The lawyers shook hands in the hallway, or the owners worked it out in the judge’s chambers. Everyone reported the case as settled. Then the written agreement came back with terms nobody remembered, the other side stopped returning calls, and the first payment never arrived. Now you are asking whether you have a settlement or only a memory of one.
In Illinois you may well have an enforceable agreement even with nothing signed. Settlement is a contract, an oral settlement can bind the parties, and a court can enforce it. But a court will enforce only the terms the parties…
Continue Reading The Case Settled, Then the Deal Fell Apart. What Illinois Law Does With a Settlement Nobody Finished Papering

You check the company’s bank account from your phone and the balance is a fraction of last month’s. Your co-owner has changed the passwords, is paying himself in ways no one approved, and has stopped answering. You want someone in charge who is not him, today.
Illinois courts can step in on an emergency basis, but the word most owners reach for, receiver, describes one of the hardest orders to obtain. A court asked to appoint a receiver will apply a stringent test. An owner who has real evidence of imminent loss has a chance, and often a better chance…
Continue Reading Your Partner Is Draining the Accounts: When an Illinois Court Will Appoint a Receiver, and What to Ask for Instead

You let an employee go, and your office pulls the same separation agreement it has used since before the pandemic. It has a release, a confidentiality clause, a non-disparagement clause, and perhaps a Delaware forum clause inherited from a parent company. The check is ready. The employee signs. Everyone assumes the matter is closed.
It may not be. The Illinois Workplace Transparency Act was amended by Public Act 104-0320, effective January 1, 2026, and an agreement that ignores the amended Act can lose the promises the employer paid for. The release itself can survive while the confidentiality promise falls away,…
Continue Reading The Separation Agreement You Have Used for Years May No Longer Work in Illinois

Illinois statutes regulate the use, possession, and carrying of a firearm, but the law can be confusing, and even gun owners can sometimes misunderstand it. Illinois residents are allowed to possess a gun or ammunition if they qualify for a Firearm Owners Identification (FOID) card, which is issued by the Illinois State Police. 
Any criminal charge involving a weapon is taken seriously in the state of Illinois. When a person is arrested for unlawful possession of a firearm, it can impact the rest of his or her life. At McNamara Phelan McSteen, LLC, our Will County, IL criminal defense lawyers…
Continue Reading What Are the Consequences of a Weapons Violation in Illinois?

A military divorce can be complicated for many reasons. Questions about court dates, children, and benefits can put significant pressure on military spouses. At the same time, a civilian spouse may be frustrated by the delays and extra work that is required to divorce a husband or wife in the military. If you are going through a divorce in the armed forces, consider working with a Wheaton, IL military divorce attorney who understands your situation.
At The Stogsdill Law Firm, P.C., we are highly familiar with the protections available to military spouses in a divorce. With over 100 years of…
Continue Reading What Protections Do Military Spouses Get in an Illinois Divorce?

Making the decision to get a divorce can be difficult, especially if you have spent a long time building a life together with your spouse. Once it becomes clear that the relationship is unsustainable, you might start looking into the steps you need to take to end the marriage. A Wheaton, IL divorce attorney can advise you of how to proceed while working to protect your future.
At Goostree Law Group, we have decades of legal experience handling divorce and other family law-related matters for clients throughout DuPage County. We can provide you with careful guidance throughout your case, no…
Continue Reading What Are the First Steps to File for Divorce in Illinois?

You can keep driving while your Illinois DUI charge is pending if your license is still valid. If a separate DUI suspension takes effect, you’ll need a valid permit to keep driving. A statutory summary suspension usually begins on the 46th day after notice. Eligible first offenders can apply for a permit that allows driving with an ignition interlock device. If you were arrested for DUI in 2026, a Chicago DUI defense lawyer can review your notice and options before the suspension begins.
When Does an Illinois DUI License Suspension Begin?
A statutory summary suspension temporarily takes away driving privileges…
Continue Reading Can You Keep Driving While Your Illinois DUI Case Is Pending?