Last month, the United States observed Veterans Day, which celebrates military veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces and honors their contributions to our country. But these contributions should be celebrated year-round.
An estimated 459,569 veterans live in Illinois representing 4.7% of the state’s population. Veterans face many of the same civil legal issues as the general population but also experience unique challenges related to their service. Unfortunately, veterans do not always receive the legal assistance they need.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, in 2021 76% of low-income veteran households reported a civil legal problem and low-income veteran…
Continue Reading How the Veterans’ Legal Aid Society Gives Back to Veterans Year-Round

The holiday season is a time to give thanks for the important things in your life. Loved ones, good health, and a safe home are commonly on Thankful Lists, as is a meaningful career.
Think back to the beginning of your career. What stands out? Many may cite endless hours of legal research, document review, and brief writing. While these are all essential tasks, they are not necessarily exciting or the reason you became a lawyer.
Now consider where you are today. How did you get there? Without a doubt, there were people who supported you along the way. These…
Continue Reading Illinois Lawyers: Give Back This Season While Earning 6 Hours of CLE

The ABA Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admission to the Bar (Council) has voted to allow law schools to apply for a variance that will enable them to admit up to 100% of their students without scores from the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT) or another standardized admissions test.
The variance expands upon ABA Standard 503, Interpretation 503-3, which allows law schools to admit up to 10% of their incoming classes without an LSAT score, as long as other requirements are met.
ABA Standard 503 currently says law schools “shall require each applicant for admission as…
Continue Reading ABA Votes to Allow Law Schools To Bypass Standardized Test Requirement in Admissions

Lawyers make their living with words. They employ their tool of the trade by carefully crafting what is said in the courtroom and on paper, from a jury trial to a real estate contract.
A good lawyer also knows that words that may work wonderfully before a jury could backfire in a brief as inappropriate exaggeration or attempted emotional influence. As lawyers, we must know our audience.
So just how powerful are words in shaping perception and future action? We can turn to quantum theory, of all places, to better understand their impact.
Words are fluid
The Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle…
Continue Reading Crafting Influence: The Role of Language and AI in Legal Advocacy

Last month was one of the most gratifying I have had as an attorney.
On October 1, the first day of National Bullying Prevention Month, the Commission on Professionalism released a report titled “Bullying in the Legal Profession: A Study of Illinois Lawyers’ Experiences and Recommendations for Change.”
The report included findings from more than 6,000 Illinois lawyers who shared their experiences with bullying through an anonymous survey and focus groups. We are proud that it is believed to be one of the first wide-scale research projects in the U.S. on the topic.
Why this is important to…
Continue Reading Why Addressing Workplace Bullying is Personal for Our Executive Director, Erika Harold

Our Professionalism Spotlight series highlights Illinois legal professionals who demonstrate the ideals of professionalism and a commitment to equitable, efficient, and effective justice.
In this Professionalism Spotlight, we spoke to Janaan Hashim, an attorney at Amal Law Group, the first law firm in the nation founded by six Muslim women, all born, raised, and educated in the U.S.
Janaan primarily practices in civil rights matters focusing on employment discrimination involving the ADA, ADEA, and Title VII issues and their Illinois counterparts. She previously served as an Assistant Appellate Defender for the State of Illinois and in private practice.
She has also…
Continue Reading Professionalism Spotlight: Janaan Hashim, Amal Law Group, LLC

Each November, the United States observes Veterans Day, which celebrates military veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces and honors their contributions to our country.
An estimated 459,569 veterans live in Illinois representing 4.7% of the state’s population. Veterans face many of the same civil legal issues as the general population but also experience unique challenges related to their service. Unfortunately, veterans do not always receive the legal assistance they need.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, in 2021 76% of low-income veteran households reported a civil legal problem and low-income veteran households did not receive any or enough…
Continue Reading How the Illinois Armed Forces Legal Aid Network Supports Access to Justice for Veterans

The legal technology company Clio once again played “secret shopper” for its 2024 Clio Legal Trends Report. And once again, it reported dismal results on how law firms are doing on first impressions.
Just as it did in its 2019 survey, Clio used a third-party research firm to pose as a potential client contacting law firms to seek legal help. The purpose was to test how easy it is for prospective clients to get in touch with law firms through phone or email, and how effectively law firms answered their questions.
The 2024 Clio Legal Trends Report also…
Continue Reading Phone Calls Ignored, Emails Unanswered: Fixing the First Impression Problem for Law Firms

Despite improvements in revenue and billable hours over the past 12 months, law firms may be losing revenue from decreased employee productivity, absenteeism, and attrition associated with poor well-being, according to a recent survey.
The 2024 State of Wellbeing in Law survey by Unmind included responses from 4,400 lawyers from nine mid-sized law firms in the U.S. and U.K. It builds on the 2023 survey (which we covered here).
The survey found that almost one in five lawyers said work harms their mental health, and almost 19% of their time at work is negatively affected by poor mental…
Continue Reading Poor Lawyer Well-being May Cost Firms Up to $33M, Survey Says

Our Professionalism Spotlight series highlights Illinois legal professionals who demonstrate the ideals of professionalism and a commitment to equitable, efficient, and effective justice.
In this Professionalism Spotlight, we spoke to Carly Holtkamp, Director of Law School External Relations at Southern Illinois University Simmons Law School.
At SIU Law, Carly is responsible for strategic oversight and management of law school resources engaged in alumni relations, community and business relations, marketing, media relations, communications, and social media.
SIU Law celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2023, with a 24% increase in first-year students and the most diverse classes in more than a…
Continue Reading Professionalism Spotlight: Carly Holtkamp, Southern Illinois University Simmons Law School

The theme of this year’s ClioCon, an annual legal technology conference produced by legal software provider Clio, was “Momentum.”
During the conference, which was held October 7 and 8 in Austin, Texas, Clio CEO and Founder Jack Newton used the image of a flywheel to illustrate the theme. A flywheel takes energy to start spinning but then builds momentum as it continues. This represents the “perpetual motion” that law firms need, Newton said.
For example, it takes law firms time and effort to build and implement new processes like client intake. But once they are in place, they help…
Continue Reading Clio 2024 Legal Trends Report Identifies AI, Alternative Billing Structures, and Client Engagement as Focus Areas for Today’s Lawyers

The Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Access to Justice recently announced the publication of new statewide forms for filing an appeal with the Illinois Supreme Court.
The six new form sets include:

• Petition for Leave to Appeal
• Answer to Petition for Leave to Appeal
• Notice of Election
• Appellant’s Brief
• Appellee’s Brief
• Appellant’s Reply Brief  

The forms can be found on the “Approved Standardized Statewide Forms” page of the Illinois Supreme Court’s website, under the “Supreme Court Forms” tab.
Please note that the Access to Justice Commission does not immediately announce minor updates made to forms. Therefore, it…
Continue Reading New Statewide Forms for Filing an Appeal with the Illinois Supreme Court