Practice News

By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC Q. I am the managing partner of our firm of 17 attorneys. Our practice is concentrated in insurance defense litigation. In an effort to provide the best services possible and differentiate ourselves we have been discussing whether we should implement a project management system. I have been reading more lately about legal project management and hearing more about it. Do you have any thoughts along this line? A. Legal project management has become the hot topic of late and we are seeing articles, workshops, and seminars on the topic. Over the years project management has evolved into its own discipline with its own jargon, tools, methodologies, software, etc. Project management as a discipline can become quite technical and complex. Many of the techniques such as PERT and CPM came from the department of defense and were initially utilized to manage projects such as the Polaris Submarine and space projects. The construction industry makes extensive use of project management techniques. Considering that a legal matter is a project, particularly a large litigation matter, with many moving parts there has been a push by clients and an effort by law firms to look for ways to improve the management of matters and related resources, costs, timelines, etc. and to improve and streamline the overall process. Legal Project Management is a customized approach to matter management borrowing and applying some of the principles of project management and incorporating into a simpler and leaner model. Numerous workshops, training seminars, and publications are being offered on the topic. The Hildebrandt Institute is offering a workshop in Chicago on June 21-22, 2011.

The Illinois Supreme Court announced Friday that Associate Judge Timothy M. Lucas has been appointed a circuit judge in the Tenth Judicial Circuit. Chief Justice Thomas L. Kilbride recommended Judge Lucas fill the Circuit Court vacancy created by the resignation of the Hon. James E. Shadid upon his appointment as a federal district judge for the Central District of Illinois. Under the Illinois Constitution, the Supreme Court is given the authority to fill judicial vacancies. An associate judge in the 10th Circuit since 2001, Judge Lucas has presided over a wide range of cases including misdemeanor, traffic, civil, probate, juvenile abuse and neglect and juvenile delinquency.

By Ramona Sullivan

There may be treatment that would fully resolve a medical condition, but the patient will never get the treatment without access to medical care. If the condition is caused or aggravated by a problem in the home, perhaps something harmful in the water or the walls, treatment will not solve the medical condition if the problems in the home are not improved.

[caption id="attachment_19265" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Over 400 new lawyers were sworn-in on Thursday at the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago."][/caption] Over 600 new attorneys were admitted to practice in Illinois on Thursday, May 5 with Justices of the Illinois Supreme Court and Illinois Appellate Court administering the attorney's oath at five separate locations. All of the candidates have passed the Illinois State Bar Examination, a required ethics examination and have been certified by the Committee on Character and Fitness. The largest group, 428, were admitted in the First Judicial District during ceremonies starting at 10:30 a.m. in the Auditorium Theatre at Roosevelt University, 50 East Congress. Illinois Supreme Court Justice Anne M. Burke presided over the ceremony with Justice Mary Jane Theis participating. Illinois Appellate Justice Thomas R. Appleton from the Fourth Judicial District made the motion to admit the class and Cook County Associate Judge Brian K. Flaherty will seconded the motion to admit the class. The 628 men and women were certified as candidates and were sworn in as Illinois attorneys Thursday at ceremonies in the five Supreme Court judicial districts: Justice Robert R. Thomas presided over the Elgin ceremony; Justice Rita B.