ISBA Director of Legislative Affairs Jim Covington reviews bills in Springfield of interest to ISBA members. This week he covers House Bill 4676 (consumer contracts), House Bill 4665 (radon and home construction), Senate Bill 3757 (admissibility of photographs), House Bill 5198 (contractual litigation) and Senate Bill 2953 (conveyances act). More information on each bill is available below the video.

Asked and AnsweredBy John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMCQ. Our firm of 16 attorneys is trying to make major strides this year in helping our firm design and implement personal business and client development plans. Should we consider hiring coaches? When should a firm consider coaching for attorneys?A. The day-to-day stress of practicing law and serving clients leaves little time for focusing and investing in the future of the firm. When attorneys exhibit the following it may be time for a coach:Stuck and unable to move forward on new initiativesIndecision paralysisLack of commitment, inertia, self-accountability or follow-upPoor implementation skillsLack of management, leadership, interpersonal, or other needed skills.Training and skill development is not easy. Studies reveal that 90 percent of the people who attend seminars and training sessions see no improvement because they don't take the time to implement what they learn. Practice creates habits and habits determine your future. Up to 90 percent of our normal behavior is based on habits. The key to skill learning is to get the new skill to become a habit. Once the new habit is well developed it becomes your new normal behavior. This requires practice. Unfortunately, attorneys do not have time to practice and experiment. The coach's role is that of steward, facilitative leader and teacher. Law firms retain coaches to work with attorneys and staff, mostly on a personal level, to address problems involving lack of commitment, inertia, implementation, self-accountability and follow-up. Firms are using coaching in the following areas:

The Illinois State Bar Association's Young Lawyers Division will host its Annual Bean Bag Party and Tournament on Saturday, March 10, from noon to 4 p.m. Please join us in supporting this event to benefit the Illinois Bar Foundation/YLD Children’s Assistance Program. The YLD Children's Assistance Fund is a special fund of the Illinois Bar Foundation, a 501(c)(3) charitable entity.When: Saturday, March 10, 2012 from noon to 4:00 p.m.Where: Mahoney’s Pub and Grille, 551 N. Ogden Ave. (on Ogden near Grand),Chicago, IL (map and directions)What: Appetizer bar and domestic draft beer, mixed well drinks and soft drinksCost: $35 per person per wristband or $100 for entrance fee for Bean Bag Tournament for a team of two with two wristbands. You must be 21 years old and older to participate.Deadline: Bean Bag Team registration and wristband registration open until Tuesday, March 6 and thereafter wristbands can be purchased at the door the day of the eventRegister at www.isba.org/sections/yld/beanbagPrizes will be given to the first and second place teams. Questions? Contact: Matthew Coleman, mcoleman@ridgeassoc.comor or Elizabeth McKillip, Elizabeth.mckillip@icemiller.com.

Granite City lawyer Dennis Orsey has been supplying ISBA public information brochures to the Circuit Clerk's offices in Madison County since the early 1990s when he was president of the Madison County Bar Association and a member of ISBA's Public Relations Committee. Orsey, also a former member of the ISBA Board of Governors, is shown presenting brochures recently to Sarah Betz, deputy clerk in Circuit Clerk Matt Melucci's office. ISBA client brochures and booklets are available on 26 topics of common interest in printed form or downloadable from ISBA's website. Brochures are free for noncommercial uses and for sale to law firms and others in business. Details about available brochure titles is at http://www.isba.org/store/clientbrochures or contact Janice Ishmael at ISBA - 800.252.8908, jishmael@isba.org.