Thanks to a new seventh circuit case, it's more important than ever for attorneys who represent debtors in Chapter 7 to get all of their fees up front.
If your client is seeking payment from an estate, make sure you file a claim with the probate court even if the estate representative knows about the debt; that knowledge might not put the estate on the hook, according to a new appellate court ruling.
On June 12, 2003, the Appellate Court of Illinois, First District, affirmed the order of the Circuit Court of Cook County finding that the defendants were judicially estopped from disputing their legal fees.
On January 24, 2003, the Illinois Supreme Court held that the appellate court had jurisdiction to reverse the trial court's award of attorney fees to the wife for an appeal in her action to dissolve her marriage.
On February 6, 2002 the Appellate Court of Illinois, Fourth District, addressed a question of first impression regarding the meaning of "substantially prevailed" in the attorney fees provision of the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act, 750 ILCS 5/508(a)(3.1).
On December 26, 2001, the seventh circuit affirmed the district court and held that the district court acted reasonably by first, reducing an attorney's hourly rate from the $310 claimed to $205.
On August 17, 2001, the Appellate Court of Illinois, Second District, vacated the trial court's order and ordered the respondent to pay petitioner's reasonable attorney fees and costs.
On February 16, 2001, the Illinois Supreme Court responded to the question of whether § 9-102 of the Illinois Tort Immunity Act permits the recovery of attorney fees against municipalities within its definition of compensatory damages.
On May 18, 2000, the Illinois Supreme Court reversed the appellate court and held that section 5(b) of the Workers' Compensation Act permitted an attorney to recover his attorney fees only as delineated in the Act and not in conjunction with a private fee arrangement.
