Practice TipReal Estate Law, December 2020A practice tip for real estate and estate planning attorneys who use non-statutory power of attorney forms.
Practice TipReal Estate Law, November 2020A practice tip for a breach of contract in a real estate case.
Practice TipReal Estate Law, February 2020It may be a nice touch to your practice to remind sellers' attorneys to remind their former clients to make any and all exemption applications that they were obligated to make.
Practice TipBy Michael J. MaslankaReal Estate Law, January 2020When representing a purchaser of real property, where mortgage financing is needed or involved, be sure to tell your clients to ask the lender to send copies of the documents that the lender expects the mortgagor/purchaser to sign at closing in advance.
Practice Tip 1Real Estate Law, June 2020A note on the importance of recording transfer on death instruments as soon as possible.
Practice Tip 2By Michael J. MaslankaReal Estate Law, June 2020Practice tips for attorneys who receive calls from the child of a deceased client asking for guidance regarding the decedent's estate matters.
Practice Tip (Or Oops! I Just Stepped In…!)By Michael J. MaslankaReal Estate Law, July 2020Powers of attorney for closing-related purposes should probably be drafted with specific start and end dates and without the "revoke all prior powers of attorney" language.
Practice TipsReal Estate Law, October 2020Two practice tips for real estate practitioners.
Precedented Insufficient Memory: COVID-19 and Earlier PlaguesBy Daniel KeganIntellectual Property, May 2020January 2020 saw the launch of a novel coronavirus, its resultant Covid-19 disease, a worldwide pandemic, and ubiquitous pronouncements of an “unprecedented” event—unprecedented only if one’s personal and availed institutional memory stops near the Vietnam War, World War I, Jeffrey Amherst, or Columbus sailing to “America,” and if one ignores plague literature. With references and resources.
Preserving Evidence on Home Construction CasesBy Adam B. WhitemanCommercial Banking, Collections, and Bankruptcy, September 2020Litigating a case for construction defects can be devastatingly expensive and time consuming for the homeowner and highly disruptive for the contractor’s business.
A Primer: Expert Opinions—IRE 702-705By Patrick M. KinnallyCivil Practice and Procedure, May 2020The Illinois Supreme Court has repeatedly warned about the overuse of opinion witnesses.
Principle of Equity Applied to Tax Sale of MineralsBy Craig R. HedinMineral Law, June 2020In TheFayette County County Treasurer v. Dome Tax Service Co., Inc., the appellate court considered a case involving the tax sale of a mineral interest where the supervisor of assessments had previously incorrectly entered the name and address of the owner in its tax system.
Progressive Illinois Tax and Its Federal ImpactBy Patrick D. OwensFederal Taxation, September 2020On June 5, 2019, Illinois passed Public Act 101-0008, which will implement a progressive income tax effective January 1, 2021.