Illinois Probate and
Business Attorneys

By Jim Ryan and Matthew Caruso In what would become one of his final public letters, Benjamin Franklin famously stated, “In this world, there are only two things that are certain—death and taxes.” This article won’t address taxes, but it will guide the DuPage County attorney in dealing with litigation involving parties who have died. Probate Court in Illinois  The first tip for a civil litigation attorney dealing with the death of any party is to consider whether to open a probate estate for the deceased. Do not assume that a probate case will be opened for every person after…...

New law in Illinois Regarding the Limitation on the Amount of Retainage that can be Withheld from a Contractor in a Construction Contract Everyone in the construction business needs to know about a new law in Illinois that limits the amount of retainage that can be withheld from a contractor who has entered into a private contract for the construction of a private commercial structure or single family housing of more than twelve units.  The law does not apply to public contracts. This law is intended by the Illinois General Assembly to favor contractors and subcontractors as the latest salvo…...

“LIAR!” You snarl, pointing at the sniveling, twitchy man on the witness stand. Doesn’t every lawyer dream about doing that some day? Doesn’t nearly every litigation client tell you that his chief antagonist is a liar? It is such a strong word - the ”L-Word”, that we rarely pull it out and use it against someone, and then only if the lie is so obvious and so foul that there is no doubt that the sniveler is worthy of such public scorn. We Americans are a truthful people, and we rely on truthful information from others to get us through…...

Request to Admit carry strict deadlines and a parties’ failure to properly respond to the requests can be fatal to their case. At times, it can be a call-your-malpractice-carrier event. In September, 2006, the Illinois Supreme Court decided Vision Point of Sale v. Haas and overturned case law prohibiting the trial court from considering evidence of “mistake, inadvertence or attorney neglect” in making its determination of whether “good cause” exists to grant an extension of time to file late responses to requests to admit.[ 223 Ill.2d 334, 875 N.E.2d 1065 (2007).] This article will examine the decision and what it…...