Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich visited the Illinois Supreme Court today, his first look inside the building. He was given a tour of the building and had breakfast with the members of the court. Read all about it in the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin (subscription required).
Dawn Marjetko obtained a default judgment in her divorce case. The trial court entered a judgment of dissolution, divided property, granted custody of the children, set child support, and barred maintenance. At the same time, the trial court “reserved” on child visitation, post-high school education expenses, and maintenance. Frank Marjetko…
This one falls into the category of “I guess they just wanted to.” It impresses the power of an appellate court to do as it pleases, and for no particular reason. Jeffrey Hicks brought a class-action lawsuit against Airborne Express, claiming that Airborne did not deliver packages at guaranteed times.…
On complicated facts involving pension funds and bankruptcy, the Illinois Supreme Court was confronted with the proper standard of review on a Section 2-1401 motion to vacate a judgment. Here are the rules that emerged: • “… [T]he disposition of a petition seeking relief from judgment under section 2-1401 ……
On remand from federal court, plaintiff’s Vioxx class-action complaint landed in St. Clair County, Illinois, a venue known nationwide for big verdicts and class action cases. Defendant moved to transfer venue to Cook County. (Cook is no bargain for defendants, either. That gives you some measure for St. Clair.) Relying…
So what is an abuse of discretion? The definition bears repeating: A trial court abuses its discretion only if it “act[s] arbitrarily without the employment of conscientious judgment, exceed[s] the bounds of reason and ignore[s] recognized principles of law … or if no reasonable person would take the position adopted…
A consulting firm got a default judgment in Maryland against an Illinois law firm. The consulting firm then petitioned to register the judgment in Illinois. The law firm moved to dismiss based on lack of jurisdiction of the Maryland court. The Illinois trial court denied the motion and ruled that…
In a procedurally complicated case running its way through the appellate court a second time, the Illinois First District Court of Appeals ruled that an insurer did not waive an argument that the first appellate ruling was palpably erroneous. After the first appeal and remand, the insurer did not argue…
Most sincerely, I wish you a happy and healthy 2007.
The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals has posted notice of circuit rules changes. The proposed changes will add Local Rule 32.1 and rescind Local Rule 53, regarding disposition of appeals by orders and opinions. The changes are designed to conform the local rules to Supreme Court Rule 32.1. The proposed…