From: Chicago Sun-Times

Cook County Circuit Court Clerk Dorothy Brown has been barred from further implementing her office’s new case management system after she apparently rejected concerns from the Office of the Chief Judge over its continued rollout.

Chief Judge Tim Evans on Thursday issued an order telling Brown not to add new civil and traffic division portals to the case management system without prior approval — or face contempt of court.

The order suggests a battle could be brewing between Evans and Brown just a few months before the beleaguered Brown will leave office.

Brown told the chief judge’s office earlier Thursday that she planned to move forward despite the office’s concerns that expanding the system would be “significantly detrimental to the administrative, operational needs of the court” and would cause “irreparable harm to the court’s ability to administer justice,” according to the filing.

Cook County's circuit court clerk is stepping down after two decades, opening the door for new leadership that Illinois attorneys are hopeful will turn around an outdated, inefficient court system in one of the country's largest cities.

Read more at: https://www.law360.com/illinois/articles/1321031/chicago-attys-hope-new-clerk-will-modernize-cook-county?copied=1

As you may know, we are now able to schedule cases in the Clerk's Office for motions and prove ups (see amended General Orders 20D 10, 13, and 14) for the following Calendars: Team C - Calendar C, 31, 32, 33, 34, and 35; Team D - Calendar D, 41, 42, 43, 44, and 45; Team E - Calendar E, 51, 52, 53, 54, and 55; Individual Calendars: 11, 21, 61, 62, 64, 98, and X/84.

If your case is assigned to a Preliminary Calendar Team C, D, or E, unfortunately, the Clerk's Office is not able to e-print the assigned prove up Calendar on your documents when scheduling.

We have the schedules in our Resource Center that show the judges by team and their assigned prove up date. For example, if your prove up is scheduled on a date that falls on a Monday and your assigned to Calendar D, then your prove up will be assigned to Judge Rivera or if your assigned to Calendar C and you get a Monday date, your prove up will be assigned to Judge Shapiro, and so on. Also, the schedules contain the email in which you will email your prove up documents. 

From: Cook County Courts

Presiding Judge Moshe Jacobius issued an order, effective immediately, that will extend the foreclosure moratorium until further order by the court.

From: WTTW News

Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced on Friday that Illinois’ ban on evictions would be extended until Nov. 16, as state officials continue to send grants to Illinois residents struggling to make ends meet.

From:  Illinois Supreme Court

The Illinois Supreme Court amended Rules 212, 306, 315, 316, 318, 341, 368, and 705.

The changes go into effect October 1. Amended rules are available online. https://courts.illinois.gov/SupremeCourt/Rules/Amend/2020/093020.pdf

Chicago Paralegal Association has teamed up with DISCO to access their e-discovery document review platform. This opportunity is normally only reserved for law schools, but we were able to convince DISCO that paralegals need database training just as much as future lawyers. We will be using DISCO training materials and our own materials to develop a training program to ensure our members are set up for success in the litigation and e-discovery fields. You won’t find this training program anywhere else. With the help of DISCO, CPA will provide members with real-world experience on how to navigate an e-discovery platform, how to perform a document review, gain experience in searching in a real database, and much more. 

From: Crain's Chicago Business

Declaring that an agency that still widely uses carbon paper could use a bit of reform, a trio of Chicago civic groups today unveiled changes they’d like to see the new clerk of the Cook County Circuit Court make after 20-year incumbent Dorothy Brown leaves the post in December.

Included is a top-to-bottom audit, expanded use of e-filing, a final end to patronage hiring, electronic recording of all court sessions and, yes, no more carbon paper, which the report says is still extensively used for key documents, even amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

From: WTTW News

Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced on Wednesday that Illinois’ ban on evictions would be extended until Oct. 22, as state officials work to get grants to Illinois residents struggling to make ends meet.

Via Perfectly Paralegal Resources

Notaries who have up-to-date commissions and are in good standing can become remote Notaries, but there are some additional requirements (depending on your state) that must be fulfilled, and Notaries should consider whether they’re equipped to handle the software and other technical requirements before they take the plunge.

Scott outlined the basic steps to becoming a successful remote online Notary. They include:

• Remote online notarization basics and credentials.
  
• The equipment and technology you’ll need.
  
• The skills you’ll need.
  
• Legal considerations.
  

To read the entire article, click here.