Illinois General Assembly
State Government: Elected Officials | State Legislative Bodies
Recent News About Illinois General Assembly
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Justices chose trial lawyers over patients, ICJL says
Murnane The four Illinois Supreme Court Justices who voted to overturn the state's caps on damages law last week chose trial lawyers over patients, according to the Illinois Civil Justice League (ICJL). -
Illinois Supreme Court sends personal injury lawyers the ultimate Valentine
Akin The Illinois Supreme Court lovingly gift wrapped the ultimate Valentine's Day present for personal injury lawyers by striking down the state's historic medical malpractice reform law in a recently released decision. -
Karmeier dissent: Healthcare crisis will not be solved by judiciary
Karmeier SPRINGFIELD - Judges can restrain jurors in awarding damages but legislators can't, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled on Feb. 4. -
Swansea malpractice lawyer says 'caps' decision was predictable; ICJL calls it 'disappointing'
Murnane One of the most successful medical malpractice attorneys in the region, Tom Keefe of Swansea, said today's Illinois Supreme Court decision was not unexpected. -
Strong reaction follows medical malpractice reform overturn
Fitzgerald In a 4-2 opinion, the Illinois Supreme Court has overturned the state's medical malpractice reform law. -
Hearing moved in Big Sky settlement as attorneys confer
Stack A hearing on a motion to modify a $22 million telephone class action settlement has been moved to Feb. 16. -
Lawyers appeal $21 million Illinois Bell refund; plaintiff asks for $44 million instead
Stack When Madison County Circuit Judge Daniel Stack ordered Illinois Bell Telephone to refund $21,671,857 to customers, he didn't satisfy either side. -
STAR bonds dead for now; newer version could be sweeter for cities
Holbrook When state lawmakers return to Springfield next year, they will likely take up a controversial sales tax and revenue (STAR) bonds bill that failed to gain enough support in veto session last week. -
Sen. Haine reacts to flood plain article
To the editor: -
Mayors say they oppose STAR bonds bill
As state legislators prepare to take up the controversial STAR (sales tax and revenue) bonds bill in veto session this week, Troy Mayor Tom Caraker said he and a group of city leaders stand in strong opposition. -
Madison County officials call on governor for help in Probation layoffs
Massive layoffs in Madison County's Probation and Court Services Department will compromise public safety and be "extraordinarily injurious to the local court system," said Third Circuit Chief Judge Ann Callis. -
ICJL says 'right decision, wrong author' on court's retirement age decision
Murnane SPRINGFIELD - The Illinois Supreme Court's recent ruling against mandatory a state law barring judges from running for retention after age 75 has drawn criticism from the state's leading civil justice group. -
An Illinois solution: Non-partisan elections
Murnane The U.S. Supreme Court's ruling Monday in Caperton v. Massey Coal Co. is certain to re-kindle talk of the 2004 Illinois Supreme Court election in which Justice Lloyd Karmeier defeated former Appellate Justice Gordon Maag in the Fifth Illinois District in Southern Illinois. -
Kirk Dillard to run for Illinois governor
Dillard The "staunchest supporter of civil justice reform legislation in the Illinois General Assembly" -- according to a prominent tort reform advocate -- is running for the top job in Illinois government. -
Justice O'Connor argues for merit-selection; opponent calls elections democracy in action
O'Connor Former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor remembers when she ran for her first judgeship in her home state of Arizona. That experience – and her respect for the Founding Fathers – has made her a staunch advocate for reforming how states pick the men and women who sit as judges. -
Real reform means closing Howe
On April 28, the Committee on Government Forecasting and Accountability, a bi-partisan panel of 12 state lawmakers, issued a recommendation to close Howe Developmental Center in Tinley Park. -
Testimony begins tomorrow on tort reform bills
Murnane Proponents of civil justice reform are set to testify in support of several bills tomorrow at a joint hearing of the General Assembly's Senate and House Judiciary Committees. -
The system isn't broken, It's fixed
Illinois state government isn't broken, it's fixed. -
They're only thinking of us
By declaring arbitrary caps on damages -- caps not to all men and all cases before the Law -- but to ONLY those daring to call doctors or hospitals into account, the submitted legislation was primed for a challenge in the Courts. -
Judicial reform proposal remains under lawmakers' radar
While sometimes it's good to be a record holder, some are questioning whether Illinois should continue to hold the national record for most expensive supreme court race.