New Illinois Law Respecting Cyclists

Known as “Dennis's Law,” the stimulus for the law came after a judge's ruling on a 2015 fatal accident in which 68-year-old Hampshire, Illinois, resident Dennis Jurs was killed in a collision with a vehicle.The new amendment explicitly states that cyclists “shall be granted all of the rights” of vehicle drivers.

Civil Statute of Limitations

In civil law, plaintiffs have time limits in which to file a civil claim, collectively called "statutes of limitations." These laws are in place to ensure that claims are made while evidence is still fresh. They also help prevent the constant "threat" of a lawsuit hanging on indefinitely. Illinois civil statute of limitations laws impose a two-year time limit for personal injuries and a five-year statute of limitations for injury to personal property.

The clock typically starts running at the time an injury is suffered. But that's not always the case. It technically doesn't start until the "accrual of claims," which could be the point at which the injury (or its cause) is discovered. The so-called "discovery rule" allows a suit to be filed within a certain time after the injury is discovered or reasonably should have been discovered.

Additionally, the statute of limitation may be "tolled" -- or paused -- for a period of time. This may happen if the plaintiff was a minor (under 18) or mentally incompetent at the time the injury occurred. Also, statutes of limitation may be shortened through contract.

Contested Divorce

Contested divorce can be described as a process where both parties may want the divorce, but cannot agree on all the issues necessary in order for a divorce to be entered such as: child custody, child support, spousal support and property division. Sometimes one spouse does not want the divorce, but a divorce will happen if pushed for by either spouse. Every divorce, contested or uncontested, begins with the filing of a Petition for Dissolution of Marriage. Every divorce ends with a court date, either a “prove up” or a ruling for a judge. In the interim the lawyers and spouses attempt to settle their case and may have interim or temporary hearings on issues with the Judge before case is finalized. This process can take anywhere from a couple of weeks to a couple of years. There are many variables to how long a divorce will take to be resolved.

A new Illinois law will eliminate the requirement that a person have no convictions on his record in order to expunge a case.

 A new Illinois law will eliminate the requirement that a person have no convictions on his record in order to expunge a case. Under the old law, a conviction for even the smallest infraction (for example, a fine on a ticket for underage drinking) would mean that a person could not expunge anything else from his criminal record, even if those charges were dropped.

Although that person could have sealed the dismissed case, there are certain circumstances where an expungement is necessary for furthering someone's goals. Now, the law will determine the eligibility to expunge based solely on the case itself, rather than also on the person.

The new law will also waive the filing fees for many expungement petitions in Cook County during 2017. Petitioners in Cook County will not have to pay filing fees when the case(s) sought to be expunged resulted in acquittal or dismissal. This provision is set to expire at the end of 2017.

Teasing, striking or tampering with police animals, service animals, accelerant detection dogs, or search and rescue dogs prohibited

Teasing, striking or tampering with police animals, service animals, accelerant detection dogs, or search and rescue dogs prohibited. It shall be unlawful for any person to willfully and maliciously taunt, torment, tease, beat, strike, or administer or subject any desensitizing drugs, chemicals, or substance to (i) any animal used by a law enforcement officer in the performance of his or her functions or duties, or when placed in confinement off duty, (ii) any service animal, (iii) any search and rescue dog, (iv) any police, service, or search and rescue animal in training, or (v) any accelerant detection canine used by a fire officer for arson investigations in the performance of his or her functions or while off duty. It is unlawful for any person to interfere or meddle with (i) any animal used by a law enforcement department or agency or any handler thereof in the performance of the functions or duties of the department or agency, (ii) any service animal, (iii) any search and rescue dog, (iv) any law enforcement, service, or search and rescue animal in training, or (v) any accelerant detection canine used by a fire officer for arson investigations in the performance of his or her functions or while off duty.

Any person convicted of violating this Section is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor. A second or subsequent violation is a Class 4 felony.

New Illinois Police Reforms

Prohibits police from using choke holds, except when deadly force is justified; requires an independent review of officer-involved deaths, and makes investigation reports part of the public record if an officer involved in a death is not charged with a crime; expands police officer training to include topics like use of force; creates a database of officers who have been fired or resigned due to misconduct.

Bond Hearing Criminal Case

In Illinois, every person who is arrested for a felony has the right to have a bond hearing before a Judge in Bond Court.  (725 ILCS 5/110-1-18).  For misdemeanor cases, bond is usually posted at the police station and a bond hearing in court doesn’t take place.

At a Bond Hearing, the Court decides how much money you will have to post in order to be released from jail while your case is pending.  This is a very important phase of the criminal process because your attorney will have the first opportunity to tell the Court positive things about you, your family, and your work history so that you can have the best chance of having a low bond or “no cash” bond.  A “no cash” bond is referred to as an “I” bond that doesn’t require the posting of any cash with the Clerk of the Court.  This is commonly known as a "signature bond."

If the judge sets a “high bond” or a “no bond,” you may be forced to spend months in county jail until the case finishes. The Judge may also refuse to set a bond if he believes that you pose a danger to society or are a flight risk.

Decriminalizing Small Amounts of Marijuana in Illinois

The llinois Supreme Court says it has created new rules to deal with a new state law that decriminalizes possessing small amounts of marijuana.

The high court said Thursday that it has adopted six new rules to establish procedures for the court system to follow when handling civil law violations. Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner signed the marijuana decriminalization legislation in July that creates civil law violations. The state Supreme Court says that type of violation didn’t exist before the measure became law.

The new rules lay out a regulatory framework and deal with things like appearance dates, notices to the accused, fines and penalties and procedures if the accused don’t appear, among other issues.

Under the new law possessing up to 10 grams of marijuana is punishable by a fine of $100 to $200.

Rescuing A Pet Could Be A Crime

You may have been asked this by a client, "If I see a dog in a hot car, can I break the window to let it out?"

Not without breaking the law, writes Melissa Anne Maye in the June Animal Law newsletter. "Although a person might feel that it's worth taking the risk to save the dog, smashing in someone's car window constitutes Criminal Damage to Property," she writes, quoting 720 ILCS 5/21-1(a), which defines it as "knowingly damag[ing] any property of another."

"There is no exception for 'good intentions,'" Maye writes. And if the property damage exceeds $300 - likely in the case of a broken car window - the crime is a Class 4 felony.

Sperm Donor's Liability For Child Support

In Illinois, there is a statute that regulates a sperm donor’s liability for child support. Illinois law removes child support liability from any sperm donor as long as the insemination takes place with the assistance of a licensed physician. This is the only time donor agreements are specifically upheld in Illinois.

This September, a Cook County court dismissed a woman’s claim for child support from a sperm donor with whom the woman claimed she also had a romantic relationship. The Chicago Law Bulletin reports that this case is the first published case law that concerns donor agreements.

Expungement of Juvenile Record

A new Illinois law allows a juvenile to immediately petition the court for expungement when he or she is charged with an offense that is dismissed without a finding of delinquency. Under current law, the statute only allows for a petition of expungement when the youth has reached the age of 18. This bill will help youth who were arrested but not charged get a fresh start and clear their names.

Changes to Illinois child support laws for 2017

Effective 7-1-17, a new child support law will become effective. Under the "income shares" model, the divorce court is instructed to refer to economic tables that will be put forth by the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services to determine how much money would be allocated for the care of the child if a similarly situated couple were living together based on the combined income of the couple, the cost of living, and the number of children.  Each parent is responsible for their prorata share of this amount based on their relative incomes (or potential incomes if the parent is voluntarily unemployed or underemployed).  Depending on the relative incomes of the parents this may cause some parents to pay more and some to pay less in child support than under the previous law. 

Shackling Juveniles in Illinois Courts is Forbidden

A new Illinois Supreme Court Ruling, effective November 1, 2016, prohibits the shackling of juveniles during court proceedings, unless there are special circumstances.  Advocates argued this will eliminate the trauma, humiliation and the shame.

Warrant Is Required For A Blood Test For DUI

A split ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court determined police officers must obtain search warrants in order to draw the blood of motorists arrested on suspicion of drunk driving, but at the same time, no warrants are needed to conduct breath tests.

Common Law Marriages

Common law marriages are not valid in Illinois, so you need a license to be legally married in this state. Unless you entered into a common law marriage in another state that allows them, or allowed them while you were living together, you were not married.

Stop and Frisk

Legislation pertaining to constitutional requirements of stop and frisk practices were made into an area of concern by the Supreme Court when they encountered the case of Terry v. Ohio. While frisks were arguably illegal, before this point a police officer could only search someone either after arresting them or obtaining a search warrant. In the cases of Terry v. Ohio, Sibron v. New York, and Peters v. New York. The Supreme Court granted limited approval in 1968 to frisks conducted by officers lacking probable cause for an arrest in order to search for weapons if the officer believes the subject to be dangerous. The Court's decision made suspicion of danger to an officer grounds for a "reasonable search"

Changes regarding custody and visitation rights

Prior to 2016, the parties were defined as a "custodial parent" or "non-custodial parent," and the "non-custodial parent" was allotted "visitation rights."  The terms "custody" and "visitation" have been done away with and replaced with "allocation of parenting time and responsibility."  The intention is to soften the blow for the parent who would have previously been labeled as "non-custodial" and to reduce disputes over custody. 

In addition, parenting responsibility is divided into four categories: medical, education, religious, and extra-curricular.  The responsibility for making decisions regarding each of these separate categories will be divided among the parents either by agreement or by order of the court. 

Grounds For Divorce In Illinois

As of 2016, the only grounds for divorce is irreconcilable differences.  Prior to 2016 the required period to live separate and apart would vary based on the grounds for divorce.  Now, as long as the parties agree to waive this waiting period, the spouses are not required to live separate and apart prior to filing for divorce.  If the parties cannot agree to waive the waiting period, they are required to live separate and apart for 6 months prior to filing for divorce.  

Marijuana Breathalyzer Coming To Illinois

 A new breathalyzer being tested by  law enforcement not only can tell them if a person has been smoking marijuana, it can also tell if a person has eaten anything laced with marijuana.

 Oakland-based Hounds Labs, Inc. announced it was field-testing a device called The Hound that can detect tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) the active ingredient in marijuana after consumption of both smoked and edible pot products.

Stanford engineers have made a similar device dubbed the ‘Potalyzer,’ but it only detects smoked marijuana.

Both devices have drawn praise from law enforcement agencies.

Real Estate Sales Contract Illinois

     A contract is not “accepted” until an offer is made by one party and accepted by the other party.  If an offer is made and the other party makes a change to the offer rather than just accepting it as the offer was made, then the second party has made a counter-offer (the mirror image rule) and now the original offer or must accept the counter-offer to have a contract.  The parties must also communicate that there has been an acceptance.

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Evictions In Ilinois

 There are two main reasons a tenant may be evicted: not paying rent on time or violating a portion of the lease or rental agreement.

If the tenant is being evicted for not paying rent on time, the landlord must give the tenant five days' notice to pay the rent (this is called a notice to quit or notice to pay rent or quit). If the tenant does not pay the rent within the five days, then the landlord can proceed with filing an eviction lawsuit, also known as a forcible entry and detainer suit in Illinois.

If the tenant is being evicted for violating a portion of the lease or rental agreement (for example, by having a dog when no pets are allowed), then the landlord must give the tenant ten days' notice to move out of the rental unit. If the tenant does not move out of the rental unit within ten days, then the landlord can proceed with filing an eviction lawsuit.

Tree Removal

Residents of Chicago cannot remove trees on their private property with first getting a tree work permit from the Bureau of Forestry. The bureau issues them in conjunction with a liability insurance certificate, in case the removal causes any damage to the surrounding area outside private property lines. With the introduction of emerald ash borer to the area recently, the State of Illinois Department of Agriculture will also want an additional compliance agreement settled if a property owner intends to cut down an infected ash tree. There will also be additional work for a property owner intending to cut down a tree in an Asian Long-Horned Beetle quarantine zone.

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New law requires teaching motorists about police stops

The new law mandates that all driver's education classes include a section on what to do during a traffic stop. It targets the newest and youngest drivers. It is designed to reduce tension over how traffic stops can go terribly wrong and in the worst cases turn deadly.

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Juvenile Law

Cases involving possible child abuse, neglect and other cases involving children are heard by a judge in the Juvenile Court. Juvenile Courts also hear cases involving minors under age 17 who are charged with felonies or misdemeanors. The court’s main purpose is to help families and protect their children.

In a Juvenile Court proceeding, a judge hears the information presented and then, based on the hearing, enters court orders or instructions to parents, caseworkers from the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) or another child welfare agency. For example, the court may require a family to attend counseling or a parent to participate in substance abuse treatment. The judge may order visits to be supervised between parent and child or that certain services be provided to the family.
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