How Effective is Illinois' Ban on Texting and Driving?

 Posted on May 13, 2014 in Personal Injury

It is an unfortunate fact that many stories heard today involving texting and driving have tragic outcomes. In light of this, it is not surprising that several states, including Illinois, are enacting laws that ban such activity while driving as an attempt to crack down on car accidents that are the result of distracted driving.

In fact, a recent news story by NBC Chicago examined whether such laws are actually making a difference on Illinois roadways as there are countless drivers involved in texting and driving accidents. Sadly, their lives are forever shattered by the incidents. It is a stark reality that drivers who text not only put themselves at risk when choosing to do so, but put other drivers on the road at risk as well. The prevalence of these accidents is leading to legal changes in Illinois and throughout the country.

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Immigration Issues Affecting Binational LGBT Couples

 Posted on May 12, 2014 in Immigration

With same-sex marriage legalized in some states, but not others, confusion abounds relating to same-sex marriage in the immigration context. Seventeen states have legalized same-sex marriage, and Illinois is one of them. Where then does that leave Illinois same-sex couples in which one partner is not a U.S. citizen (“binational” couples)?

History

In even the very recent past, same-sex partners of U.S. citizens and permanent residents were confronted by the possibility of removal (deportation) because of the absence of legal marriage rights. This situation often had traumatic effects upon families, and was inconsistent with the principle of family unification that underpins U.S. immigration. While heterosexual U.S. citizens and permanent residents were able to sponsor their spouses for immigration purposes, LGBT U.S. citizens and permanent residents were not.

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Illinois Child Abuse Prevention & Awareness

 Posted on May 12, 2014 in Family Law

Child Abuse

Child abuse is a horrible crime that unfortunately affects many families throughout the United States. One of the biggest hurdles law enforcement faces is identifying the victims of the crime. One of the major goals of law enforcement is to prevent future abuse from taking place. Prevention requires education and advocacy. Many communities have come together to spread awareness and to educate the community on signs to look for to identify this often hidden crime. The month of April is designated Child Abuse Prevention Awareness Month.

In Illinois, the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) is the organization that deals directly with identifying child abuse in the home and works closely with social workers and law enforcement personnel to keep children that are abused safe from harm. Once child abuse is suspected or identified, DCFS moves in quickly to remove the child from the home and undergoes an investigation to determine the safest option for the child. This may mean placing the child in foster care or working directly with the families to prevent future abuse. There are also national organizations whose goal is to protect children. These organizations often have local chapters in each state to target smaller communities.

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Legal Representation in Your Personal Injury Case

 Posted on May 07, 2014 in Personal Injury

If you or your loved one has been injured in any type of accident, you have likely already been through a difficult experience. Individuals who find themselves in situations such as these often feel overwhelmed, upset, stressed out, and even confused. The primary focus should be on the health and well-being of the injured. Once that is taken care of, it is advisable to consult with a knowledgeable attorney in the field of personal injury law about your case in order to determine what rights you have, if any, and to take the steps necessary to protect those rights.

Initial Consultation

This often begins with contacting a lawyer to schedule an initial consultation or interview to discuss your matter. During the initial consultation, the attorney you meet with will not only have questions for you about the facts of your personal injury case, but you will also have the opportunity to ask the attorney some general questions as well. You will probably want to ask the lawyer some questions about his or her practice in addition to questions related to your case. It is advisable to prepare these questions in advance, and you may want to include some of the following questions to your list.

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Basic Immigrant Rights and Duties in the U.S.

 Posted on May 06, 2014 in Immigration

Each year, immigrants come to the United States to visit, to study, and to work. Foreign travelers and students are often welcomed by host countries and their citizens, and they spend money to get there and to remain. Often, tens of thousands of dollars are spent if they are pursuing advanced degrees.

Even undocumented aliens, who may avoid paying their fair share of taxes to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), still contribute to American society by working and spending money. Some contend that undocumented workers are a drain on society, though it is these immigrants, with little support and knowledge of U.S. law, who are often the ones being taken advantage of. The plight in many of these immigrant stories is captured in the recent film about the life of Latino human rights leader, Cesar Chavez.

Thanks in part to activists like Chavez, immigrants living in the United States often have similar rights as U.S. born citizens, regardless of their visa status or alien classification. These rights do carry with them duties to the United States’ government as well, however. Though there are far too many to list in a brief posting, it is helpful for immigrants in this country to understand a number of their basic legal rights and duties.

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Adopting Parents & Mental Health Service Support

 Posted on May 05, 2014 in Family Law

The adoption process in the United States is cumbersome and it is meticulously designed due to the great emphasis placed on maintaining the best interests of the children. Potential adopting parents must endure thorough investigations into their personal and professional lives in order to be considered viable candidates to adopt. Often, that process alone can be very stressful. And yet, once the adopting parents are finally approved to adopt a child and bring the child into their home, a whole new host of issues may arise.

How are Adopting Parents Coping?

Adopting parents face the same challenges that biological parents face when preparing to embrace a new member into their family. Parents must financially prepare for the new child by putting away money in savings or cutting back on previous expenses. They must also prepare, both physically and emotionally, for the new child by safety-proofing the home and creating a designated space or room for the child to inhabit. However, adopting parents also face some unique challenges that many biological parents never experience, especially if the adopted child is no longer an infant when adopted.

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Personal Injury Law in Illinois: An Overview

 Posted on May 05, 2014 in Personal Injury

An individual who is injured as the result of another person's negligence has important legal rights according to Illinois law. Whether the injury occurred as the result of a motor vehicle accident, or some other type of accident, the injured person may be able to recover significant damages for injuries they sustained due to the incident.

While it is best to consult with an experienced personal injury attorney directly regarding the facts of a specific case, the following represents a general overview of personal injury law in the state of Illinois.

Statute of Limitations

The term statute of limitations refers to the time limit a person has to file a lawsuit related to a specific cause of action. In Illinois, the statute of limitations on a personal injury case is two years. The time begins to run on the date of the accident. However, in some cases, the time may begin to run on the date the plaintiff discovered they were injured as opposed to the date of the accident.

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Could Responder Task Force Be in Illinois' Future?

 Posted on April 29, 2014 in Personal Injury

Motor vehicle accidents pose a risk to drivers and their passengers on the roadways of Illinois, but a significant danger is also associated with the emergency responders who are responsible for arriving to the scene of a crash. There have been numerous examples of news stories about emergency responders being injured, or even killed in the line of duty as the result of other drivers on the road being distracted or not following certain traffic laws aimed at protecting emergency workers at the scene of an accident. Now Illinois lawmakers are attempting to step in and put measures in place that further protect emergency responders at the scene of an accident.

Responder Task Force As the result of the tragic deaths of numerous firefighters and police officers across the state of Illinois, lawmakers are attempting to pass legislation, known as Senate Joint Resolution 62, that would create a task force focused on decreasing the number of emergency responders who are killed in the line of duty. The problem is an all too common one, with two notable stories of emergency workers being killed in 2013. One of those workers was a high school classmate of state Senator Chapin Rose, one of the individuals sponsoring the bill. Rose argued that such a measure is needed in light of the high number of first responders who are fatally injured as they respond to calls on Illinois roadways, and that their job presents unique dangers that must be considered in attempting to come up with ways to reduce the number of first responder deaths. The legislation would form the Emergency Responder Roadway Safety Task Force. The task force would examine ways to increase safety measures related to emergency responders and make recommendations for doing so. Also, the task force would be made up of individuals from numerous state agencies and offices, including IDOT and Illinois State Police, such as local fire, police, emergency medical services, and legislators. The Need for the Task Force

Representatives argue there is a clear need for such a task force in Illinois. The purpose of emergency responders is to provide assistance to those in need on Illinois roads, so it is important to keep the responders safe during the time they are providing that help on roadways in the state. Further, it is important for elected officials and emergency workers to both contribute to solutions that will work to reduce the risk for injury to responders.

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When Immigrants Are Injured

 Posted on April 26, 2014 in Immigration

Often in the aftermath of major accidents like the recent train crash at Chicago’s O’Hare airport, a number of lawsuits are filed. Workers who might have been injured on the job can file a claim under their employer’s workers’ compensation insurance, and injured customers and bystanders may file premises liability or personal injury lawsuits.

Generally, under United States law, injured persons are allowed to be compensated for losses caused by responsible parties. Sometimes, as in the case of workers’ compensation, there are specific guidelines spelled out in a state statute; these steps must be followed before the injured can recover. Other instances of injury may require a civil action lawsuit where a plaintiff, or injured party, files an action in the local courthouse, showing that he or she suffered damages and that the defendant was responsible. If the judge or jury is convinced, then the court enters an order requiring the defendant to pay the plaintiff some amount of money that might compensate him for the loss.

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Gray Divorce: How Does it Affect Adult Children?

 Posted on April 25, 2014 in Family Law

Deciding to divorce is not usually an easy thing for a couple to do. Sometimes it is the result of years of conflict between spouses, while other times it may be a complete shock to one or both of the parties involved. Knowing what resources are available to the couple to help in the process is important, but the couple will also need emotional support through close friends and family.

In our society, the longer the couple is married, the more likely we assume they are going to beat the odds of divorce. However, recently, there has been a growing trend of couples who are deciding to divorce after many years of being together. This type of divorce is having a profound effect on the adult children of the divorcing parents that has not yet been heavily researched by scientists.

What is Gray Divorce?

Gray Divorce is a new term used to describe divorce among couples over the age of 50. According to the National Center for Family and Marriage Research at Bowling Green State University in Ohio, about one fourth of divorces are by couples over 50 years old. In fact, in the last 25 years, despite the overall rate of divorce decreasing by 25 percent, the rate of gray divorce doubled between 1990 and 2010 alone.

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