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Governor Pritzker has proclaimed November 7th as Paralegal Day in Illinois. Download the Proclamation.

The IPA will be holding a 1/2-day Fall Education Conference at Roosevelt University in the afternoon, followed by cocktails and appetizers at Exchequer Restaurant & Pub.

The next few weeks are jam packed with Education and Networking opportunities for IPA Members.

• October 23rd - 2nd Annual State of the Paralegal Profession meeting via Zoom
• November 7th - IN-PERSON Fall Education Conference, Roosevelt University, Chicago
• November 7th - Paralegal Day in Illinois celebration at Exchequer Restaurant and Pub

I remember the excitement when I registered to vote back in the 1994. My birthday falls at the end of November so I was not able to vote in that first election, and the presidential election wasn't for another couple of years so I didn't really put much thought into voting.

Good news in the litigation world doesn't come often, but Illinois lawmakers delivered some for Cook County litigators last month with HB 4351. The new law, effective January 1, 2025, revises the service of process requirements in the Illinois Code of Civil Procedure (735 ILCS 5/2-201). The old law required process to be served by the sheriff in counties with a population over 2,000,000 (which, in Illinois, is only Cook), unless the court "upon motion and in its discretion" appointed a private process server to execute service.

Have you ever received an email from an Illinois paralegal and their name is followed by the credentials ILAP? ILAP stands for Illinois Accredited Paralegal and it is a voluntary accreditation offered by the Illinois Paralegal Association that is earned through education and experience. Paralegals who are regular members of the IPA and who meet the qualifications can apply for the credential.

When I was nominated for the position of President for a 4th term in 2023, I told the Board that I would not accept a nomination in 2024, but not for the reasons you may think. I had accepted a new position with a national hospital system, and although it is a fully remote position, there are requirements for me to be in attendance at trials, mediations, depositions and other events, meaning that I would need to travel at times and my schedule can vary at a moment's notice which could interfere with my ability to lead board meetings and other obligations that arise out of being the IPA's President. On a personal level, my husband's parents have some health challenges and now that our children have become adults, we made the decision to move in with them so they can remain in their home rather than moving them into an assisted living facility.

Hi IPA Members! Limited tickets remain for the evening out at the Chicago White Sox game in the Warning Track Party Area on Wednesday, June 26th. Make sure you register today!

Samantha Misch has been elected President for 2024-2025 and is off to a great start!

Eric Baker and Liana Podman would like to announce the vacant Section and Committee Chair positions. The current Chairs are listed on the Leadership section of the IPA website. The IPA welcomes new and returning volunteers and we encourage you to seek a role as co-chair as well!

Dear Members of the Illinois Paralegal Association,

I am thrilled and honored to introduce myself as the newly nominated President of the Illinois Paralegal Association (IPA). Having served on the IPA Board of Directors since April 2023, I am excited to take on this new role and lead our valued association.

Hi IPA Members! We are BEYOND EXCITED to announce that we have an EXCLUSIVE SPONSOR for an evening out at a Chicago White Sox game in the Warning Track Party Area.

The legal profession is known for its demanding nature, high-stakes cases, and long hours. As integral members of legal teams, paralegals are not immune to these pressures. As such, mental health and well-being have become increasingly important topics in the paralegal profession.

The IPA is going to be hosting its 41st Annual Educators Conference, which is always one of my favorite events of the year. This event brings together program directors and teachers from schools across the state of Illinois with the IPA's Board of Directors and Chairpersons.

When I became a paralegal ten years ago, I was a bright-eyed recent grad excited to start on an adventure of a new career. I've had ups and downs, but every chance that presented itself to me, I took it. I can attribute my success to education conferences, networking events, CLE sessions and becoming involved with the Illinois Paralegal Association and each opportunity has always helped me get "one step closer" to being the successful paralegal I have become today.

Do you want to:

1) Expand your professional network;
2) Have educational opportunities at your fingertips; and
3) Demonstrate commitment to yourself and the paralegal profession?

If so, renew your Illinois Paralegal Association membership today! The Board of Directors, which has several new members with new perspectives and ideas, has been busy planning for 2024. It’s shaping up to be an exciting year! We will start the year with a new monthly series titled “Tips from the Trenches”. As the name implies, members will share the tips they use to efficiently perform their tasks. Join to learn tips you can use or to share your tips with others. Member Appreciation will be another focus during 2024, and, as always, educational opportunities will be available throughout the year.

With Thanksgiving right around the corner, we often take this time to reflect on blessings of the past year. Over the last year, the IPA has held a monthly "New (and Not So New) Member Lunch" sessions where each of our board members have hosted and presented a topic to our members. A few months ago, Sally Fleissner shared her tip for creating exhibit stickers/labels in Adobe and that inspired us to switch up our member lunches for the next year. We are going to bring an all new series called "Tips from the Trenches" which will include small tidbits that we have picked up over the years that we are thankful for and couldn't live without. These sessions can be invaluable to paralegals at ever experience level, so we encourage you to join us each month. Our next session will be hosted by our newest board member, Gordon Ferguson on November 29th at 11:30 am.

Exciting news for Illinois Paralegal Association members! Introducing the Paralegal Regulation Committee. This committee's focus will be on monitoring paralegal regulations nationwide, gleaning insights into industry standards and best practices. Our goal is to craft a tailored regulatory framework for Illinois, that we can share publicly when there is movement in Illinois paralegal licensing again. We'll actively monitor and assess the performance of paralegal industries in other states, allowing us to adapt and excel in our evolving landscape.

Paralegal regulation refers to the rules and guidelines governing the practice of paralegals within the legal profession. The specifics of paralegal regulation vary by jurisdiction, but there are some common principles and trends.

Across my twenty-year paralegal career, I have provided legal support in a variety of litigation matters and venues, from patent and product liability disputes in mass torts and MDLs, to mortgage foreclosures and EEOC claims, to commercial and construction litigation. I have interviewed, hired and managed paralegal teams, supported on-site trial teams in state and federal courts, and trained paralegals and new associates on firm processes, court procedures and electronic discovery.

There have been some interesting bills and appellate decisions that are going to make things interesting for litigation in the very near future. I don't know about all of you, but my trial calendar over the next year is getting quite full and with cases from across the country, I can attest that it is not just happening here in Illinois. The Civil Discovery (Expedited Trial) Senate Bill has some very interesting pieces, but the one that concerns me the most is the "expedited trial". Will this add additional stress to an already packed court schedule that is still recovering from COVID?

Paralegals play a pivotal role in supporting legal teams and businesses to achieve and maintain compliance. Don’t overlook your regulatory compliance team! This critical business aspect ensures companies adhere to laws, regulations, and guidelines to maintain ethical practices and prevent costly, painful legal consequences. This brief article explores paralegals' complex responsibilities in regulatory compliance and their contributions to upholding integrity in your company.

The IPA will be celebrating Paralegal Day in Illinois on September 21, 2023, proclaimed by Governor JB Pritzker. We will celebrate our special occasion at the Offshore Rooftop on Navy Pier as we take in the beautiful views🌅⛵and delicious food and beverages🌮🍸. We encourage Paralegals to register for this one of a kind event! The early bird registration runs through this Friday, September 8th.

While we were all enjoying these beautiful summer days, something amazing and exciting has happened. What happened? During the annual meeting of NALA during the 2023 national conference held in historic Boston, MA, the Illinois Paralegal Association was voted in unanimously by the NALA Board of Directors to become an affiliate association. Illinois Paralegal Association is now a Nationally affiliated association.

CM/ECF filers should be aware of the potential to inadvertently share restricted documents when using third-party services or software.

Effective 8/1/23, you will not be able to search for a case by party name in eFileIL until further notice.

I don't know many litigations paralegals that are not using social media evidence in their cases. I found this article with "several updated tips for lawyers to effectively collect and preserve social media evidence while adhering to ethical guidelines and maximizing the evidence’s potential impact in the courtroom" very interesting.

As Bob Dylan so eloquently put it, The Times They Are A-Changin’. The Supreme Court of the United States agreed to hear 60 cases during the 2022-2023 term. Long-set precedence was challenged in various cases with the decisions drastically impacting our nation. Cases relating to affirmative action, student loans, discrimination, abortion, guns, religion, and climate change - among others - made their way before the Republican-majority Court and many decisions were decided along partisan lines. However, as the recent decisions have shown, the unpredictability of the Court should not be underestimated. While many decisions followed partisan lines, the Justices united in their decisions regarding Groff v. DeJoy, Gonzalez v. Google LLC and Twitter, Inc. v. Taamneh.

When I was first elected as IPA's President in April 2020, I found myself in a very unique position as opposed to other first time presidents. It was the beginning of the pandemic and we were dealing with the lockdown and COVID-19 restrictions. We had to figure out how to pivot from our usually active schedule of in-person networking and educational events to exclusively virtual and figuring the types of events we could do to keep everyone connected was extremely challenging.

Before working on the "inside" in insurance risk management for a large national hospital system, I never really thought about the impact large verdicts have on a hospital and I used to think that they would make healthcare safer and take "bad doctors" out of the system. After some time in my current position and attending my first trial from "this side of the isle", my views have changed. I saw an amazing doctor who was put in an impossible situation with one of her patients who eventually passed away. There were so many factors that came into play in this case, but the actions of this physician were not the only issue that may have lead to the death of their patient. While I knew that doctors and hospitals don't have to be THE CAUSE they only have to be A PROXIMATE CAUSE to be found liable for the whole thing, I never really thought about the small standard that is until now.

With a passion for the legal field that has spanned over a decade, I decided to pursue my dreams relentlessly. In 2021, I achieved a significant milestone when I completed my Associate’s degree from the College of Lake County. Eager to further my education and advance my career, I immediately enrolled in CLC’s legal studies program to obtain a paralegal certificate.

The 2023 Annual Meeting was held on April 13th. Samantha Misch was elected to her first term as a Director of IPA, along with re-elected Directors Catherine Antolec, Larice Davis, Jennifer Fryer, and Liana Podman. Following the Annual Meeting, the new Board of Directors held their first board meeting and elected Melissa Jurik to another term as President, as well as Catherine Antolec (Vice President), Liana Podman (Treasurer), and Sally Fleissner (Secretary).

The 2023 IPA Spring Education Series will take place over the course of 5 weeks during the months of April and May.

Previously, IPA memberships were based on a calendar year, meaning that all members renewed on January 1st. In January 2022, the Bylaws were changed to allow for rolling renewals. However, the majority of IPA members still have expiration dates of December 31st.

IPA's Spring Education Series will be held virtually on IPA Connect over 5 weeks, April 4 - May 4 (Tuesdays and Thursdays at 11:00 am and 1:00 pm). This is your opportunity to earn 20 hours of CLE credit.

January 2023 Letter to IPA Members:

The coming of a new year is always a time of reflection and change. Some of us may have already broken that new year's resolution while others haven’t even started on yours yet. The IPA is also working on some resolutions of our own to help you be the best paralegal you can be in 2023 starting with a whole new format for the Lookout. Below you will find some great information and we've even listed our upcoming events so you can see what we have in store with more to be added soon.

Would you like to serve as an IPA Board Member and shape the future of the IPA?

IPA's Annual Meeeting and Elections is held each year in April. Serving on the IPA's Board of Directors provides real opportunities to lead, represent the interests and concerns of paralegals, and help shape our profession. The Board of Directors also works tirelessly to put together quality CLE programs, networking events, workshops, and professional development trainings.