Page 22 - John Hundley 2010

bility of scientific evidence as set forth in Donaldson v. Central Ill. Pub. Serv. Co., 199 Ill.2d 63 (2002);

 Reserving Rule 803(18), which would have created a hearsay exception for learned treatises;
 Revising Rule 801(d)(1)(A) to omit a proposed change to Illinois law which would have provided
for substantive admissibility of prior inconsistent statements in civil proceedings.
The rules take effect January 1, 2011.

Another Route to Prejudgment Interest Highlighted

Sharp Thinking #33 (May 2010) noted the difficulty in obtaining prejudgment interest in cases where a
contract does not provide for same. Practitioners facing that rule may wish to consider an alternative
approach suggested by Prignano v. Prignano, __ Ill.App.3d __, 934 N.E.2d 89 (2d Dist. Aug. 9, 2010),
which states that in actions sounding in equity, the court has equitable discretion to award
prejudgment interest. Although that consideration rarely will justify discarding a good law claim in favor
of a weak equity claim, it is a factor to consider at the pleading and settlement discussion stages.

Income Withholding Act Applies for D/B/A Proprietorships

Blue Cross/Blue Shield cannot escape penalties for refusing to withhold child support from sums it
pays the obligor-parent’s sole proprietorship, the Appellate Court recently ruled. Continuing a trend of
imposing stiff penalties on employers who fail to comply with withholding notices under the Income
Withholding for Support Act (750 ILCS 28) (Sharp Thinking #3 (Jan. 2008) and #17 (Feb. 2009)), the
court ordered sanctions even though BC/BS was not the parent’s employer, even though he did
business under an assumed name, and even though BC/BS claimed it did not knowingly violate
the act. Marriage of Vaughn, __ Ill.App.3d __, 2010 WL 3218878 (1st Dist. Aug. 12, 2010).
Employee Classification Act Challenged

The Illinois Supreme Court late last month denied the state’s attempt to appeal an Appellate Court
decision temporarily restraining enforcement of the Illinois Employee Classification Act (820 ILCS 185)
discussed in Sharp Thinking #11 (August 2008). In Bartlow v. Shannon, 399 Ill.App.3d 560 (5th Dist.
2010), leave to appeal denied, __ Ill.2d __ (No. 110410, Sept. 29, 2010), the 5th District said plaintiffs
challenging the act had presented a fair question regarding enforceability of the act because it appeared
1
to not allow a meaningful hearing in violation of the Due Process Clause.
Judgment Lien Still Requires Strict Compliance With Statute

In Sharp Thinking #24 (Sept. 2009), we reported how the strict compliance doctrine meant that a typo
as to the judgment date in a recorded memorandum meant that no judgment lien attached. Maniez v.
Citibank, 383 Ill.App.3d 38 (1st Dist. 2008). That didn’t sit well with the plaintiff, who has appealed again –
with the same result. Maniez v. Citibank, __ Ill.App.3d __ , 2010 WL 3718024 (1st Dist. Sept. 20, 2010).
-- John T. Hundley, 618-242-0246, Jhundley@lotsharp.com
John\Sharp Thinking\#38.doc.

1 The Sharp Law Firm’s Jana Yocom represents the plaintiffs in Bartlow.

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