Attorneys Author IDC Quarterly Articles in Third Quarter 2021 Issue

The Illinois Defense Counsel recently published the Third Quarter 2021 issue of the IDC Quarterly featuring articles written by Heyl Royster attorneys.

The Health Law column – “Procedure Over Prejudice: Fourth District Affirms Trial Court’s Judgment,” was co-authored by Mark Hansen and Emily Galligan. The Illinois Appellate Court, Fourth District, recently affirmed a trial court’s judgment in favor of defendants in a medical negligence action against a physician and a medical clinic. Arkebauer v. Springfield Clinic, 2021 IL App (4th) 190697, ¶ 1. The court held that plaintiff failed to preserve certain issues for appeal while waving others, and as a whole, could not establish that the trial court had committed reversible error. Arkebauer, 2021 IL App (4th) 190697 ¶¶ 72, 80, 90-91. This decision is significant because it stresses the importance of proper trial practice in medical negligence cases against both physicians and the medical entity with which they are associated.

Keith B. Hill authored the Civil Rights Update – “Police Committed “Seizure” Under Fourth Amendment by Shooting Fleeing Woman.”  Against a backdrop of increasing national attention to law enforcement’s use-of-force, and efforts by state and federal legislators to reform policing, including bills that would eliminate qualified immunity, the United States Supreme Court decided Torres v. Madrid, 141 S. Ct. 989 (2021) In Torres, the Supreme Court resolved a 30-year circuit split by holding that the application of physical force to the body is a Fourth Amendment seizure — even if the person does not submit and is not subdued.

Mark McClenathan was elected to another three-year term to the IDC Board of Directors, John Heil continues his role on Board, Tobin Taylor sits on the Membership Task Force, and Brittany P. Warren has joined the Association as a member.

John Heil is a featured speaker at The Illinois Defense Counsel’s new Academy program — the A to Z Litigation Academy. Presented over eight sessions from September 2021 to April 2022, the program design is to help prepare emerging attorneys for the trials and tribulations of litigation.