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Page 22  Subscribe online now! www.ibjonline.com Illinois Business Journal December 2012

 IBJ Business News

REFORMContinued from page 1

Illinois Laws RoundupIllinois Laws Taking Effect Jan. 1, 2013

Social Networking Limits (HB 3782): This measure provides

that it is unlawful for an employer to request a password or 

other account information in order to access an employee’s

or prospective employee’s social networking website. HB

3782 allows for employers to maintain lawful workplace

policies regarding internet use, social networking site use and

electronic mail use. This legislation allows employers to obtain

information about an employee or prospective employee in

the public domain. Gov. Pat Quinn has signed this legislation

as Public Act 97-875. It is effective Jan. 1, 2013.

Equal Pay Act - Individual Liability (SB 2847): As amended,

individual liability under the Equal Pay Act occurs when the

employer knowingly and willfully evades the payment of a nalaward or nal judgment under the Act. Effective on Jan. 1,

2013, the governor signed as PA 97-903.

Service Members Protections (SB3287): This measure

creates the Illinois Service Member Civil Relief Act which

provides certain legal protections afforded to service members

(and family members where specied) are subject to stated

provisions of law. It amends the Illinois Administrative

Procedure Act to set forth a provision concerning stays of 

contested case hearings for service members. It amends

the Illinois Human Rights Act to provide that a violation of 

specied provisions regarding legal protections for military

personnel constitutes a civil rights violation under the Illinois

Human Rights Act. This is now PA 97-913, with an effective

date of Jan. 1, 2013.

Prevailing Wage Notice (HB5212): This legislation provides

that a public body or other entity shall notify contractors

and subcontractors of changes in prevailing wage rates.

However, the notication requirement will be met by including

in the contract that the prevailing rate is established by the

Department of Labor and available on the IDOL Web site -

shifting the responsibility yet again on the contractor and small

business owner. It is effective Jan. 1, 2013 as PA 97-964.

UI Administrative Changes (HB 5632): This bill has been

signed into law as PA 97-791 and also goes into effect Jan.

1, 2013. The new law requires payments be made to the

Department of Employment Security instead of the Director.

On July 13, the state of Illinois enacted HB 5632 in response

to the Federal Trade Adjustment Assistance Extension Act

of 2011 (TAAEA) which included a mandate for states to

institute UI integrity measures designed to restore the health

of the oundering unemployment insurance system. These

measures are part of a larger effort by the federal government

to address the growing U.S. decit, and are specically

designed to help prevent the improper payments which have

long been a drain on the unemployment insurance system.

The federal government has mandated the states to apply

new, stricter rules and practices which place a greater burden

on employers to respond quicker, respond better, be more

on top of what their third party administrator is doing on their 

behalf and to be nancially responsible for overpayments on

unemployment claims charges whenever they hold any blame

for the overpayment.

External Search Firms (HB 5914): This bill, which Quinn

signed into law effective Jan. 1, limits the use of external

search rms by state universities. Under the law, universities

may use search rms only when hiring university presidents or 

when there is a proven need for hiring guidance. HB 5914 also

requires state universities to implement policies for conductinghiring searches. Illinois universities have until June 1, 2013 to

implement search policies.

Commercial Truck Handheld Cell Ban (HB 5101): The

governor signed legislation to ban handheld cell phone use by

commercial truck drivers and to upgrade the offense of texting

while driving a commercial truck. Under  HB 5101, effective

Jan. 1, 2013,  both offenses are serious trafc violations.

Drivers receiving two serious violations within three years may

lose commercial driving license privileges for two months.

an agreed-upon share of any recovered

 proceeds. If the claim is successful,

either through litigation or settlement, the

funder receives a portion or percentage

of the recovery. But if the claim is not

successful, the funder does not recoup the

litigation costs, which are the principal of 

its loan. In essence, the scholars contend,third-party litigation funding extends

contingency fees to non-lawyers.

Where it gets sticky, says Travis Akin,

executive director of Illinois Lawsuit

Abuse Watch, is that often the interest

rates on these loans run as high as 300

 percent - similar to a payday loan scenario

- and the interest accrues the entire time

that the lawsuit is going on, which could

 be a couple of years or more.

“Even if the plaintiff is fortunate enough

to get a settlement within 15 to 17 months,

he or she is still paying an exorbitantamount of interest,” Akin said. “And

in some cases, the plaintiff has to take

the case all the way to t rial because the

settlement he or she was being offered

wasn’t enough to cover the loan.”

Both Akin and McKinney site numerous

“horror stories” of situations such as the

above, where a plaintiff’s indebtedness

due to a lawsuit lending decision made

the settlement option unviable. In some

situations, the plaintiff continued on to

trial and ultimately lost the case.

“Several plantiffs’ attorneys we’vespoken with are very concerned about

lawsuit lending from the perspective that

all too often they are unaware that the

lender is approaching and negotiating

terms with their own clients,” said Akin.

“As it now stands, at least in Illinois,

there’s no legislation barring lawsuit

lenders from approaching clients directly

without going through their attorney.”

Illinois Lawsuit Abuse Watch has

its eyes and ears open as the General

Assembly prepares to reconvene in

Springeld in January. Akin says back 

in late 2010, SB 3322, known then as

the “Lawsuit Loan Shark Bill,” set out

to grant lawsuit lending companies a full

range of rules of operation in Illinois

without fear of regulatory restraint. The

 bill, co-sponsored by Sen. Don Harmon

(D-Oak Park) and State Rep. Jay Hoffman

(D-Collinsville), passed unanimously

in the Senate but was soundly defeated

in the House. Akin says the fact that SB

3322 was introduced during a lame duck 

session gives ILAW and ATRA incentive

to stand guard during the upcoming lame

duck session (Jan. 3-8) to make sure a

similar bill is not reintroduced.

“We’re concerned that there may be

an effort during the January lame duck 

session to provide the loan industry with

 protections to push this legislation in

Illinois,” Akin said, “and we’re going tohave a big ght on our hands during the

early part of 2013. There’s been more of 

a push lately from the lawsuit lending

industry to open new markets in more

states and allow the regulatory framework 

to make that happen. But it’s not good for 

consumers, and we would argue that it’s

not good for our state. Illinois is already

ranked 46 out of 50 states in legal fairness

and we’ve got three Judicial Hellholes,

two of them in Southwestern Illinois

(Madison and St. Clair counties). You

don’t invest in something without the

expectation that there might be more of 

that (consumer) behavior, and that your 

investment will pay off. In this case, you

don’t invest in lawsuits unless you expect

that there will be more lawsuits. This

entire business model is banking on more

lawsuits in Illinois, which is the last thing

we need.”

Oasis Legal Finance, based in Chicago

and one of the largest lawsuit lenders in

the U.S., did not respond to requests for 

an interview for this story.

Walmart invites shoppers torecycle holiday lights

Illinois shoppers can donate their 

used and/or unworkable holiday lights

at Walmart stores from Nov. 17-Dec.

30. The retailer is again partnering

with Stlouisgreen.com for the Holiday

Light Recycling Drive. This year, stores

in the Metro East are participating.Recycling bins will be located in the

seasonal section of Walmart stores. For 

a list of participating stores, visit: www.

walmartstlouis.com. Stlouisgreen.com,

a nonprot organization that promotes

sustainability, is collecting the lights.

They will be recycled and sent back 

to manufacturers to be used in new

 products.

Metro East Park and Rec

awards $800,000-plus for trails

The Metro East Park and Recreation

District recently awarded $821,346 in

grant funding throughout Madison and

St. Clair counties. The collective costof the nine projects will translate into a

$9.1 million investment in the region.

Funds were made available through

MERPD’s FY13 Park and Trail Grant

Matching Program created to help

develop parks, greenways and trails

throughout the bi-county area.