IN THIS ISSUE
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Don't Volunteer for Trouble: Minimizing Personal Liability When Serving on the Board of Directors for Not-for-Profits
- COVID-19 and Powers of Attorney
- Business Interruption Insurance Policies - Are COVID-19 Losses Covered?
- Don't Count on the Commas
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Don't Volunteer for Trouble: Minimizing Personal Liability When Serving on the Board of Directors for Not-for-Profits
By Laurie A. Martin Montplaisir
Telephone: 312.456.0292
Like many members of your community, you may be volunteering for a not-for-profit organization to make a meaningful contribution and to share a passion with others. Not-for-profit organizations depend on community members to advance their missions and to dedicate time, treasure, and talent to help steward the organizations. As a volunteer board member, it is important to be aware of your obligations, potential personal liability exposure, best practices to mitigate the risk of personal liability, and legal protections afforded to board members of not-for-profit organizations.
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COVID-19 and Powers
of Attorney
By Howard S. Golden
Telephone: 312.456.0188
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I have typically written articles on the importance of having a comprehensive estate plan and having it periodically reviewed. Those of you who have followed my directions are to be commended.
The COVID-19 pandemic is raging in Illinois. Hospitalized COVID-19 patients have increased from 1,400 in June 2020 to over 5,800 as of the end of November. The positivity rate which was 3.2% in June was consistently over 10% during the month of December.
We now have a vaccine but it is going to take months to bring down the spread. Now is a good time to review your choices of backup trustees, executors and agents under your Powers of Attorney.
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Business Interruption Insurance Policies - Are COVID-19 Losses Covered?
By Cornelius F. Riordan
Telephone: 312.456.0767
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The spread of COVID-19 has severely impacted the construction industry with project delays and loss of productivity. In states that designated construction as non-essential, construction activity has ceased; in states where construction was deemed essential, contractors work under burdensome limitations and operational restrictions. Restrictions include use of personal protective equipment, social distancing restrictions, limitations to jobsite access, labor shortages, and government-imposed protocols. In addition, projects have been cancelled, job sites contaminated, employees infected, and the supply chain disrupted. |
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Don't Count on the Commas
By Teresa A. Minnich
Telephone: 312.456.0362
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The rules of proper comma use are regularly applied to determine the meaning of statutes and contracts. A recent Illinois Appellate Court decision reminds grammar buffs that not all commas are created equal. In Hatcher v. Hatcher, the Court interpreted the terms of a trust. The trust named two beneficiaries. A third person was named trustee of the trust. The trust empowered the trustee to distribute trust principal “for the benefit of any one or more of the beneficiaries of the trust as in his sole discretion he shall determine, whether because of sickness, accident or otherwise, and for educational purposes.”
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Mandatory Sexual Harassment Prevention Training Completed By December 31st |
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Reminder: The Illinois General Assembly's Public Act 101-0221 has amended the Illinois Human Rights Act ("IHRA") requiring Illinois employers, including restaurants and bars, to establish and distribute a written policy on sexual harassment prevention training to employees by December 31, 2020, and to provide annual supplemental training thereafter. The Amendment affects all employers – whether or not based in Illinois – that have employees working in Illinois. The mandatory training requirement went into effect January 1, 2020.
The IHRA has developed a model sexual harassment prevention training program for use by employers. However, if employers prefer, they may develop their own sexual harassment prevention training program that equals or exceeds the minimum standards for sexual harassment prevention training outlined in Section 2-109(B) and/or Section 2-110(C) of the IHRA.
Employer training must include, at a minimum, the definition of sexual harassment that is consistent with the IHRA and examples of prohibited conduct; a summary of relevant federal and state laws covering sexual harassment, including remedies available for victims who have been impacted by those laws; and an overview of employers’ responsibility to prevent, investigate and address sexual harassment.
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RSP Welcomes New Attorney |
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RSP welcomed new associate Malcolm J. MacLaren on October 5th. Malcolm is an attorney in RSP's Construction Law practice group where he represents owners, developers, lenders, general contractors, subcontractors, and sureties in all aspects of construction and mechanics lien disputes. Prior to joining RSP, Malcom was a judicial law clerk for the Honorable Daniel P. Brennan in the Mechanics Lien Section of the Circuit Court of Cook County, a division of the court that specializes in mechanics lien and construction disputes. To view Malcom's bio, click here: rsplaw.com/malcolmmaclaren.
Telephone: 312.456.0383
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Cornelius F. Riordan
Cornelius F. Riordan was a presenter for the CBA Mechanics Lien and Construction Law Subcommittee discussing the topic Bond and Lien Rights on Public Construction Projects held in December. He also was a panel member for the Subcommittee on the topic COVID-19 issues affecting construction. Additionally, Con published the article “Business Interruption Insurance Policies: Are COVID-19 Losses Covered” for the Construction Executive magazine on November 13th.
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Justin L. Weisberg
Justin L. Weisberg conducted a webinar for the ISBA Construction Law Section Council on the topic Fundamentals of Construction Law held in November. He also was recently elected Chair of the American Society of Civil Engineers, Illinois Chapter of the Construction Institute for the 2020-2021 year. Additionally, Justin was elected Vice President of the Society of Illinois Construction Attorneys.
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RSP CHICAGO
180 North LaSalle Street, Suite 3300
Chicago, Illinois 60601
Telephone: 312.782.9000
Fax: 312.782.6690
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RSP GLENVIEW
2222 Chestnut Avenue, Suite 101
Glenview, Illinois 60026
Telephone: 847.729.7300
Fax: 847.729.7390
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Publication of this legal newsletter by Robbins, Salomon & Patt, Ltd. is not intended as a solicitation of legal representation, but rather educational purposes only as well as to give you general information and a general understanding of the law. It is written entirely by members of the firm. We welcome any comments or questions about topics covered in this or any issue. This newsletter is not intended as a replacement for individual legal advice. The contents of this publication may be quoted or reproduced if credit is properly given to the source.
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