Why Digital Asset Succession Illinois Matters More Than Ever
When most Illinois business owners think about succession planning, they focus on tangible assets such as real estate, inventory, equipment, and bank accounts. While those assets are important, they no longer reflect the full value of a modern business.
Today, digital asset succession planning is critical because a significant portion of your company’s value exists online. This includes proprietary software, client databases, online revenue streams, and cryptocurrency holdings.
For many
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Indiana Medicaid’s ABA Therapy Overhaul: What Changed on April 1, 2026
Indiana Medicaid implemented significant updates for applied behavior analysis (“ABA”) therapy—one of the most widely used interventions for children with autism spectrum disorder—effective April 1, 2026. The reforms include phased cuts to reimbursement for ABA therapy, updates to member eligibility and revisions to provider qualifications.
The Indiana Health Coverage Programs (“IHCP”) began covering ABA therapy in 2016. Indiana’s expenditures on ABA therapy skyrocketed since coverage began and culminated in increased scrutiny following a Wall Street Journal investigation. Governor Mike…
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Employers Beware: Courts Are Scrutinizing Mid-Lawsuit Arbitration Agreements
The Ninth Circuit has warned employers that introducing a mandatory arbitration agreement during active class litigation, particularly when done through poor or misleading communication, can invalidate the agreement entirely. In Avery v. TEKsystems, decided January 28, 2026, the court affirmed a district court order refusing to enforce an arbitration policy introduced late in the lawsuit. The court found that the communications used to roll it out were misleading, one-sided, and fundamentally subverted the class action process.
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Agreements
City of Milwaukee commission to study lack of enforcement of housing voucher antidiscrimination laws
By Alexandria Staubach A Milwaukee County ordinance makes discrimination against housing voucher holders illegal, but enforcement is essentially nonexistent. A City of Milwaukee agency is now looking at the issue. In 2018, then-Milwaukee County Supervisor Marina Dimitrijevec sponsored and helped pass the county ordinance that made discrimination against housing voucher holders illegal. But the county failed to develop a serious enforcement mechanism and has never litigated a complaint, says Stefanie Ebbens, senior administrator of the Inclusive Communities Program at Metropolitan Milwaukee Fair Housing…
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Wisconsin Signals Limitations on Employer Liability for Employee Data Breaches
Under Wisconsin law, employees must first be the victim of identity theft or other concrete, imminent harm to have standing to sue employer for data breach. Mere risk of future data misuse is not enough to establish standing.
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Breaches
The Secretary of HHS Must Consult with the States Before Issuing Regulations Changing the Treatment of IGTs
Our previous article, In Defense of IGTs from Governmental Health Care Providers, noted that the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) is required to “consult with the States” before issuing any regulations changing the treatment of intergovernmental transfers (“IGTs”). We received requests for further information about this requirement following the publication of that article, and the requirement gained additional attention following the Secretary’s February 27, 2026, request for information (“RFI”) seeking stakeholder feedback on …
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Defending High-Asset Divorce Cases Involving Domestic Violence Allegations
It’s something of a truism, but divorce has a way of bringing out the worst in people. Even spouses who have been married for decades often find themselves shocked by their partner’s behavior. This often includes very serious, and very often false, accusations of domestic violence or abuse.
In high-asset divorces, domestic violence allegations are made because they are effective. A well-timed accusation can shift the balance of a divorce proceeding dramatically, affecting everything from who stays in…
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Fairness is Personal: Estate Planning Lessons for Families with Unequal Assets
One of the most common issues that arises in estate and succession planning has little to do with taxes, documents, or legal mechanics. It’s family dynamics.
Parents often come into the process with the goal of being fair. But fairness is rarely as simple as dividing everything equally. When clients ask whether I think their plan is fair, I’m candid: my personal view doesn’t matter. What I can offer is perspective into how other families in similar situations typically…
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Weekly Hospital Real Estate Briefing: VA Approves $672M in New Hospital Projects | Rural Funding Bill Introduced | Centurion Closes RI Hospital Deal
Property Deed Scam Alert: What Illinois Homeowners Need to Know
If you’re a homeowner in Illinois, especially in areas like Lake County, there’s an important warning you shouldn’t ignore: the property deed scam Illinois residents are receiving by mail is back—and it’s targeting unsuspecting homeowners with official-looking notices.
These solicitations can be confusing, and even savvy professionals have been caught off guard. As part of smart estate planning, protecting your assets doesn’t stop with legal documents—it also means staying alert to scams that try to exploit public records.
What …
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Important Lessons from the Back of the Courtroom
Before law school, I would have called myself a professional observer. I started working at my county’s district attorney’s office at the age of 16. I was thrust into a world I knew nothing about, so I found myself in the back of the courtroom often. I thought this would be the best way to learn how the criminal justice system works and everyone’s role within it. It turned out I would learn so much more than that. At…
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Employer Options When FMLA Documentation Is Missing
If an employee takes sick leave but hasn’t completed and returned an FMLA form, can the employer lawfully terminate employment?
The Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) applies to all local, state, federal, and private sector employers who employ 50 or more employees for at least 20 workweeks in the current or proceeding calendar year. An employee is eligible for FMLA leave if they are employed by a covered employer, have completed at least 1,250 hours of work in the…
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Recent UW Law Faculty Scholarship: Constitutional Theory, Court Reform, Executive Power, Antitrust, Surveillance, and AI Prompting
Here is the latest faculty scholarship from the University of Wisconsin Law School Legal Studies Research Papers series via SSRN.
Joshua Braver (UW Law), Deference Due? “Considers” and the Insurrection Act
Braver offers the first sustained statutory interpretation of the Insurrection Act, the principal authority for deploying military force on American streets to enforce federal law. The prevailing view, reflected in recent circuit court decisions, gives the president “great deference” in determining whether deployment conditions are met. Braver pushes…
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Fifth Circuit Denies FTC Stay: HSR Filings Revert to Old Form Effective Immediately
On March 19, 2026, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit denied the Federal Trade Commission’s (“FTC”) motion for a stay pending appeal of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas’s (the “District Court”) decision vacating the FTC’s 2024 Final Rule (the “2024 Rule”) revising the Hart‑Scott‑Rodino (“HSR”) premerger notification requirements, including the HSR premerger notification form and instructions. As a result, the District Court’s judgment is effective immediately.
Background
As discussed in our…
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When Back Pain Stops You from Working: Navigating Long-Term Disability Claims
According to the World Health Organization, low back pain is the leading cause of disability worldwide. With the prevalence of this condition, many people are living and working through their pain. However, you may reach the point where you are simply no longer able to continue working because of your condition, despite your best efforts. If you have a short- or long-term disability insurance policy through your employer, you might be wondering if your condition qualifies for benefits. Back…
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Why Long Term Disability Insurers Require You to Apply for SSDI (And How It Affects You)
If you have been receiving long term disability (LTD) benefits, you have probably received a letter from your insurance company telling you to apply for Social Security Disability Insurance benefits, also known as SSDI. They may have offered to connect you with a service to help with this application.
You might be wondering why the insurer cares so much about whether you apply for SSDI. The short answer is that it usually saves the insurance company money. However, applying…
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