Effective July 1, 2013, the Illinois Supreme Court Rules and the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct were amended to permit lawyers to provide what is called “limited scope representation” to clients in civil proceedings. This means that lawyers can now provide “cafeteria divorce services” to their clients; this is the term we often use, because “limited scope representation” means that an attorney can represent a client for a specific purpose, rather than before, when an attorney who filed an Appearance in a case representing a client was in the case for all matters, all court appearances, depositions, and communications. Limited scope Appearances can be entered for specific court dates, or only a deposition limited scope Appearances can be entered even for the drafting of certain documents.
These types of Appearances are attractive to clients who are looking for legal assistance in their cases, but who want to limit their financial exposure, and are also helpful in cases where a client may want to hire co-counsel for certain issues, and have different attorneys handle differing aspects of his or her case.
So, go ahead. Pick from the buffet and put only certain issues on your attorney’s plate. It’s now acceptable.
