From the Commission website comes news of substantial change to the IWCC dockets:

Chairman Mitch Weisz announced the following changes in arbitrator assignments, effective September 1st, 2010:

Arbitrator Erbacci will be assigned to take over the entire Waukegan call. This is a first step in trying to reduce the number of split calls. Arbitrator Andros will remain in DeKalb and will take over Arbitrator Erbacci’s duties in Wheaton.

Arbitrator Lee will cover Woodstock and one quarter of the Rockford call. Arbitrator Lammie will take over the Chicago call handled by Arbitrator Lee.

Arbitrator Fratianni will temporarily come to Chicago to handle the status call, pro se, and other matters currently handled by Arbitrator Lammie, whose long service in this area is appreciated. Chairman Weisz plans to capitalize on Arbitrator Fratianni’s years of experience to look for possible improvements. She will visit arbitration calls both in Chicago and downstate to help harvest ideas on best practices that we can work collaboratively to implement.

Additionally, effective January 1, 2011, the Lawrenceville call, one of the smallest calls in the state, will be discontinued. Those cases will be reassigned to Mattoon and Mt Vernon to minimize travel.

Bertha Parker is in the process of scouting a few new locations in sites such as Galesburg, Kankakee, and Belleville to determine if more economical, suitable, or reliable sites are available. If you have any suggestions for alternate locations, please contact Bertha Parker as soon as possible. As soon as the locations are nailed down, she will begin preparing the 2011 schedule.