May a Lawyers Make a ''Last Minute'' Change of Theory During Closing Argument ?

In Los Amigos Supermarket, Inc. v. Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co., 306 Ill. App. 3d 115, 713 N.E.2d 686, 239 Ill. Dec. 155 (1999), on the last day of trial, counsel for the third-party plaintiff unexpectedly changed her theory of the case and suggested that a lease had been signed and then subsequently altered by the third-party defendant. Los Amigos, 306 Ill. App. 3d at 128. The trial court allowed counsel to publish the lease to the jury, over objection. Los Amigos, 306 Ill. App. 3d at 128. There was no evidence presented to show that such an alteration had in fact occurred. Los Amigos, 306 Ill. App. 3d at 128. The appellate court stated that unsupported innuendo created by counsel required reversal. Los Amigos, 306 Ill. App. 3d at 128. The court also found that the error had been compounded by counsel's references during closing argument to the alteration of the lease. Los Amigos, 306 Ill. App. 3d at 129.