Happens all the time. Usually when a lawyer retires or does work that doesn't require them to practice as an attorney they switch their license to an inactive status. Then they don't have to pay licensing fees, keep up with continuing education, or perform any of the petty details required to maintain their license in good standing. The reason why it's a court ordered inactive status is because in Illinois the state Supreme Court is responsible for regulating attorneys.
If you check you'll find Obama's license is in the same status. And I'm sure that every Illinois congressman or senator that's also an attorney is as well.
Exactly. There's plenty of scandal to follow with Obama. This one's (most likely) a dead end for those who are over-reaching.