State Court
Cook County jury orders Johnson & Johnson to pay $45M in talc powder asbestos verdict
Jurors agreed a woman who died of mesothelioma likely contracted her illness from using talc baby powder and other products which allegedly may have contained asbestos fibers. Such studies have been assailed by critics as 'junk science'
Federal Court
Privacy class action firms jockey for control of 23andMe data breach claims; Edelson calls for new approach
Hot Topics
Glock seeks to take Chicago's anti-gun lawsuit to federal court
Firearms maker Glock has filed a motion to remove Mayor Brandon Johnson's lawsuit, in partnership with anti-guns rights activists, from Cook County's courts to federal court. The lawsuit claims Glock's semiautomatic pistols are too easily modified into "machine guns"
State Court
Judge says Harvey's financial situation makes it impossible to complete road project, rescinds contract
A Cook County judge ruled a road contractor already shorted $2M can't be forced to maintain "temporary" traffic signals in Harvey indefinitely. The judge rescinded the contract and ordered IDOT to take control of the traffic signals, despite falling short of normally required standards
A new leaked document shows Chicago Teachers Union's president may have not necessarily been joking when she said the next CTU contract would cost taxpayers "$50 billion and three cents," says the Illinois Policy Institute.
From Madison Record
From Madison Record
From Madison Record
Lawdragon names Cozen O’Connor’s Shaw among Top 500 leading U.S. bankruptcy and restructuring lawyers
CHICAGO, July 17, 2023 — Lawdragon has named Chicago attorney Brian Shaw, a member of Cozen O’Connor’s Bankruptcy, Insolvency & Restructuring practice, to its 2023 list of the Top 500 Leading U.S. Bankruptcy and Restructuring Lawyers.
Cozen O’Connor attorney Matt DiCianni honored with Rising Stars Award from the National Immigrant Justice Center
Matt DiCianni, a labor and employment associate at Cozen O’Connor, has been honored with a Rising Stars Award from the National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC).
State Court
Darryl Riles sues MNS1 Express Inc. for violation of the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act
In the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, plaintiff Darryl Riles has filed a class action lawsuit against MNS1 Express Inc.
State Court
Jane Doe sues The Endorphin Effect, Inc. for sexual assault during a therapeutic massage session
In the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, a lawsuit was filed on 4/5/2024 (Case ID: 2024L003725) by plaintiff Jane Doe against The Endorphin Effect, Inc., Triumph Sports, and Humberto Medina.
State Court
Class action accuses Windy City Limo over alleged driver face scans
Windy City Limousine Company is facing a class action lawsuit for allegedly using face-scanning cameras to monitor its drivers without proper consent, in violation of Illinois' biometrics privacy law.
State Court
Brookfield Properties says Andy Frain, insurers reneging on duties to help defend vs lawsuits over S. Carolina mall shootings
The lawsuit seeks to compel the defendants to assist with defending against lawsuits brought by victims of a 2022 mass shooting at the Columbiana Centre shopping mall.
State Court
Reyes Coca-Cola Bottling hit with genetic privacy class action
Reyes Coca-Cola Bottling, a Niles-based bottler and distributor of Coke products, is facing a class-action lawsuit under Illinois's genetic information privacy law.
State Court
Truck drivers say Crown Point Logistics allegedly shorted pay, scanned driver faces
Trucking firm Crown Point and affiliated companies accused of allegedly shorting truck driver pay, while also allegedly improperly using onboard cameras to scan drivers' faces while on the job.
State Court
KJ Win sues KNB Motors for breach of contract over a commercial truck sale
In the Appellate Court of Illinois, First Judicial District, a case was filed by KJ Win, Inc. against KNB Motors, Inc., with the court case ID 1-23-0783 on April 5, 2024.
State Court
Widow sues Exelon over husband's death from Covid in 2020, says virus contracted on the job at nuke plant
The lawsuit says Exelon should pay for allegedly failing to keep workers safe from Covid exposure at its Dresden nuclear power plant in 2020, allegedly leading to the death of a man working in the plant.
Lawsuits
Antitrust lawsuit accuses Apple of wrongly cornering market for smartwatches
Apple Inc. has been accused of employing anticompetitive strategies to monopolize the smartwatch market, according to a class action lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.
Ex-Onward restaurant owner pressing on with court fight vs Loyola over restaurant's demise
Restaurateur Michael Olszewski says Loyola University undermined and "kicked to the curb" the Onward Rogers Park fine dining restaurant into which Olszewski said he sunk more than $1M, at Loyola's request. The university says Olszewski "caused problems" for years and didn't pay rent during the Covid shutdowns
Judge nixes class action vs Abbott over baby formula shortage, says not obliged to maintain formula supply, prices
A federal judge in Chicago dismissed a class action vs Abbott Laboratories claiming the company wrongly profited from increased prices for baby formula sparked by a nationwide shortage that followed Abbott's shutdown of a Michigan plant over alleged bacterial contamination
Antitrust lawsuit accuses Apple of wrongly cornering market for smartwatches
Apple Inc. has been accused of employing anticompetitive strategies to monopolize the smartwatch market, according to a class action lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.
Trucking firm EVO hit with biometrics class action over driver face scans
The lawsuit is one of thousands filed against Illinois employers accusing them of allegedly improperly scanning the biometrics of workers on the job.
Class action accuses PanAmerican Consulting of allegedly misleading consumers into futile debt settlement tries
PanAmerican Consulting, a debt settlement provider, is facing a class action lawsuit for allegedly misleading consumers and worsening their financial conditions.
Glock seeks to take Chicago's anti-gun lawsuit to federal court
Firearms maker Glock has filed a motion to remove Mayor Brandon Johnson's lawsuit, in partnership with anti-guns rights activists, from Cook County's courts to federal court. The lawsuit claims Glock's semiautomatic pistols are too easily modified into "machine guns"
New Trier wrongly refused requests for records to explain decision to cancel Holocaust Remembrance Day: Lawsuit
Education reform group Parents Defending Education has sued New Trier Township High School District claiming administrators violated Freedom of Information law by refusing to provide PDE with staff communications that may discuss the Holocaust or conflict in Gaza.
Gun advocates seek summary judgment in constitutional challenge to state's "Carry Ban" for gun owners under age 21
Gun advocates and their members under the age of 21 are asking the court to grant summary judgment in their constitutional challenge against Illinois’ “Carry Ban” for gun owners between the ages of 18 and 20.
Appeals court: Lawsuits vs Smith & Wesson over Highland Park massacre belong in Lake County court
A federal appeals panel, led by a judge who has repeatedly upheld "assault weapons" bans, has ruled that gun makers can't use their regulatory relationship with the federal government to keep themselves from being sued in state court when criminals use their weapons to commit mass murder
Maag files expert witness list disclosure in challenge to 'assault weapons' ban
Wood River attorney Thomas Maag filed an expert witness disclosure on behalf of the Langley plaintiffs in their constitutional challenge to Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s law banning so-called “assault weapons.”
Coalition seeks to let IL voters deliver message on parents' rights in November
Thousands of volunteers aligned with conservative social policy groups across Illinois are seeking signatures to place an advisory referendum on the fall ballot asking voters if they believe Illinois law should require parents' consent before children receive non-emergency medical care or therapy
IL lawmakers advance law to limit 'annihilative' payouts faced by business under biometrics law
The Illinois State Senate approved SB2979, which would explicitly limit the amount of money trial lawyers and plaintiffs can demand businesses pay under the Biometric Information Privacy Act. The law has spawned thousands of lawsuits generating hundreds of millions of dollars in legal fees
KCIC: Madison, St. Clair Counties were top asbestos jurisdiction in 2023; Cook County saw greatest increase
Madison and St. Clair Counties again saw the most asbestos case filings for 2023 nationwide, and Cook County saw the highest increase in filings according to a report by KCIC, a Washington D.C.-based technology and management consulting company.
Darryl Riles sues MNS1 Express Inc. for violation of the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act
In the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, plaintiff Darryl Riles has filed a class action lawsuit against MNS1 Express Inc.
Class action accuses Windy City Limo over alleged driver face scans
Windy City Limousine Company is facing a class action lawsuit for allegedly using face-scanning cameras to monitor its drivers without proper consent, in violation of Illinois' biometrics privacy law.
Proposed statewide class action in Southern District court challenges constitutionality of tax deed foreclosures
EAST ST. LOUIS - Illinois counties violate the U.S. Constitution when they hold and sell liens on properties with overdue taxes, former homeowners and a business in East St. Louis alleged at district court on April 10.
'De facto invisible': High costs, court rules, lack of online access can block public from monitoring 'public' court proceedings
A settlement has resolved a class action vs federal courts over fees charged to access online court documents. But high costs for certain records and varying court rules about public access to court records in Illinois and elsewhere create a legal patchwork that mostly limits public view into the courts
Cook County Judge Carl Boyd suspended from hearing cases after charged with domestic battery
Cook County Circuit Judge Carl Boyd was charged with domestic battery in an incident Chicago Police say left a woman with a cut on her cheek from broken glass. Boyd has served on the Cook County bench since 2012