Jonathan Bilyk News
Woodman's inks $3M settlement to end class action over worker fingerprint scans
Woodman's supermarket workers could get up to $800 each from the deal. Lawyers could get more than $1 million from the settlement to end a class action under the Illinois Biometric Information Protection Act.
Appeals court: No immediate end to IL evictions ban; Landlord property rights don't outweigh state's need to fight COVID
Rental property owners won't get any immediate relief from COVID-related executive orders issued by Gov. JB Pritzker blocking them from using the courts to evict tenants who refuse to pay rent.
IL high court avoids answering whether state constitutionally borrowed $14B; Says challenger waited too long to sue
The Illinois Supreme Court blocked John Tillman, CEO of the Illinois Policy Institute, from suing the state over whether state lawmakers unconstitutionally borrowed billions in 2003 and 2017.
Southside recycler lawsuit: City bowed to activists, violated rules, seized property by refusing permit; Owes $100M+
General Iron affiliate has asked a federal judge to order the city to pay it more than $100 million and issue a permit that it cannot legally deny, for a new metal recycling facility on Chicago's Southeast side.
IL Supreme Court mulls school districts' request for order potentially forcing billions more state dollars into public schools
Attorneys for school districts argued Gov. JB Pritzker has a "constitutional obligation" to budget hundreds of millions more each year for public schools. The state says the court should stay out of a "political process" reserved for lawmakers and voters.
Sephora to pay $1.25M to end class action over 'virtual makeup' face scans; Users could get $500, lawyers $437K
The class action accused Sephora of violating Illinois' biometrics privacy law by not providing notices and obtaining users' written consent before allowing them to scan their faces to virtually sample makeup products at a digital kiosk.
Class action: Sara Lee frozen pound cakes don't contain 'all butter'
The complaint faults Sara Lee Frozen Bakery for including soybean oil in the pound cakes, even though they are labeled as "All Butter"
Feds seeking plea deal with ex-Cook County debt collector, indicted for alleged bribes paid to former Cook Circuit Clerk Brown
In a recent filing, prosecutors indicated they had initiated plea deal talks with lawers for Penn Credit and its CEO Donald Donagher
Class action accuses PNC of using 'pretextual reasons' to deny Black borrowers loan modifications
The lawsuit centers on claims PNC allegedly refused to accept proof that an Evanston woman was her mother's power of attorney, leading to foreclosure action
Report: Cook Circuit Court Clerk slow to improve public access to court documents, transparency in clerk's office
A coalition of groups seeking reforms in Cook County's court system say new Circuit Clerk Iris Martinez hasn't moved quickly enough to implement changes to increase transparency in her office and online access to public court documents.
Judge expels class action vs DePaul for nixing student refunds after COVID closed in-person classes last spring
A federal judge in Chicago says students can't argue that DePaul University's promotional materials, class catalogs and student handbooks established a contractual promise to continue in-person classes throughout the school year.
Skokie cop sues tactical gear supplier Safariland for eye injuries allegedly suffered in pepper spray training exercise
A police officer and SWAT member in Skokie says he suffered severe eye injuries, requiring multiple surgeries to repair, after a training exercise run by tactical gear supplier Safariland in 2019.
CSX to pay $5.25M to settle truck driver's class action over fingerprint scans; Lawyers to get nearly $2M
A Cook County judge could sign off on the deal on May 13, approving payouts of "several hundred dollars" to more than 3,000 CSX truck drivers and others who accessed secure CSX railyards, but did not provide written authorization for fingerprint scans.
Dawn Food Products to pay $807K to settle worker fingerprint scan class action; Lawyers get 35%
A Cook County judge will consider giving final approval to a settlement deal to end a class action against bakery ingredients maker Dawn Food Products under the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act.
Female sailor sues Shedd Aquarium for allegedly allowing sexist work environment aboard research vessel
The complaint asserts the sailor, who was the first and only female sailor to serve on the vessel, was subjected to a host of sexist and mysogynistic comments and a "gender-based double standard" aboard the Coral Reef II, which is operated by the Shedd Aquarium Society.
Woman claims Oak Lawn subjected her to nuisances in 'retribution' for refusing to sell home for public works yard
The woman claims the village has steered truck exhaust and other "noxious fumes," dust and loud noises onto her property, because she rejected the village's "lowball" offers for her home, which neighbors the public works yard.
Chicago security firm can't end liability to Nike for guard knifed during fight with shoplifter at SW side store
A federal judge says the security company's contract with Nike may require the firm to cover any damages Nike is ordered to pay to security guard who was injured in a fight with a shoplifter at Nike's Chatham neighborhood store
Dozens of lawsuits vs state to be filed over COVID deaths at LaSalle Veterans Home under Pritzker appointees
Chicago nursing home plaintiffs firm Levin & Perconti says they are representing more than a dozen families of Armed Forces veterans who died at a state nursing home under the supervision of political appointees of Gov. JB Pritzker.
Judicial Watch accuses Evanston of hiding information about reparations program
Conservative group Judicial Watch says Evanston needs to provide more information about how and why it established a "reparations" program that doles out money solely on basis of race, which they said likely violates the Constitution.
Ex-Great Lakes Advisors director accuses Wintrust-owned firm of firing him for refusing error coverup
A former director of operations for Great Lakes Advisors, a wholly owned subsidiary of Wintrust Financial, claims he was fired allegedly in retaliation for allegedly refusing to help cover up an alleged mistake in managing a relatively large mutual fund account.