A Chicago lawyer, who is not vaccinated against COVID-19 and is a season ticket holder for both the Chicago Bulls and Chicago Blackhawks, has filed a class action lawsuit against the city of Chicago, asserting its indoor COVID vaccine passport order broadly violates constitutional rights and illegally interferes with ticketholders' contract rights.
A federal judge, however, has refused to grant an emergency order blocking the city from enforcing that vaccine passport mandate while the case continues.
On Dec. 29, Fedor Kozlov, an attorney who practices law through the Law Office of Fedor Kozlov P.C., of Chicago, filed suit in Cook County Circuit Court against the city and Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot.
Fedor Kozlov
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Kozlov is represented by attorney Shawn A. Moore, a lawyer affiliated with Kozlov’s firm.
The lawsuit challenges the authority of Lightfoot and the city to impose a rule requiring restaurants, theaters, sports arenas, health and fitness centers, and a host of other non-retail businesses in Chicago to demand all patrons over the age of 5 present proof of full vaccination against COVID-19 before being allowed to enter their facilities for more than 10 minutes.
The rule exempts retail stores and other shopping outlets, houses of worship, schools and various other kinds of facilities.
Lightfoot and the city announced the rule on Dec. 21. The rule took effect on Jan. 3.
Cook County imposed a functionally similar vaccine passport rule to cover suburban areas under the jurisdiction of the county health department. Local municipalities with their own health departments, such as Oak Park and Skokie, imposed similar restrictions, as well.
In response to the lawsuit, the city of Chicago removed the case to federal court, citing Kozlov’s constitutional claims.
In his lawsuit, Kozlov takes a broad swipe at the mandate.
According to his complaint, Kozlov claims he was infected with COVID-19 and recovered in August 2021.
He further claims after consulting with doctors, “there still remains uncertainty whether receiving full Covid19 vaccinations would put (his) health presently in further jeopardy, and for an unknown time into the future, based upon his personal health-related circumstances and production of antibodies.”
So, he said, he has not yet received an approved COVID-19 vaccine, and cannot present the papers needed to be allowed into the United Center, home of the Chicago Bulls and Chicago Blackhawks, nor any other indoor venue covered by the city’s vaccine passport mandate.
Kozlov alleges the vaccine passport mandate illegally interferes with his contract rights, as it effectively bars him from attending Bulls basketball and Blackhawks hockey games for which he has already purchased tickets.
He notes the city and county have each collected taxes from his purchase of those tickets, which he cannot now use, because of the vaccine passport mandate.
Further, he asserts the mandate constitutes an illegal “extraterritorial” law, extending the reach of Chicago and Cook County orders far beyond their boundaries, to impact the lives of people who live outside of Chicago and Cook County, yet travel into the city and county for various cultural, business or entertainment purposes.
And Kozlov argues the nature of the mandate itself, establishing two classes of people – the favored vaccinated, who are free to live their life as they please vs. the restricted unvaccinated, who are effectively barred from much of society – violates constitutional rights to equal protection under the law, as well as due process.
Kozlov asserts that allegedly unconstitutional division is only exacerbated by various exemptions carved out in the Chicago and Cook County vaccine passport mandates. This, he noted, includes exemptions for unvaccinated employees and other attendants working in arenas, as well as “nonresident performers” and athletes, and their entourages.
“In looking to both the rules and exceptions, if the Vaccine Mandate Orders are left to stand, there exists the possibility of the absurd situation wherein at a professional sporting event or concert there may be hundreds of persons present in the workers, athletes/artists, etc., who are all unvaccinated and exempted left in an empty arena, with all the fans who have essentially paid for the event in the form of their tickets purchases banned from entry,” Kozlov said in his complaint.
He noted this was “an extreme example.”
In his complaint, Kozlov seeks to expand his action to include all people who have not been vaccinated against COVID-19, or who “otherwise decline to show proof of full vaccination,” and who have previously purchased tickets to attend a Chicago Bulls or Chicago Blackhawks home game at the United Center in Chicago.
He is seeking unspecified damages for his claims, as well as a court order barring the enforcement of the COVID vaccine passport mandates.
His complaint also specifically sought an emergency temporary restraining order barring enforcement.
That request, however, was denied by U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis on Jan. 3, the day the mandates took effect.
Ellis did not issue a written order explaining her reasons for denying the emergency request.
The city has not yet filed any briefs or replies responding to the various legal claims listed in Kozlov’s complaint.