Premises Liability

Jury awards 5.2 million dollars in wrongful death and personal injury lawsuit after tent collapse

April 25, 2016

A jury in St. Louis, Missouri, has rendered an award of $5.2 million in a lawsuit alleging wrongful death and personal injury regarding a deadly tent collapse at a sports bar in the vicinity of Busch…

New silica dust rules aim to save lungs of construction workers

April 18, 2016

The Department of Labor issued controversial new rules on March 24 to protect workers from silica dust exposure, one of the oldest known workplace hazards. Silica dust is a common mineral found in construction materials such…

Concert organizers sued for attendee’s fatal fall

April 13, 2016

A mother filed a wrongful death lawsuit against concert organizers in the aftermath of her son’s death from a fall during a concert at the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago, Illinois. Denise Kirchhoff filed the complaint in…

Age Restriction in Park Not a Liability Shield

November 17, 2014

The Chicago Park District must do more to publicize playground age restrictions if it wants them to be the basis of legal immunity, a state appeals panel has ruled. The First District Appellate Court, in an…

Personal injury claim not barred by workers’ compensation exclusivity, Illinois Appellate Court rules

November 14, 2014

An Illinois Appellate Court recently ruled that a worker who allegedly sustained exposure to asbestos while working for his employer between 1966 and 1970 was not barred from pursuing a personal injury claim by the exclusive…

Appellate court rules worker’s injury in fall compensable

October 14, 2014

The Appellate Court of Illinois reversed the judgment of a trial court in a workers’ compensation case, ruling that the worker’s injury in a fall was compensable. The claimant, Jane R. Brais, suffered an injury to…

Special Hazard Rule Covers Employee in Workers’ Compensation Case

February 28, 2014

In an unpublished opinion, The Illinois Appellate Court held that a bus driver’s injury — resulting from tripping over a mat while leaving a work meeting — arose out of her employment. The bus driver claimed…

Illinois Supreme Court Allows Mailbox Rule in Workers’ Compensation Case

October 29, 2013

The Illinois Supreme Court upheld the “mailbox rule” as it applies to workers’ compensation cases. The court held that the petitioner’s appeal to the circuit court was timely filed because it was postmarked by the filing…

Employee Claims Retaliation for Filing Workers’ Compensation Claim

October 15, 2013

An Illinois woman claims she was fired from a retail store because she filed a workers’ compensation claim. Cynthia Hewitt filed a lawsuit against Casey’s General Store in Maryville. According to the lawsuit, Hewitt began working…

Employee Denied Workers’ Compensation Benefits for Fall from Chair

September 17, 2013

The Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission ruled that a Department of Human Services worker was not entitled to compensation for a fall from a chair, because her work did not expose her to an increased risk of…