Quantcast

Stories by Jonathan Bilyk on Madison - St. Clair Record

MADISON - ST. CLAIR RECORD

Thursday, April 24, 2025

Jonathan Bilyk News


Counties ask judge to rope IL state govt, private 'tax buyers' into class action over property tax 'takings'

By Jonathan Bilyk |
Suburban counties of DuPage, Lake, Will and Kane, along with three downstate counties, say they can't be forced to wear the blame and foot the bill for unconstitutional takings under a property tax system the state created and private investors are allowed to profit from

New filing: 'Whistleblowers' can back fraud, racketeering claims vs Simmons, other asbestos lawsuit firms

By Jonathan Bilyk |
L.A.-based pipemaker J-M Manufacturing wants to revive its lawsuit against Simmons Hanly Conroy and now other prominent asbestos plaintiff firms. J-M claims to have a raft of whistleblowers who can back their allegations that much of the multi-billion dollar asbestos litigation industry is allegedly a fraudulent racket

Judge blocks Trump Labor Dept anti-DEI funding rules

By Jonathan Bilyk |
A Chicago federal judge blocked the Labor Department under President Donald Trump from enforcing Trump's executive orders requiring organizations receiving grants through the DOL to certify they are not supporting DEI, if they wish to continue collecting federal money. The judge said the orders "chill" free speech

St. Clair, Madison counties retain top spots for asbestos lawsuit destinations in U.S.: New report

By Jonathan Bilyk |
Consulting firm KCIC reported Madison, St. Clair, Cook counties collectively accounted for nearly half of all asbestos lawsuit filings in 2024. St. Clair County continued its rapid ascent and could equal or eclipse Madison County for the country's No. 1 destination for asbestos claims in coming years

23 states: IL, Chicago 'sanctuary' laws incentivize illegal immigration, 'spills' burden onto other states, rest of U.S.

By Jonathan Bilyk |
Attorneys general from 23 states have sided in federal court with the Trump Justice Dept.'s challenge vs Illinois' and Chicago's 'Sanctuary' policies and laws. They argue IL, by shielding illegal immigrants from feds, is violating the constitutional compact among the states and increasing the burden on everyone

Republicans can't challenge gerrymandered Democratic district maps, IL Sup Ct rules

By Jonathan Bilyk |
Illinois' Democrat-dominated state Supreme Court sided with Democrats in ruling Republicans waited too long to challenge state legislative district maps, which GOP said Dems used to "rig" election results. A dissenting justice blasted the court's handling of the case, saying it indicated the court wasn't "neutral"

Illinois can't force doctors to tell patients about abortion 'benefits,' judge rules

By Jonathan Bilyk |
A federal judge has struck down a portion of an Illinois state law that would have stripped certain legal protections for doctors, other medical pros who refuse to tell patients about the "benefits" of abortion. The state can force docs to refer women to abortion providers, however. The case is headed to appeal

Springfield Diocese: New IL abortion discrimination law tramples religious freedoms

By Jonathan Bilyk |
A new lawsuit, led by the Springfield Diocese, accuses Illinois of essentially using a new law to strip religious organizations of their constitutional autonomy by forbidding them to speak against abortion or hire based on their beliefs concerning abortion or other "reproductive health" choices

Lawsuit: Champaign abortion doc left 'half of pre-born baby' in woman's body post-abortion

By Jonathan Bilyk |
An Ohio doctor, who runs an abortion clinic in Champaign, has been accused of severely injuring a woman during an abortion, by allegedly perforating her uterus and leaving half of the unborn baby lodged in her pelvis, and then ignoring her requests for help amid the complications

Justice Department to support effort to strike down IL law pushing 'diverse' nonprofit boards

By Jonathan Bilyk |
The Justice Department under President Trump has moved to intervene in the lawsuit brought against the state by the American Association for Equal Rights, seeking to overturn Illinois' law requiring nonprofits to report on the races and genders of their board members and staff. They say the law promotes intentional discrimination

New filing: Illinois has constitutional authority to ignore immigration law, complicate deportations

By Jonathan Bilyk |
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul responded to the Trump administration's lawsuit vs Illinois' 'Sanctuary' laws, arguing the U.S. Constitution and past court decisions allow the state to pass laws forbidding police from cooperating with nearly all federal immigration enforcement 'schemes'

IL high court questions if GOP gerrymandering suit is 'timely;' GOP: 'Unquestionably' so

By Jonathan Bilyk |
Democrats have yet to respond to a Republican lawsuit seeking to toss out Democrats' partisan gerrymandered Illinois state legislative maps. But the Democrat-dominated Illinois Supreme Court moved on its own to ask both sides to present arguments if the challenge to the maps was "timely."

Ex-IL House Speaker, Dem leader Madigan convicted of bribery, wire fraud

By Jonathan Bilyk |
Michael J. Madigan, who used his position as state House Speaker and chairman of the state Democrats to amass sweeping influence across all levels in Illinois for decades, was convicted by a federal jury. Reform advocates and GOPers say it should serve as a "wake-up call" for more extensive reforms in the notoriously corruption-plagued state

'This ends today:' DOJ asks court to block IL, Chicago from using 'Sanctuary' laws to hinder deportation of criminals

By Jonathan Bilyk |
Federal lawsuit from the Trump administration asserts the state of Illinois, city of Chicago and Cook County are unconstitutionally using state laws and local ordinances to shield illegal immigrants - and particularly, illegal immigrants who have been convicted of other, violent crimes - from being removed from the U.S.

Not 'free and equal:' IL GOP asks court to toss out gerrymandered state House map

By Jonathan Bilyk |
Republicans have asked the Illinois Supreme Court to uphold the legislative district mapmaking principles spelled out in its own prior rulings and knock out a map so gerrymandered that Republicans say Democrats can win a supermajority even if they lose the statewide popular vote, trampling voting rights

IL Sup Court upholds changes to workers' comp law; Asbestos, other toxic exposure suits from decades past not barred

By Jonathan Bilyk |
The court ruled changes enacted by Illinois Democrats at the urging of trial lawyers don't deprive companies of their constitutional due process rights by now allowing them to be sued over exposure to asbestos and other toxic substances from decades past, when they had previously been explicitly shielded

IL high court to decide if state can force people to challenge laws only in Chicago, Springfield courts

By Jonathan Bilyk |
Justices heard arguments over the constitutionality of HB3062, which forces all Illinoisans to only file constitutional challenges to state laws in courts in Cook County and Sangamon County. Democrats passed the law in 2023 after a blitz of lawsuits challenged a litany of controversial state laws and executive orders

Lawsuit: IL law requiring nonprofits to disclose leaders' race, gender promotes discrimination

By Jonathan Bilyk |
The American Association for Equal Rights has filed another suit against the state, now seeking to strike down a Pritzker-backed law forcing nonprofits to disclose their leaders' race, gender and other 'demographic classifications.'

IL biometrics claims multiplied again in '24, helping to fuel big class action payouts nationwide

By Jonathan Bilyk |
A new report from defense law firm Duane Morris said class action settlements again totaled more than $40B in 2024, with attorneys raking in many of those billions for themselves in fees. In Illinois, much of the action was driven by hundreds of new claims under the Illinois biometrics privacy law, despite reforms

SCOTUS weighing challenge to IL two-week-long mail-in vote counting system

By Jonathan Bilyk |
The U.S. Supreme Court has directed the state of Illinois to respond to a petition for appeal filed by Republican U.S. Rep. Michael Bost, who has argued lower courts wrongly denied him the ability to sue the state for requiring mail-in ballots to be counted up to two weeks after Election Day, which he says violates federal law