Illinois' civil justice system is a model for the nation in protecting the rights of citizens to hold wrongdoers accountable, contrary to the claims of Phil Melin and his fake"grass-roots" organization called Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse.
Melin complains the legislature failed to change the Biometric Information Privacy Act to his liking. This law prohibits companies from collecting personal information for storage, sale, or transfer without consent. An employer obeying this law should be able to avoid lawsuits by doing the right thing and asking people if they agree to share their personal identity information.
It opposed House Bill 219, awaiting the governor's signature, which sends a clear message to corporate executives that the lives of Illinoisans will not be devalued. Punitive damages have long been a powerful tool in deterring bad actors from injuring our citizens and the application of that tool to instances where victims lose their lives is proper, logical and long overdue. Illinois will join a healthy majority of states in allowing punitive damages in wrongful death cases.