101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2019 and 2020
HB3297

 

Introduced , by Rep. William Davis

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
705 ILCS 505/8  from Ch. 37, par. 439.8

    Amends the Court of Claims Act. Provides that for a claim against the State for damages in cases sounding in tort, if a like cause of action would lie against a private person or corporation in a civil suit, and all like claims sounds in tort against certain entities, all awards shall be paid from the funds appropriated by the General Assembly for the purpose of paying the awards and not by the entity against whom the case is brought.


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A BILL FOR

 

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1    AN ACT concerning civil law.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Court of Claims Act is amended by changing
5Section 8 as follows:
 
6    (705 ILCS 505/8)   (from Ch. 37, par. 439.8)
7    Sec. 8. Court of Claims jurisdiction; deliberation
8periods. The court shall have exclusive jurisdiction to hear
9and determine the following matters:
10    (a) All claims against the State founded upon any law of
11the State of Illinois or upon any regulation adopted thereunder
12by an executive or administrative officer or agency; provided,
13however, the court shall not have jurisdiction (i) to hear or
14determine claims arising under the Workers' Compensation Act or
15the Workers' Occupational Diseases Act, or claims for expenses
16in civil litigation, or (ii) to review administrative decisions
17for which a statute provides that review shall be in the
18circuit or appellate court.
19    (b) All claims against the State founded upon any contract
20entered into with the State of Illinois.
21    (c) All claims against the State for time unjustly served
22in prisons of this State when the person imprisoned received a
23pardon from the governor stating that such pardon is issued on

 

 

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1the ground of innocence of the crime for which he or she was
2imprisoned or he or she received a certificate of innocence
3from the Circuit Court as provided in Section 2-702 of the Code
4of Civil Procedure; provided, the amount of the award is at the
5discretion of the court; and provided, the court shall make no
6award in excess of the following amounts: for imprisonment of 5
7years or less, not more than $85,350; for imprisonment of 14
8years or less but over 5 years, not more than $170,000; for
9imprisonment of over 14 years, not more than $199,150; and
10provided further, the court shall fix attorney's fees not to
11exceed 25% of the award granted. On or after the effective date
12of this amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly, the court
13shall annually adjust the maximum awards authorized by this
14subsection (c) to reflect the increase, if any, in the Consumer
15Price Index For All Urban Consumers for the previous calendar
16year, as determined by the United States Department of Labor,
17except that no annual increment may exceed 5%. For the annual
18adjustments, if the Consumer Price Index decreases during a
19calendar year, there shall be no adjustment for that calendar
20year. The transmission by the Prisoner Review Board or the
21clerk of the circuit court of the information described in
22Section 11(b) to the clerk of the Court of Claims is conclusive
23evidence of the validity of the claim. The changes made by this
24amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly apply to all claims
25pending on or filed on or after the effective date.
26    (d) All claims against the State for damages in cases

 

 

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1sounding in tort, if a like cause of action would lie against a
2private person or corporation in a civil suit, and all like
3claims sounding in tort against the Medical Center Commission,
4the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois, the Board
5of Trustees of Southern Illinois University, the Board of
6Trustees of Chicago State University, the Board of Trustees of
7Eastern Illinois University, the Board of Trustees of Governors
8State University, the Board of Trustees of Illinois State
9University, the Board of Trustees of Northeastern Illinois
10University, the Board of Trustees of Northern Illinois
11University, the Board of Trustees of Western Illinois
12University, or the Board of Trustees of the Illinois
13Mathematics and Science Academy; provided, that an award for
14damages in a case sounding in tort, other than certain cases
15involving the operation of a State vehicle described in this
16paragraph, shall not exceed the sum of $2,000,000 to or for the
17benefit of any claimant. Awards shall be paid from the funds
18appropriated by the General Assembly for the purpose of paying
19the awards and not by the entity against whom the case is
20brought. The $2,000,000 limit prescribed by this Section does
21not apply to an award of damages in any case sounding in tort
22arising out of the operation by a State employee of a vehicle
23owned, leased or controlled by the State. The defense that the
24State or the Medical Center Commission or the Board of Trustees
25of the University of Illinois, the Board of Trustees of
26Southern Illinois University, the Board of Trustees of Chicago

 

 

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1State University, the Board of Trustees of Eastern Illinois
2University, the Board of Trustees of Governors State
3University, the Board of Trustees of Illinois State University,
4the Board of Trustees of Northeastern Illinois University, the
5Board of Trustees of Northern Illinois University, the Board of
6Trustees of Western Illinois University, or the Board of
7Trustees of the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy is not
8liable for the negligence of its officers, agents, and
9employees in the course of their employment is not applicable
10to the hearing and determination of such claims. The changes to
11this Section made by this amendatory Act of the 100th General
12Assembly apply only to claims filed on or after July 1, 2015.
13    The court shall annually adjust the maximum awards
14authorized by this subsection to reflect the increase, if any,
15in the Consumer Price Index For All Urban Consumers for the
16previous calendar year, as determined by the United States
17Department of Labor. The Comptroller shall make the new amount
18resulting from each annual adjustment available to the public
19via the Comptroller's official website by January 31 of every
20year.
21    (e) All claims for recoupment made by the State of Illinois
22against any claimant.
23    (f) All claims pursuant to the Line of Duty Compensation
24Act. A claim under that Act must be heard and determined within
25one year after the application for that claim is filed with the
26Court as provided in that Act.

 

 

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1    (g) All claims filed pursuant to the Crime Victims
2Compensation Act.
3    (h) All claims pursuant to the Illinois National
4Guardsman's Compensation Act. A claim under that Act must be
5heard and determined within one year after the application for
6that claim is filed with the Court as provided in that Act.
7    (i) All claims authorized by subsection (a) of Section
810-55 of the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act for the
9expenses incurred by a party in a contested case on the
10administrative level.
11(Source: P.A. 100-1124, eff. 11-27-18.)