Illinois Lawmakers Trigger “Lawsuit Inferno” Status by Advancing Jurisdictional Overhaul

Today, the American Tort Reform Association named Illinois a “Lawsuit Inferno” in its latest Legislative Heat Check report, following the legislature’s passage of Senate Bill 328 — a sweeping jurisdictional proposal that threatens to expand liability exposure and encourages court shopping nationwide.

“Illinois lawmakers not only have failed to repair their state’s broken civil justice system, but they are actively making it worse, creating a Lawsuit Inferno,” said Tiger Joyce, president of ATRA. “They waited until the 11th hour and jammed this bill through with last-minute amendments. S.B. 328 sends the message that Illinois is not open for business. That message is not implied — it is explicit. This is not the legacy Gov. JB Pritzker should want for his state.”

Legislation

S.B. 328 is currently on the governor’s desk for consideration. It would allow out-of-state plaintiffs to sue out-of-state businesses in Illinois courts for incidents with little to no connection to the state. The bill’s vague and far-reaching language around “toxic harm” opens the door to unprecedented liability for businesses regardless of their location.

“The fear of being dragged into court for unrelated harms in one of the nation’s worst Judicial Hellholes® will deter businesses from operating in Illinois,” Joyce said. “This won’t just hurt businesses, though. It will hurt Illinois families whose taxes fund the courts. As more out-of-state lawsuits flood the system, it will become harder for the people who actually live here to have their own cases heard quickly and fairly.”

Illinois residents involved in civil lawsuits will likely face delays due to clogged courts if Gov. JB Pritzker signs S.B. 328, as Illinois will likely become one of the top destinations in the nation for trial lawyers to file lawsuits. 

Economic Impact on Illinois Families and Businesses

The consequences of lawsuit abuse are tangible and Illinois families already pay the 8th-most expensive annual “tort tax” in the country at $1,919 per person — that’s $7,677 for a family of four. For Chicago metro residents, the per-person “tort tax” jumps to $2,158 every year. Cook County is also ranked the sixth-worst “Judicial Hellhole®” in the country. 

Excessive tort costs are also tied to nearly 208,411 jobs lost annually and $1.250 billion lost in state revenue. Those costs undoubtedly will increase if this bill is signed. 

Governor Urged to Veto

ATRA urged Gov. Pritzker to veto S.B.328, citing its direct conflict with his administration’s “Open for Business” economic growth plan. The organization also warned that the bill’s “extraordinarily broad” definition of “toxic” could rope everything from dangerous chemicals to lifesaving medications, food and baby formula.

“If this is signed into law, you might as well post ‘Closed for Business’ signs at Illinois’s borders,” Joyce said. “The state is likely to see a mass exodus of businesses leaving and a sharp decline in new business investments.”

This new influx of litigation likely will be filed in Illinois counties with “Judicial Hellhole®” reputations, like Cook County, which hosts 91% of the state’s high-value civil cases despite having only 40% of its population. Madison and St. Clair Counties also are notorious for attracting asbestos litigation, earning them “Dishonorable Mentions.”

ATRA’s Legislative HeatCheck report evaluates a select group of states’ progress — or lack thereof — in enacting meaningful tort reform measures during their most recent legislative sessions.

Illinois lawmakers join Florida House of Representatives, West Virginia’s Senate Judiciary Committee, and the state legislatures of Colorado, New York and Virginia as 2025 “Lawsuit Infernos.” The full Legislative HeatCheck report is available at heatcheck.atra.org.

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About the Legislative HeatCheck: The Legislative HeatCheck is an annual analysis, started in 2024 by the American Tort Reform Association, that assesses which states are making strides to improve their civil justice systems through tort reform and which states remain in dire need of legal reform. The report categorizes a select group of states into three groups:

• Tort Reform Trailblazers: States that have recently enacted key tort reform measures to rein in lawsuit abuse and improve their legal climates.
• Lawsuit Infernos: States whose legislatures are actively expanding liability and worsening their civil justice systems or failed to pass any meaningful legal reforms during their latest legislative sessions, leaving their civil justice systems mired in a litigious status quo.
• Heat Watch: States whose legislatures still are in session and are considering either positive or negative legislation. These states are placed on “Heat Watch” due to inaction on tort reform or the potential for liability-expanding legislation that could worsen their legal climates.

The Legislative HeatCheck provides an overview of tort reform battles waged in statehouses nationwide and serves as a guide for where reform efforts should be focused in the year ahead.