Whether you are a parent worried about your child, a student, or an adult thinking back on something a teacher did years ago, calling a lawyer can feel like a large step. It helps to know exactly what happens. Nothing is set in motion by asking a question, and the decisions stay yours.
You do not need to have reported the abuse, and nobody needs to have been charged. A civil claim asks what the school district knew, what it should have known, and what it did. Attorney Ervin Nevitt, a partner at Coplan + Crane (Illinois bar registration 6319808, admitted 2014), reviews these cases.
Step one: you speak to a person
Not a form and not an intake script. You do not have to describe what happened in order to have the conversation. If you are asking for someone else, that is fine, and it happens often. The person involved has no obligation to do anything.
Step two: we look into who had a duty
We look at which institution was responsible, what it knew, what records exist, and whether a claim can still be brought. That work costs you nothing.
The first question is what kind of school it was. Where the school is a public district, the defendant is a public body, which brings the Illinois Tort Immunity Act and its notice requirements into the analysis immediately. A public school district or school board is a "local public entity" under the Act, and a district will raise its immunities. Under Section 3-108, for example, a public entity is not liable for an injury caused by its supervision, or by a failure to supervise where it had a duty to, unless the conduct was willful and wanton. Districts are public bodies under the Freedom of Information Act, so some records can be requested before a lawsuit.
Childhood sexual abuse claims are treated differently from other claims against public bodies, and private schools follow the ordinary rules. How the timing rules apply depends on your facts, which is why we check your dates.
A private or religious school is not a local public entity, so those immunities do not protect it in the same way, and it is not subject to FOIA. In a Catholic or other religious school, the school, parish, diocese, religious order, or an operating corporation may each be a defendant, depending on who employed and supervised the teacher.
We then look at what the school was required to do. Faith's Law, two acts of the 102nd General Assembly, sets that out in writing. Public Act 102-0676 took effect on December 3, 2021, and Public Act 102-0702 took effect on July 1, 2023. The law is named after Faith Colson, who was abused by a teacher at her Illinois high school and later learned that several adults there had suspected the relationship and did not report it. It applies to nonpublic schools as well as public districts and charter schools.
Section 22-85.5 of the School Code (105 ILCS 5/22-85.5) defines sexual misconduct as any act, including verbal, nonverbal, written, or electronic communication or physical activity, by an employee or agent of a school district, charter school, or nonpublic school with direct contact with a student, directed toward or with a student to establish a romantic or sexual relationship. Examples include romantic invitations, dating, sexualized dialog, suggestive comments, and sexual or romantic contact. The definition reaches conduct well short of a crime. Romantic messages to a student qualify even with no physical contact.
Every school must have an employee code of professional conduct policy that includes this definition and sets staff-student boundaries, with guidelines on transporting students, taking or keeping photos or video, and contacting students outside the employee's professional role. It must be posted on the school's website, if it has one, and in handbooks.
Since July 1, 2023, when an employee, agent, or contractor is alleged to have engaged in sexual misconduct with an enrolled student, the school must tell the student and then notify the parents or guardians in writing. A second notice follows if the board takes formal action on the employee's job, such as a termination or accepted resignation, and must say whether a report was or will be sent to the State Superintendent of Education. Parent notice is not required once the student is 18 or emancipated.
We look at the hiring record. Section 22-94 of the School Code covers every permanent and temporary job at a public or nonpublic school with direct contact with students, including contractor staff such as bus drivers. Before hiring, the school must get a statement on ISBE's template about any sexual misconduct allegation, any departure or discipline because of one, and any license suspended, surrendered, or revoked for that reason. It must ask the same of the applicant's current employer and past employers that were schools or involved work with children, and, for ISBE-licensed applicants, check against ISBE's licensure records. Since July 1, 2023, resignation or severance terms that suppress information about a pending investigation or substantiated allegation are void. A completed review need not be repeated when the employee moves within the same district, diocese, or religious organization. That information is not public and cannot be obtained through FOIA, so it usually comes out in a lawsuit.
We look at the license record. Illinois educators hold ISBE licenses under Article 21B of the School Code. Under Section 21B-75, the State Superintendent has exclusive authority to start proceedings to suspend a license for up to five years or revoke it, for reasons including abuse of a child, sexual misconduct, and willful or negligent failure to report suspected abuse. A district superintendent with reasonable cause to believe a license holder committed sexual misconduct that led to dismissal or resignation must report it in writing to the State Superintendent and the regional superintendent. ELIS on isbe.net shows license information by city, district, school, or educator name, while misconduct findings are verified separately on email request with the educator's identification number and date of birth. An active license does not mean no complaint was ever made.
And we look at who saw what. School staff are mandated reporters, and a complaint received and not reported is itself a documented failure. Failure to report is the theory that most often carries these claims, though several run together depending on your facts. The General Assembly found that many staff-student boundary breaches are not criminal but still put students at risk, and that repeated violations can indicate grooming. Faith's Law widened the criminal definition of grooming (720 ILCS 5/11-25) to cover acts in person, through a third party, and in writing, and made grooming a form of abuse school staff must report to DCFS.
Signs other adults may have noticed include private messaging on a personal phone or social media, driving a student alone without parental permission, taking or keeping photos or video for no school purpose, one-on-one time in an empty room framed as extra help, off-campus or after-hours contact, and sharing personal, romantic, or sexual details or commenting on the student's appearance. None of these alone proves abuse. The question is whether other staff saw the pattern, whether it broke the written policy, and what the school did once it knew. Districts keep personnel files, prior complaints, and transfer histories, and these claims are usually brought against the district rather than only the individual.
Step three: you decide
We tell you plainly what is possible. If you decide not to go ahead, that is the end of it, and what you told us stays confidential.
Step four: if you go ahead, we carry it
We handle the filings, deadlines, records, and the institution's insurers. Steps can be taken to protect your identity in the court record.
Common Questions Around the First Call
Does someone have to have been convicted? No. A civil case uses a lower standard of proof than a criminal one and is usually brought against the institution rather than the individual.
What if I only remember part of it? That is ordinary. These cases are built from institutional records rather than a complete account.
Can I find out whether the teacher was disciplined before? Partly. ELIS shows license information, but misconduct findings require a separate ISBE request, and employment history review forms are not public records. Prior complaints and transfers are usually obtained in a lawsuit.
Will the school tell us if a staff member is accused of misconduct with our child? Under Faith's Law, yes, in writing to the student and then the parents, and again if the board acts on the employee's job. It does not have to name the employee.
Does Faith's Law apply to Catholic and private schools? Yes. The definition, conduct policy, parent notices, and employment history review all apply to nonpublic schools.
Call (708) 671-6858 for a free, confidential case review or visit https://survivorsofabuseil.com/teacher-student-sexual-abuse-lawyer-il/.
