ILCS » Chapter 775 · Act 5
Illinois Compiled Statutes

775 ILCS 5/8A-104 (2026)

Relief; Penalties

✓ current as of May 2026
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(775 ILCS 5/8A-104) (from Ch. 68, par. 8A-104)
    Sec. 8A-104. Relief; Penalties. Upon finding a civil rights violation, a hearing officer may recommend and the Commission or any three-member panel thereof may provide for any relief or penalty identified in this Section, separately or in combination, by entering an order directing the respondent to:
        (A) Cease and Desist Order. Cease and desist from any
    
violation of this Act.
        (B) Actual Damages. Pay actual damages, as reasonably
    
determined by the Commission, for injury or loss suffered by the complainant.
        (C) Hiring; Reinstatement; Promotion; Backpay; Fringe
    
Benefits. Hire, reinstate or upgrade the complainant with or without back pay or provide such fringe benefits as the complainant may have been denied.
        (D) Restoration of Membership; Admission To Programs.
    
Admit or restore the complainant to labor organization membership, to a guidance program, apprenticeship training program, on the job training program, or other occupational training or retraining program.
        (E) Public Accommodations. Admit the complainant to a
    
public accommodation.
        (F) Services. Extend to the complainant the full and
    
equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations of the respondent.
        (G) Attorneys Fees; Costs. Pay to the complainant all
    
or a portion of the costs of maintaining the action, including reasonable attorney fees and expert witness fees incurred in maintaining this action before the Department, the Commission and in any judicial review and judicial enforcement proceedings. Provided, however, that no award of attorney fees or costs shall be made pursuant to this amendatory Act of 1987 with respect to any charge for which the complaint before the Commission was filed prior to December 1, 1987. With respect to all charges for which complaints were filed with the Commission prior to December 1, 1987, attorney fees and costs shall be awarded pursuant to the terms of this subsection as it existed prior to revision by this amendatory Act of 1987.
        (H) Compliance Report. Report as to the manner of
    
compliance.
        (I) Posting of Notices. Post notices in a conspicuous
    
place which the Commission may publish or cause to be published setting forth requirements for compliance with this Act or other relevant information which the Commission determines necessary to explain this Act.
        (J) Make Complainant Whole. Take such action as may
    
be necessary to make the individual complainant whole, including, but not limited to, awards of interest on the complainant's actual damages and backpay from the date of the civil rights violation. Provided, however, that no award of prejudgment interest shall be made pursuant to this amendatory Act of 1987 with respect to any charge in which the complaint before the Commission was filed prior to December 1, 1987. With respect to all charges for which complaints were filed with the Commission prior to December 1, 1987, make whole relief shall be awarded pursuant to this subsection as it existed prior to revision by this amendatory Act of 1987.
        (K) Civil Penalty. Pay a civil penalty per violation
    
to vindicate the public interest. In imposing a civil penalty to vindicate the public interest, a separate penalty may be imposed for each specific act constituting a civil rights violation as defined in Section 1-103, and for each aggrieved party injured by the civil rights violation:
            (1) in an amount not exceeding $16,000 if the
        
respondent has not been adjudged to have committed any prior civil rights violation under this Act;
            (2) in an amount not exceeding $42,500 if the
        
respondent has been adjudged to have committed one other civil rights violation under this Act during the 5-year period ending on the date of the filing of this charge; and
            (3) in an amount not exceeding $70,000 if the
        
respondent has been adjudged to have committed 2 or more civil rights violations under this Act during the 7-year period ending on the date of the filing of this charge; except that if the acts constituting the civil rights violation that is the object of the charge are committed by the same natural person who has been previously adjudged to have committed acts constituting a civil rights violation under this Act, then the civil penalties set forth in subparagraphs (2) and (3) may be imposed without regard to the period of time within which any subsequent civil rights violation under this Act occurred.
    There shall be no distinction made under this Section between complaints filed by the Department and those filed by the aggrieved party.
(Source: P.A. 104-425, eff. 1-1-26.)


 
    (775 ILCS 5/Art. 8B heading)
ARTICLE 8B. PROCEDURES AND RELIEF IN ARTICLE 3
CASES BEFORE THE HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION

    
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 14 cases (6 in the last 5 years), 1995–2026 · leading case: Schwartz v. Illinois Human Rights Comm'n, 2024 IL App (4th) 231248 (Ill. App. Ct. 2024).
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Schwartz v. Illinois Human Rights Comm'n, 2024 IL App (4th) 231248 (Ill. App. Ct. 2024). · cites it 2× “” Windsor Clothing, 2015 IL App (1st) 142999, ¶ 48 ; see 775 ILCS 5/8A-104(B) (West 2022) (providing that actual damages must be “reasonably determined by the Commission”).”
Crittenden v. Cook Cnty. Comm'n on Human Rights, 2012 IL App (1st) 112437 (Ill. App. Ct. 2012). “3d at 464 (citing 775 ILCS 5/8A-104 (West 1996)). Page’s holding that punitive damages were available was followed by 1212 Restaurant Group, which upheld a punitive damages award without separate consideration of whether the Chicago ordinance permitted punitive damages.”
City of Champaign v. Madigan, 2013 IL App (4th) 120662 (Ill. App. Ct. 2013). “See 775 ILCS 5/8A-104(G) (West 2010) (providing attorney fees to prevailing parties in administrative proceedings before the Illinois Human Rights Commission).”
Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. v. Sommerville, 2021 IL App (2d) 190362 (Ill. App. Ct. 2021). “¶ 46 The Act provides for the award of actual damages (775 ILCS 5/8A-104(B) (West 2010)), which includes damages for emotional distress (Szkoda v.”
Rockford Mem v. Dept. of Human Rights, 651 N.E.2d 649 (Ill. App. Ct. 1995). “) Thus, the trial court misinterpreted the grant of absolute immunity from "civil damages" provided in section 10.2 as a grant of absolute immunity from all legal liability.”
Rozsavolgyi v. The City of Aurora, 2016 IL App (2d) 150493 (Ill. App. Ct. 2016). “775 ILCS 5/8A-104 (West 2014) (among other forms of relief, the Commission may award: (1) actual damages; (2) hiring, reinstatement or upgrade, back pay, and fringe benefits; (3) restoration of labor organization membership; and (4) attorney fees and costs; further, it may (5)…”
Rozsavolgyi v. City of Aurora, 2016 IL App (2d) 150493 (Ill. App. Ct. 2016). “775 ILCS 5/8A-104 (West 2014) (among other forms of relief, the Commission may award: (1) actual damages; (2) hiring, reinstatement or upgrade, back pay, and fringe benefits; (3) restoration of labor organization membership; and (4) attorney fees and costs; further, it may (5)…”
Stewart v. The Illinois Dep't of Transp., 2022 IL App (1st) 201104-U (Ill. App. Ct. 2022). · cites it 3× “See 775 ILCS 5/8A-104 (West 2008) (the Commission may provide for any of the various categories of statutory relief upon a finding of discrimination); see also MIFAB, Inc.”
Duarte v. Convergent Outsourcing, Inc. (N.D. Ill. 2018). “The Illinois Human Rights Act bars discrimination in a variety of contexts, and the remedial provisions (both in the Illinois Human Rights Commission and in the courts) authorize recovery for “actual damages.”
Bentson v. West Suburban Bancorp, Inc. (N.D. Ill. 2022). “775 ILCS 5/8A-104 (emphasis added). As the Illinois Supreme Court recognized in Baker, 636 N.”
Jones v. Cook Cnty. Dep't of Corr., 2026 IL App (1st) 250422-U (Ill. App. Ct. 2026). “See 775 ILCS 5/8A-104(G) (West 2024). Although the Commission awarded Jones attorney’s fees for her discrimination claim, it did not award fees for the enforcement proceedings.”
Hammond (S.D. Ill. 2026). “775 ILCS 5/8A-104(B). Because the plain reading of the IHRA does not support striking references to emotional damages, Defendant’s motion is DENIED as to references to emotional damages in Plaintiff’s claims under the IHRA.”
Show all 14 citing cases →
— 775 ILCS 5/8A-104(B) — 4 cases
Schwartz v. Illinois Human Rights Comm'n, 2024 IL App (4th) 231248 (Ill. App. Ct. 2024). “” Windsor Clothing, 2015 IL App (1st) 142999, ¶ 48 ; see 775 ILCS 5/8A-104(B) (West 2022) (providing that actual damages must be “reasonably determined by the Commission”).”
Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. v. Sommerville, 2021 IL App (2d) 190362 (Ill. App. Ct. 2021). “¶ 46 The Act provides for the award of actual damages (775 ILCS 5/8A-104(B) (West 2010)), which includes damages for emotional distress (Szkoda v.”
Duarte v. Convergent Outsourcing, Inc. (N.D. Ill. 2018). “The Illinois Human Rights Act bars discrimination in a variety of contexts, and the remedial provisions (both in the Illinois Human Rights Commission and in the courts) authorize recovery for “actual damages.”
Hammond (S.D. Ill. 2026). “775 ILCS 5/8A-104(B). Because the plain reading of the IHRA does not support striking references to emotional damages, Defendant’s motion is DENIED as to references to emotional damages in Plaintiff’s claims under the IHRA.”
— 775 ILCS 5/8A-104(G) — 2 cases
City of Champaign v. Madigan, 2013 IL App (4th) 120662 (Ill. App. Ct. 2013). “See 775 ILCS 5/8A-104(G) (West 2010) (providing attorney fees to prevailing parties in administrative proceedings before the Illinois Human Rights Commission).”
Jones v. Cook Cnty. Dep't of Corr., 2026 IL App (1st) 250422-U (Ill. App. Ct. 2026). “See 775 ILCS 5/8A-104(G) (West 2024). Although the Commission awarded Jones attorney’s fees for her discrimination claim, it did not award fees for the enforcement proceedings.”
— 775 ILCS 5/8A-104(J) — 2 cases
Schwartz v. Illinois Human Rights Comm'n, 2024 IL App (4th) 231248 (Ill. App. Ct. 2024). “” Windsor Clothing, 2015 IL App (1st) 142999, ¶ 48 ; see 775 ILCS 5/8A-104(B) (West 2022) (providing that actual damages must be “reasonably determined by the Commission”).”
Stewart v. The Illinois Dep't of Transp., 2022 IL App (1st) 201104-U (Ill. App. Ct. 2022). “See 775 ILCS 5/8A-104 (West 2008) (the Commission may provide for any of the various categories of statutory relief upon a finding of discrimination); see also MIFAB, Inc.”
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