By Danielle Kays and James Nasiri
Seyfarth Synopsis: In February 2023, the Illinois Supreme Court issued a landmark opinion in Cothron v. White Castle finding that claims under the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (“BIPA”) accrue each time a private entity scans or transmits an individual’s biometric data. (Seyfarth’s analysis of this decision can be found HERE.) Defendant
Continue Reading Illinois Supreme Court Upholds Per-Scan Damages for BIPA Claims
By Danielle Kays and James Nasiri
Seyfarth Synopsis: The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois recently denied Plaintiff’s motion to reconsider a prior dismissal of his privacy action due to untimeliness. In a case titled Bonilla, et al. v. Ancestry.com Operations Inc., et al., No. 20-cv-7390 (N.D. Ill.), Plaintiff alleged that consumer DNA network Ancestry DNA violated the
Continue Reading Federal Court Rejects Application of BIPA Statute of Limitations to Privacy Act Violations
By Danielle Kays, and Danny Riley, Law Clerk
Seyfarth Synopsis: On March 23, 2023, the Illinois Supreme Court unanimously affirmed the appellate court’s decision in Walton v. Roosevelt University, ruling that the Labor Management Relations Act (“LMRA”) preempts the Illinois Biometric Privacy Information Act (“BIPA”). Following recent BIPA decisions that have ramped up the risk of liability
Continue Reading “BIPA Win For Union Employers: Union Employees’ BIPA Claims Are Preempted”
By Danielle Kays, Paul Yovanic, Jr., and Sarah Bauman
Seyfarth Synopsis: Today, the Illinois Supreme Court issued its second Illinois Biometric Privacy Act (BIPA) decision in the past two weeks, ruling in Cothron v. White Castle System that claims under BIPA accrue each time a person scans or otherwise transmits his or her biometric information. This 4-3
Continue Reading Illinois Supreme Court Holds A BIPA Claim Accrues Upon Every Scan Or Transmission
By Danielle Kays and James Nasiri
Seyfarth Synopsis: On November 30, 2022, the Illinois Second District Appellate Court reversed the trial court’s grant of summary judgment in Defendant’s favor in a case entitled Mora v. J&M Plating, Inc. The lawsuit was initiated by a former employee of the Defendant metal finisher, alleging that Defendant violated the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy
Continue Reading Illinois Appellate Court Holds Businesses Must Implement Biometric Retention and Destruction Policies Before Collecting Biometric Data
By Danielle Kays and Danny Riley, Law Clerk
Seyfarth Synopsis: BNSF Railway seeks a new trial following the verdict against it in the first ever jury verdict in an Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (“BIPA”) class action. BNSF contends that the verdict, which resulted in a court award of $228 million in damages, is unconstitutional and unreasonable given
Continue Reading BNSF Seeks New Trial After First Ever BIPA Jury Verdict Because Damages Are Unconstitutional And Unreasonable
By Danielle Kays and James Nasiri
Seyfarth Synopsis: On October 17, 2022, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington granted Microsoft’s motion for summary judgment on the plaintiffs’ unique class action claims in a case entitled Vance v. Microsoft Corp. The plaintiffs, and Illinois residents, uploaded several pictures of themselves to popular photo-sharing site Flickr, which then
Continue Reading Washington Federal Court Awards Important BIPA WinBy Danielle Kays and James Nasiri
Seyfarth Synopsis: Earlier this week, Seyfarth’s Employment Law Lookout team posted a blog discussing the status of the first ever jury trial of an Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (“BIPA”) class action (Rogers v. BNSF Railway Co.). Today, the jury–in just over an hour of deliberation–entered verdict for the plaintiff. This means that the
Continue Reading UPDATE: Jury Quickly Finds Railway Company Liable in First Ever BIPA TrialBy Ada W. Dolph
Seyfarth Synopsis: Seyfarth has been working closely with the Illinois Chamber of Commerce to advance Illinois House Bill 559, sponsored by House Representatives Jim Durkin, Dan Caulkins, and Thomas M. Bennett. The bill has advanced out of Committee and is anticipated to be up for a vote this week. Seyfarth and the Chamber urge
Continue Reading Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) Legislative Alert: Contact Your Legislator Today to Urge Passage of House Bill 559 Amending BIPA
By Karla Grossenbacher, Thomas E. Ahlering, and Andrew R. Cockroft
Seyfarth Synopsis: Both Portland and New York City have followed the example set by Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act (“BIPA”), a statute that has spawned thousands of cookie-cutter class action suits regarding the alleged collection of biometric information. Like BIPA, these new ordinances create a private right of
Continue Reading Portland, OR and New York City Follow Illinois’ Lead on Private Rights of Action in Biometric Privacy Legislation