SPRINGFIELD – Illinois mayors and firefighters have united in an effort to protect public interests in the form of support on common sense legislation, SB 3070, which reinstates the Public Duty Rule, a longstanding principle that has rightfully protected local governments and their employees.
“The only focus in emergency response should be the well-being of those in need,” said AFFI President Pat Devaney. “Our responders have one priority, and it shouldn’t be impeded by those who wish to profit over the misfortune of others.”
Since the public duty rule was overturned in January 2016 by the Illinois Supreme Court, public safety providers have concerns about the negative consequences that would result from frivolous legal action and forgone legal protection against some of the most needed members of any community – law enforcement, emergency medical personnel and firefighters.
The public duty rule, a rule of law dating back to the 1800s, existed for the purpose of protecting governmental entities and their employees from costly and burdensome litigation that could be imposed by citizens who receive local services, such as police and fire protection. The idea being that public entities owe a duty to the public at large, and not any one individual. This meant that first responders could prioritize their responses based on available resources without the fear of lawsuits when a service didn’t meet expectations. It’s also important to note that the public duty rule only protects these entities in matters pertaining to pre-scene events and/or care, not events occurring after the public safety employees have arrived.
The Illinois Supreme Court ruled 4-3 in Coleman v. East Joliet Fire Protection District (2016) that the public duty rule is no longer viable in Illinois.
In their decision, the justices struck down the public duty rule because (1) the application of the public duty rule has been inconsistent; (2) the application of the rule is incompatible with the legislature’s grant of limited immunity in cases of willful and wanton conduct; and (3) the legislature’s enactment of statutory immunities has rendered the rule obsolete.
Illinois law now considers that a governmental entity and its employees owe a specific duty of care to individual members of the general public and can therefore be sued for a failure to deliver this specific level of care.
As a result, more tax dollars will be diverted away from essential public purposes.
Despite the Illinois Supreme Court opinion, the public duty rule is still of critical importance to local governments. The Illinois Municipal League (IML), the statewide organization representing all 1,297 communities throughout Illinois, is asking the General Assembly to restore the broad protections previously provided by the common law public duty rule by codifying it into statute.
“First responders need legal protection to prioritize their actions based on resources available,” said Brad Cole, IML Executive Director. “Abolishing the public duty rule exposed local governments to costly litigation. At a time when budgets are already stretched thin, this money is better spent on actual services that benefit the community.”
The Associated Fire Fighters of Illinois, which represents first responders statewide, supports the legislation as a means to stop frivolous and costly lawsuits that divert resources needed to protect our communities.
“First and foremost, our members are committed to the health and safety of the millions of Illinoisans we serve,” said Devaney. “The legislation simply clarifies what was established many years ago in the origins of common law. There will be no negative impact on the way we respond to the needs of our communities. In fact, the only threat to our response would be of the numerous lawsuits that otherwise would take advantage of a legal loophole that needs to be closed.”
Both Cole and Devaney said the legislation will enable public safety employees, firefighters and emergency medical personnel to effectively respond to calls without fear of frivolous legal action.