Liberty Justice Center

Illinois corruption watch, August 2014

By Brian Costin
09/05/2014
At least 84 corruption-related stories have been reported from across the state of Illinois in August alone. Atop August headlines is the recent revelation that a federal grand jury subpoenaed the emails of Gov. Pat Quinn’s ex-chief of staff in relation to Quinn’s anti-violence grant program. The case, which has been referred to by some...

TAGS: Chicago, corruption, cronyism, transparency, waste

State Rep. Durkin’s advocacy helps lead to historic ruling in Harris v. Quinn

By Matt Paprocki
06/30/2014
This morning, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn was wrong to issue and enforce his 2009 executive order that forced the unionization of Illinoisans who are not state workers. This groundbreaking ruling on the Harris v. Quinn case asserts that state governments cannot force-unionize participants in state entitlement programs or force...

Courts can strike down Madigan’s unconstitutional budget

05/19/2014
The Illinois Constitution is clear: the Illinois General Assembly’s spending in any fiscal year “shall not exceed the funds estimated by the General Assembly to be available during that year.” The General Assembly has officially estimated how much money the state will have available in fiscal year 2015: about $34 billion. Yet the spending proposed...

How you can help fight ObamaCare in Illinois

04/03/2014
Can you help us fight ObamaCare in Illinois? The Liberty Justice Center has a plan to bring a lawsuit challenging a major part of ObamaCare’s implementation in Illinois – but we need people in Illinois who are affected by ObamaCare to be our plaintiffs. Here’s what the lawsuit is about. The Affordable Care Act passed...

Illinois legislators try to repeal the First Amendment

03/22/2014
Incumbent politicians hate to be criticized, and in Illinois some of them have decided to do something about it – not by correcting the behavior for which people criticize them, but by trying to repeal the First Amendment. That may sound outrageous, but it’s true. On Thursday, the Illinois Senate’s Executive Committee passed a resolution...

Court rules Evanston food truck case can move forward

03/12/2014
The Liberty Justice Center’s legal challenge to Evanston’s anti-competitive food-truck law took an important step forward this week, as Cook County Circuit Court Judge Jean Prendergast Rooney denied the city government’s motion to dismiss our lawsuit’s claims that the city’s law violates the due process and equal protection guarantees of the Illinois Constitution. The Liberty...

TAGS: Beavers Coffee + Donuts, food trucks

A mom’s fight for justice: Harris v. Quinn

By Paul Kersey
01/21/2014
Pam is a mom in northern Illinois whose son, Joshua, needs constant care because of a rare genetic syndrome that causes severe intellectual and developmental disabilities. Pam receives a modest subsidy from a Medicaid-waiver program that allows her to stay home and take care of Joshua. She isn’t a state employee; she just gets a...

TAGS: Harris v Quinn, Pam Harris, SEIU: Service Employees International Union, U.S. Supreme Court

How the Liberty Justice Center fought for freedom in 2013

12/31/2013
With two court wins, no losses and many other activities to advance liberty in Illinois, the Liberty Justice Center, the Illinois Policy Institute’s public-interest litigation center, had a good year in 2013. In April, our client Steven Wailand, a Western Illinois University student, won his lawsuit against the city of Macomb, where officials tried to...

Thankful for heroic moms

11/28/2013
What are you thankful for? We’re thankful for people like Pam Harris who stand up to the government when it threatens their rights. Pam is a mom in northern Illinois whose son, Joshua, needs constant care because of a rare genetic syndrome that causes severe intellectual and developmental disabilities. Pam receives a modest subsidy from a Medicaid-waiver...

TAGS: Harris v Quinn, Pam Harris, SEIU: Service Employees International Union