Grauer v. Clare Oaks, et al, 2019 IL App (1st) 180835, is noteworthy to all counsel who regularly encounter fee-shifting statutes in their practice. Grauer was borne out of a verdict against a nursing home, but the court’s analysis as to the reasonableness of attorney’s fees and what constitutes “costs” in the context of the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act is important to all practitioners.
The Nursing Home Act provides that “the licensee shall pay the actual damages and costs and attorney’s fees to a facility resident whose rights” under the Act are violated. 210 ILCS ...
Nursing Home litigation has increased significantly in Illinois in recent years in large part due to the failure of Illinois to institute damages caps and eliminate attorney’s fees from their nursing home statute. Attorneys’ fees are recoverable under the Nursing Home Care Act. In fact, the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act provides for fee shifting and specifically states that “The licensee shall pay the actual damages and costs and attorney’s fees to a facility resident whose rights, as specified in Part 1 of Article II of this Act, are violated.” 210 ILCS 45/3-602. An ...
