Affirming the largest emotional distress award ever made by the Illinois Human Rights Commission, the Illinois Appellate Court for the Second District has handed down the first Illinois state court decision affirming a transgender individual’s right to use the restroom congruent with their gender, rather than their gender assigned at birth. The decision in Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. v. Sommerville, issued Aug. 13, affirmed an award of $220,000 in purely emotional distress damages, which is more than double the largest prior award.
