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Public Act 103-0831


 

Public Act 0831 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

 


 
Public Act 103-0831
 
HB4768 EnrolledLRB103 37572 JRC 67698 b

    AN ACT concerning civil law.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
Landlord Retaliation Act.
 
    Section 5. Prohibition on retaliatory conduct by landlord.
It is declared to be against public policy of the State for a
landlord to take retaliatory action against a tenant. A
landlord may not knowingly terminate a tenancy, increase rent,
decrease services, bring or threaten to bring a lawsuit
against a tenant for possession or refuse to renew a lease or
tenancy because the tenant has in good faith done any of the
following:
        (1) complained of code violations applicable to the
    premises to the relevant governmental agency, elected
    representative, or public official charged with
    responsibility for enforcement of a building, housing,
    health, or similar code;
        (2) complained of a building, housing, health, or
    similar code violation or an illegal landlord practice to
    a community organization;
        (3) sought the assistance of a community organization
    to remedy a code violation or illegal landlord practice;
        (4) complained or requested the landlord to make
    repairs to the premises as required by a building code,
    health ordinance, other regulation, or the residential
    rental agreement;
        (5) organized or become a member of a tenants' union
    or similar organization;
        (6) testified in any court or administrative
    proceeding concerning the condition of the premises; or
        (7) exercised any right or remedy provided by law.
 
    Section 10. Remedies for violation of this Act. If the
landlord acts in violation of this Act, the tenant has a
defense in any retaliatory action against the tenant, and a
landlord shall be subject to a civil action for damages and
other appropriate relief, including, but not limited to, the
following remedies:
        (1) terminate the rental agreement and, if the rental
    agreement is terminated, the landlord shall return all
    security and interest recoverable under the Security
    Deposit Return Act and all prepaid rent;
        (2) recover possession of the premises if the landlord
    has dispossessed, threatened to dispossess, or is in the
    process of dispossessing; and
        (3) recovery of an amount equal to and not more than 2
    months' rent or 2 times the damages sustained by the
    tenant, whichever is greater, and reasonable attorney's
    fees.
 
    Section 15. Non-retaliatory actions. An action is not
retaliatory if the landlord can prove a legitimate,
non-retaliatory basis for the action; or the landlord began
the action before the tenant engaged in the protected
activity.
 
    Section 20. Rebuttable presumption. In an action by or
against the tenant, if within one year before the alleged act
of retaliation there is evidence that the retaliation was
against tenant's conduct that is protected under this Act,
that evidence creates a rebuttable presumption that the
landlord's conduct was retaliatory. The presumption does not
arise if the protected tenant activity was initiated after the
alleged act of retaliation.
 
    (765 ILCS 720/Act rep.)
    Section 95. The Retaliatory Eviction Act is repealed.

Effective Date: 1/1/2025