Illinois Burn Injury Lawyer: Your Rights After a Burn

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By Michael Shemtoub, trial attorney, Beverly Law. Updated November 2026.

What to do after a burn in Illinois

Children are the group to watch. Scalds account for 58% of pediatric burn center cases, according to the American Burn Association (ABA burn incidence fact sheet), and the ABA’s referral guidelines say every burned child may benefit from a burn center (ABA referral guidelines). The same guidelines call for immediate burn center consultation for any full-thickness burn, at any age.

Evidence fades fast. Photograph the burn on day one and every few days after, and keep the device or container that caused it. Ask in writing for camera footage and get witness names. Let a lawyer handle calls from the other side’s insurer.

The deadline to file in Illinois

Actions for damages for an injury to the person must be commenced within two years after the cause of action accrued under 735 ILCS 5/13-202 (13-202).

Illinois courts created a discovery rule. The period starts when the injured person knows or reasonably should know of the injury and that it was wrongfully caused. The courts first applied the rule in Rozny v. Marnul (1969), then in Witherell v. Weimer and Knox College v. Celotex (both 1981), and restated it in Moon v. Rhode, 2016 IL 119572 (Moon v. Rhode). Medical malpractice has a statutory version in 735 ILCS 5/13-212(a).

Government cases follow two tracks:

• Local entities: Illinois requires no pre-suit notice, because the old notice section, 8-102, was repealed. The civil action itself must be commenced within one year from the injury or the date the cause of action accrued (745 ILCS 10/8-101(a)).
• The State: personal injury claims go to the Court of Claims. Written notice must reach the Attorney General and the Clerk of the Court of Claims within one year, unless the claim itself is filed within that year (705 ILCS 505/22-1). The claim is generally due within two years (705 ILCS 505/22(h)) (Court of Claims Act).

How fault works in Illinois

Under 735 ILCS 5/2-1116, the plaintiff is barred if the jury finds that their contributory fault is more than 50% of the proximate cause of the injury (2-1116). The rule reaches both negligence and strict product liability actions for bodily injury.

Here is how it plays out. A diner reaches across a table just as a server sets down a sizzling fajita skillet with no warning, and the restaurant blames the diner. At 40% fault, the diner recovers 60% of the damages. At 51%, the diner recovers nothing.

Damages and caps in Illinois

Illinois puts a procedural gate in front of punitive damages. In negligence and product liability actions for bodily injury, the complaint may not ask for them at all. The plaintiff must file a pretrial motion, no later than 30 days after discovery closes, and at a hearing show a reasonable likelihood of proving facts at trial that would support an award (735 ILCS 5/2-604.1).

Medical malpractice damages are uncapped. In Lebron v. Gottlieb Memorial Hospital (opinion filed February 4, 2010), the Illinois Supreme Court held that the noneconomic damages cap in 735 ILCS 5/2-1706.5 violated the separation of powers clause of the Illinois Constitution, and it voided Public Act 94-677 in its entirety (Lebron).

Burns at work in Illinois

Section 5(a) of the Workers’ Compensation Act says a covered employee has no common law or statutory right to recover damages from the employer other than workers’ compensation (820 ILCS 305/5). The section now opens with “Except as provided in Section 1.2.”

Section 5(b) keeps claims against other parties alive. When someone other than the employer created legal liability for the injury, the worker can sue that person even though comp was paid. A warehouse worker burned in a battery fire might sue the battery maker, and a welder hurt by a contractor’s gas leak might sue the contractor. The employer is reimbursed out of the recovery and may claim a lien on any award, judgment or fund.

Burn centers in Illinois

The ABA directory lists five Illinois burn centers. Two are ABA-verified.

Source: American Burn Association, Find a Burn Center, directory checked November 2026.

Who may be liable for a burn

Start with whoever had control. In a home or apartment, that can be the owner or landlord who set the boiler too high or let wiring decay. On a job site it may be a contractor working next to your employer’s crew. A manufacturer may be responsible for a product that overheated or exploded, and a utility for a gas or power line. Restaurants answer for how they serve hot food and drinks. The ABA’s scald table shows water at 140°F can cause a third-degree burn in five seconds (ABA scald guide).

How Beverly Law helps in Illinois

Beverly Law is a California law firm. Its attorneys are licensed in California and Washington. For a burn that happened in Illinois, the firm works through its referral network with attorneys licensed in Illinois, and a free case review connects you with an Illinois-licensed burn injury attorney, usually within one business day.

Related pages

• Burn injury lawyer · Burn injury law by state · Burn centers · Indiana burn injury law · Wisconsin burn injury law

This page is general information about Illinois law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Laws change; a lawyer licensed in Illinois can tell you how they apply to your case.

Common questions

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Burn Injury Lawyer

Important: Attorney Advertising. This page is general information, not legal or medical advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Beverly Law is a California firm whose attorneys are licensed in California and Washington; for injuries in other states it works with attorneys licensed there through its referral network. Last reviewed: November 6, 2026.