In 2021 and 2023, Illinois changed what schools must do to protect students from sexual misconduct by staff. The changes are known together as Faith's Law. For families and survivors, they matter for a practical reason. Faith's Law sets out in writing what a school was supposed to have in place, which gives a civil claim a clear standard to measure the school against.
You do not need to have reported the abuse, and nobody needs to have been charged. A civil claim asks what the school district knew, what it should have known, and what it did. Attorney Ervin Nevitt, a partner at Coplan + Crane (Illinois bar registration 6319808, admitted 2014), reviews these cases.
Where Faith's Law came from
Faith's Law is two acts of the 102nd General Assembly on sexual misconduct by school staff. Public Act 102-0676 took effect on December 3, 2021. Public Act 102-0702 took effect on July 1, 2023.
The law is named after Faith Colson. She was abused by a teacher at her Illinois high school and later learned that several adults there had suspected the relationship and did not report it.
Requirement one: a clear definition of sexual misconduct
Section 22-85.5 of the School Code (105 ILCS 5/22-85.5) defines sexual misconduct as any act by an employee or agent of a school district, charter school, or nonpublic school with direct contact with a student, directed toward or with a student to establish a romantic or sexual relationship. The act can be verbal, nonverbal, written, or electronic communication, or physical activity.
Listed examples include romantic invitations, dating, sexualized dialog, suggestive comments, and sexual or romantic contact. The definition reaches conduct well short of a crime. Romantic messages to a student qualify even with no physical contact.
Requirement two: a posted code of conduct
Every district, charter school, and nonpublic school must have an employee code of professional conduct policy that includes the definition and sets staff-student boundaries. It must include guidelines on transporting students, taking or keeping photos or video of students, and contacting students outside the employee's professional role. The policy must be posted on the school's website, if it has one, and included in handbooks.
That posted policy becomes an important document in a civil claim. If a staff member broke it and others saw it happen, the question becomes what the school did about it.
Requirement three: notice to the student and family
Since July 1, 2023, when an employee, agent, or contractor is alleged to have engaged in sexual misconduct with an enrolled student, the school must tell the student and then notify the parents or guardians in writing. A second notice follows if the board takes formal action on the employee's job, such as a termination or an accepted resignation. That second notice must say whether a report was or will be sent to the State Superintendent of Education.
Parent notice is not required once the student is 18 or emancipated. The school does not have to name the employee.
Requirement four: employment history reviews
Section 22-94 of the School Code, added by Public Act 102-0702, covers every permanent and temporary job at a public or nonpublic school that involves direct contact with students, including contractor staff such as bus drivers.
Before hiring, the school must get a statement on ISBE's template saying whether the applicant has been the subject of a sexual misconduct allegation, left or been disciplined at a job because of one, or had a license suspended, surrendered, or revoked for that reason. The school must put the same questions to the applicant's current employer and to past employers that were schools or involved work with children. For ISBE-licensed applicants, it must check the reported employers against ISBE's licensure records.
Requirement five: no secret deals
Since July 1, 2023, a school may not sign a resignation or severance agreement that suppresses information about a pending investigation or a substantiated allegation. Such terms are void.
A completed review does not have to be repeated when the employee moves to another school in the same district, diocese, or religious organization. The review information is not a public record and cannot be obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request, so families usually reach it through a lawsuit.
Faith's Law and grooming
In passing Faith's Law, the General Assembly found that many breaches of staff-student boundaries are not criminal but still put students at risk, and that repeated boundary violations can indicate grooming. The law widened the criminal definition of grooming (720 ILCS 5/11-25) to cover acts in person, through a third party, and in writing. It also made grooming a form of abuse that school staff must report to DCFS under the Illinois mandatory reporter law.
The boundaries schools must set give families signs to watch for. These include a staff member messaging a student privately on a personal phone or social media account instead of school channels, driving a student alone without parental permission, or taking or keeping photos or video of a student for no school purpose. They also include one-on-one time in an empty room, sometimes framed as extra help, meeting or contacting the student off campus or outside school hours, and sharing personal, romantic, or sexual details or commenting on the student's appearance.
None of these alone proves abuse. In a civil claim, the question is whether other staff saw the pattern, whether it broke the school's written policy, and what the school did once it knew.
Faith's Law reaches private and religious schools
The sexual misconduct definition, the code of conduct policy, the parent notice procedures, and the employment history review all apply to nonpublic schools as well as public districts and charter schools. In a Catholic or other religious school, the school, parish, diocese, religious order, or an operating corporation may each be a defendant, depending on who employed and supervised the teacher.
A private or religious school is not a local public entity under the Tort Immunity Act, so those immunities do not protect it in the same way, and it is not subject to FOIA. Private schools follow the ordinary rules.
When the school is a public district
Where the school is a public district, the defendant is a public body, and the Illinois Tort Immunity Act comes in immediately, with its immunities and its notice and timing rules. A public school district or school board is a "local public entity" under the Act. Under Section 3-108, for example, a public entity is not liable for an injury caused by its supervision, or by a failure to supervise where it had a duty to, unless the conduct was willful and wanton.
Childhood sexual abuse claims are treated differently from other claims against public bodies. How the timing rules apply to you depends on your facts, so have a lawyer check your dates. Districts are also public bodies under FOIA, so some records can be requested before a lawsuit.
These claims are usually brought against the school district, not only against the individual. The theory that most often carries them is failure to report, since school staff are mandated reporters and a complaint received and not reported is itself a documented failure. Several theories usually run together, depending on your facts. Districts keep personnel files, prior complaints, and transfer histories.
License discipline
Illinois educators hold licenses issued by ISBE under Article 21B of the School Code. Under Section 21B-75, the State Superintendent has exclusive authority to start proceedings to suspend a license for up to five years or revoke it, including for abuse of a child, sexual misconduct, and willful or negligent failure to report suspected abuse. A district superintendent with reasonable cause to believe a license holder committed sexual misconduct that led to dismissal or resignation must report it in writing to the State Superintendent and the regional superintendent.
The Educator Licensure Information System (ELIS) on isbe.net lets anyone search license information by city, district, school, or educator name. Misconduct findings and sanctions are verified separately by email request, which requires the educator's identification number and date of birth. An active license does not mean no complaint was ever made.
Common Questions Around Faith's Law
Will the school tell us if a staff member is accused of misconduct with our child? Under Faith's Law, yes. The school must notify the student and then the parents in writing when an allegation is made about an enrolled student under 18, and again if the board acts on the employee's job. It does not have to name the employee.
Does Faith's Law apply to Catholic and private schools? Yes. The definition, the code of conduct policy, the parent notices, and the employment history review all apply to nonpublic schools.
Can I find out whether a teacher was disciplined before? Partly. ELIS shows license information, but misconduct findings require a separate ISBE request, and employment history review forms are not public records. Prior complaints and transfers usually come out in a lawsuit.
Does someone have to have been convicted? No. A civil case uses a lower standard of proof than a criminal one and is usually brought against the institution.
I am asking for someone else. That is fine and happens often. The person involved has no obligation to do anything.
I only remember part of it. That is ordinary. These cases are built from institutional records rather than a complete account.
What happens if you reach out
A question sets nothing in motion. You speak with a person, not a form, and you do not need to describe what happened. We look into which institution was responsible, what it knew, what records exist, and whether a claim can still be brought, at no cost to you.
We tell you plainly what is possible. If you decide not to go ahead, that is the end of it, and what you told us stays confidential. If you go ahead, we handle the filings, deadlines, records, and insurers. Steps can be taken to protect your identity in the court record.
Call (708) 671-6858 for a free, confidential case review.
