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Proving a Government Entity Failed to Maintain an Illinois Road

Mon 23 Feb, 2026 / by / Car Accidents, Personal Injury

Last Updated: October 24, 2026

745 ILCS 10/3-102(a) gives a local public entity a duty to exercise ordinary care to maintain its property in a reasonably safe condition, and it requires actual or constructive notice in reasonably adequate time before the injury. 745 ILCS 10/1-206 says a local public entity does not include the State or a department of the State.

The Local Duty

Section 3-102(a) applies except as otherwise provided in Article III. The people covered are those the entity intended and permitted to use the property in a manner and at times that were reasonably foreseeable. The entity is not liable unless it is proved that the entity had actual or constructive notice of a condition that is not reasonably safe, in reasonably adequate time to remedy or protect against it. The source is P.A. 84-1431. Subsection (b) states two grounds on which the entity does not have constructive notice. One ground is that a reasonably adequate inspection system would not have discovered the condition. The other is that the entity maintained and operated such a system with due care and did not discover the condition. 745 ILCS 10/2-201 says a public employee serving in a position involving the determination of policy or the exercise of discretion is not liable for an injury resulting from an act or omission in determining policy when acting in the exercise of that discretion, even though abused. Notice under section 3-102(a) is an element of that section. It does not erase section 2-201.

A Claim Against the State

Section 1-206 includes a county, a township, and a municipality. Its source is P.A. 94-424, effective August 2, 2005. Section 3-102 does not set the State’s duty. A tort claim against the State is filed in the Court of Claims. 705 ILCS 505/8(d) gives that court jurisdiction if a like cause of action would lie against a private person or corporation. The statutory base for a tort award is $2,000,000 to or for the benefit of any claimant. The same subsection requires the court to adjust that maximum each year for any increase in the Consumer Price Index For All Urban Consumers for the previous calendar year, as determined by the United States Department of Labor. The Comptroller’s 2026 award-limit notice states the adjusted tort limit for 2026 at $2,629,104.52. The amount for another year is the adjustment published for that year. Neither the statutory base nor the adjusted maximum applies to an award arising out of the operation by a State employee of a vehicle owned, leased, or controlled by the State. 745 ILCS 10/8-101(a) is one year from the date the injury was received or the cause of action accrued, against a local entity or its employees, other than the patient-care action in subsection (b). 705 ILCS 505/22(h) is two years after accrual for a Court of Claims filing that is not in subsections (a) through (g). 705 ILCS 505/22-1 requires a notice, within one year from the injury or accrual, before a Court of Claims action for damages on account of an injury to the person. The same section says a claimant is not required to file that notice if the claim is filed within one year of accrual.

The Person’s Share

735 ILCS 5/2-1116 diminishes damages in proportion when contributory fault is not more than 50 percent of the proximate cause, and it bars recovery above that share. 735 ILCS 5/2-1117 makes defendants found liable jointly and severally liable for past and future medical and medically related expenses, except as provided in section 2-1118. A defendant under 25 percent of the stated total fault is severally liable for the other damages. A defendant at 25 percent or more is jointly and severally liable for the other damages. A photograph, a measurement, and a maintenance record can be part of the proof of the condition and of notice. None of those items replaces section 3-102.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What records can show notice of a road defect?

Section 3-102(a) requires actual or constructive notice in reasonably adequate time. An inspection log, a repair record, a complaint, and a prior report can be part of that proof.

Does notice of a hazard remove a government immunity defense?

Section 3-102(a) requires actual or constructive notice before liability under that section. Subsection (b) states two grounds on which the entity does not have constructive notice. Section 2-201 remains a separate limit for a discretionary policy decision.

Can a government entity be liable even if I was partially at fault for the accident?

Section 2-1116 diminishes damages when the plaintiff’s share is not more than 50 percent of the proximate cause. A share above 50 percent bars recovery. Section 2-1117 separates medical expenses from the 25 percent line for the other damages.

Does a road-defect claim require an accident reconstruction expert?

Section 3-102(a) uses proof of the condition, notice, and time to remedy or protect. The section does not name a required expert.

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