Punitive Damages in Illinois Drunk Driving Accident Cases

Last Updated: October 24, 2026

735 ILCS 5/2-1115 bars punitive, exemplary, vindictive, and aggravated damages in legal, medical, hospital, and other healing-art malpractice. It does not grant those damages in an ordinary injury case. 735 ILCS 5/2-1115.05 is printed as a section added by Public Act 89-7, which the official compilation says has been held unconstitutional.

Section 2-1115 applies in all cases, whether in tort, contract, or otherwise, in which the plaintiff seeks damages by reason of legal, medical, hospital, or other healing art malpractice. In those cases, no punitive, exemplary, vindictive, or aggravated damages shall be allowed. The section’s source note is Public Act 84-7.

What the compilation prints next to that section

Section 2-1115.05 is not applied on this page. The official text says the section was added by Public Act 89-7, which has been held unconstitutional. That printed text includes a three-times limit and a clear-and-convincing standard, and its subsection (e) says nothing in the section shall be construed to create a right to recover punitive damages. The official compilation says Public Act 89-7 has been held unconstitutional. Its three-times limit and its clear-and-convincing standard are not current rules.

735 ILCS 5/2-604.1 is printed in two forms. One form includes the changes made by Public Act 89-7 and is marked unconstitutional. The other form, from Public Act 84-1431, says that where punitive damages are permitted in an action for bodily injury or physical damage to property based on negligence, or in a product-liability action based on strict tort liability, the complaint shall not be filed with a prayer for those damages. A plaintiff may seek to amend after a hearing if the plaintiff establishes a reasonable likelihood of proving facts at trial sufficient to support an award. The motion shall be made not later than 30 days after the close of discovery. That pleading sequence applies where punitive damages are permitted. It does not say that driving after drinking permits them.

A death claim

740 ILCS 180/2(a) includes punitive damages when applicable in the damages a jury may give for a wrongful death. The same section states that punitive damages are not available in an action for healing art malpractice or legal malpractice, or in an action against the State or a unit of local government or an employee of either in an official capacity. A claim by a living injured person is not that death action.

Compensatory fault still follows 735 ILCS 5/2-1116. Contributory fault of more than 50 percent bars recovery. Otherwise the damages are reduced in proportion to that fault.

If a drunk driver injured you, Parker & Parker can separate the malpractice bar, the pleading statute, and the death statute from the facts of the crash.

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Parker & Parker reviews personal injury claims for people in Peoria and across Central Illinois. Call 309-673-0069 or contact us online for a free consultation.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does section 2-1115 set a cap for an ordinary injury case?

No. Section 2-1115 bars punitive, exemplary, vindictive, and aggravated damages in legal, medical, hospital, and other healing-art malpractice. It does not set a dollar cap for an ordinary injury case, and it does not grant those damages in that case. The three-times limit is in section 2-1115.05, which the compilation marks as added by an act that has been held unconstitutional.

What does section 2-604.1 say about pleading?

Where punitive damages are permitted in the actions described by the Public Act 84-1431 text, the complaint is not filed with that prayer. An amendment requires a hearing and a reasonable likelihood of proving facts sufficient to support an award, and the motion is made not later than 30 days after the close of discovery.

What does the death statute say?

Section 180/2(a) includes punitive damages when applicable in a wrongful-death action. They are not available in a healing-art or legal-malpractice action, or against the State or a unit of local government or an employee of either in an official capacity.

Does section 2-1116 still apply?

Contributory fault of more than 50 percent bars recovery. Otherwise the damages are reduced in proportion to that fault. Section 2-1115 does not change that rule.

If you or a loved one has been injured in a car accident, Peoria personal injury lawyer Robert Parker is ready to help you pursue damages supported by the evidence.

Need a lawyer? This article is part of our Peoria Car Accident Lawyer practice area. Call Parker & Parker at 309-673-0069 for a free consultation.