Chicago

“Silence allows perpetrators to continue their abuse on children.” 

– Unknown

• Chicago Office:

20 N. Clark Street, Suite 1150
Chicago, IL 60602
Phone: 844-4KIDLAW (454-3529); 754-888-KIDS (5437)

Attorneys: Julianna B. Walo

Illinois’ child welfare system is in crisis. For more than three decades, foster children in the custody of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) have been physically, sexually and emotionally abused by the child welfare system that was supposed to keep them safe. For more than three decades, DCFS has faced a class action lawsuit and been forced by child advocates to live under a consent decree and court-ordered corrective action meant to fix the broken system. Yet, even after years of “reform,” stories of children sleeping in offices or detention centers, youth left in psychiatric hospitals long after they are ready to be discharged, and foster children cycling through unsafe homes continue to make headlines.

Across Illinois—from Chicago, Naperville, and Aurora to Rockford, Bolingbrook, Des Plaines, Hoffman Estates, Evanston, Elgin, Skokie, and Schaumburg—children and families feel the impact of DCFS decisions every day. Each child is more than a case number. They are sons, daughters, siblings, students, neighbors and clients of attorneys representing them whose lives are shaped by negligence of an overwhelmed system that was supposed to protect them. The children live with other relatives, foster parents, group homes and residential treatment facilities that were supposed to protect them. So many parents of who children enter foster care because of alleged abuse or neglect ask, “what did I do to deserve having my children physically or sexually abused.

Justice for Kids®, a division of Kelley Kronenberg, is one of the few law practices in the country focused on representing children harmed by government systems—including foster care, child protection agencies, residential facilities, schools, and other institutions that are supposed to keep kids safe. Our attorneys know child welfare systems because we are one of the few law firms nationally that limit our work to children who are in child welfare and disability systems.

Our work in Illinois centers on holding DCFS and related public and private institutions accountable for damages when they fail to protect children who are injured by physical or sexual abuse in foster care.

A System Under a Consent Decree: Decades of Illinois Foster Care Failures

B.H. v. Johnson: A Landmark Case That Still Isn’t Finished

In 1988, the ACLU of Illinois filed B.H. v. Johnson, a federal class action on behalf of children in DCFS custody who were placed somewhere other than with their parents. The lawsuit alleged that Illinois was violating children’s constitutional and statutory rights by leaving them in dangerous, inappropriate, or unstable placements without adequate services or oversight.

The result was DCFS’ agreement to a sweeping consent decree that has governed DCFS for more than 36 years. It promised reduced caseloads, better placements, safer homes, and appropriate services for children with complex needs. In theory, it was a roadmap for change. In practice, many of the same problems remain: children bounced between shelters and institutions, caseworkers with overwhelming caseloads, and youth who go months—or years—without consistent services or permanent families.

The decree has been amended, monitored, and revisited many times, but the central reality is unchanged: foster children are still being seriously injured on DCFS’ watch.

36 Years of “Reform” Without Safety

In the Justice for Kids® article “Illinois Child Welfare Crisis: 36 Years of Failed Reform at DCFS,”(insert cross link) our attorneys explore how this decades of litigation has failed to end  decades of recurring harm and injuries to children. Even as DCFS hires more staff or announces new initiatives, children continue to be:

• Parked in psychiatric hospitals long after they are cleared for discharge.
• Left in shelters, offices, and temporary placements that were never meant to be long-term homes.
• Placed in facilities that cannot meet their needs, often far from their schools, communities, and siblings.

For families and advocates trying to understand how Illinois could still be here decades after B.H., that article and our broader Illinois blog series help connect the dots between high-level litigation and the daily lives of children in care.

Overburdened Caseworkers and “Broken Trust”

In another Justice for Kids® perspective piece, “Broken Trust: How Overburdened Caseworkers Are Failing Illinois’ Most Vulnerable Children,” we examine what happens when an entire system is asked to do more with less. Chronic understaffing and high turnover lead to caseloads far above recommended standards. The consequences for children are immediate and severe:

• Home visits are rushed—or never happen at all.
• Red flags about abuse, neglect, or trafficking are being missed.
• Children remain in placements that everyone knows are wrong, simply because there is nowhere else to send them.

When caseworkers are overwhelmed, children pay the price. Reports go unanswered, services are delayed, and critical decisions about safety are made by people who simply don’t have enough time.

DCFS Child Sex Trafficking and Other Systemic Failures

Illinois has also seen devastating cases where children in DCFS custody were sexually exploited or trafficked, even after warnings were raised. In “Illinois DCFS Child Sex Trafficking Case Reveals Systemic Failures,” Justice for Kids® highlights how lack of supervision, poor placement decisions, and weak coordination among agencies can leave vulnerable youth exposed to predatory adults and repeat victimization.

These stories are not isolated tragedies; they are symptoms of more profound structural failures. When a child is trafficked after the state has already intervened in their life, it is not just a personal catastrophe —it is a system-level collapse.

The Human Cost Behind the Numbers

Illinois appears regularly on lists of states with some of the highest foster care populations in the country. But statistics can never fully capture what it means for a child to be removed from home, separated from siblings, moved between placements, or left in inappropriate facilities. Behind every number is a child who needs safety, stability, and a chance to heal.

Every class action, every consent decree, every investigative report tells the same story: when a child-welfare system fails to prioritize children’s safety and well-being, litigation becomes a last resort. That is where an Illinois foster care attorney with child-welfare experience can make a difference.

Justice for Kids® in Illinois: A National Child-Welfare Practice

Justice for Kids® brings a national focus on child-welfare litigation to Illinois and directly represents children and also works alongside experienced Illinois-licensed lawyers to represent children and families in complex abuse, neglect, and civil-rights personal injury cases.

Justice for Kids® has an Illinois office and has attorneys who bring deep experience in foster care, child welfare, and institutional abuse cases from around the country.

Justice for Kids® gives children access to attorneys who understand both the Illinois landscape and the national patterns of child-welfare failures and injury cases.

Our Attorneys Have National and Illinois Personal Injury Experience

Justin Grosz Justin Grosz is a Co-Business Unit Leader/Partner in the firm’s Justice for Kids® Division, Kelley Kronenberg’s national practice dedicated to providing legal services to abused, disabled, and catastrophically injured children harmed at home, in child welfare and foster care settings, group home settings and residential treatment centers, as well as all children harmed by the acts of others. also contributes his experience with Illinois cases and in other jurisdictions and is an experienced trial lawyer with more than 230 jury trials to verdict. (Link to bio)

 

Howard M. Talenfeld, founder of Justice for Kids®, is nationally recognized for his work on behalf of children abused, neglected, or injured in government systems. His experience in major child-welfare matters—including class actions, civil-rights cases, and complex foster-care litigation—helps inform our approach in Illinois cases. Her serves on the Board of the Youth Law Center ylc.org, which works on child welfare policy nationally protecting youth rights and ensuring child safety. (Link to bio)

Juliana Walo, Esquire, based in the Illinois Justice for Kids® office, has devoted significant time to working on Illinois cases issues involving Illinois DCFS. Juliana helps foster parents, caregivers, and advocates make sense of an incredibly complicated system. She has deep familiarity with Illinois statutes, DCFS policies, and how those rules actually play out in children’s lives. (Link to bio)

Justice for Kids® attorneys help children who have been physically, sexually, and emotional and sexually abused by DCFS and the providers who work with them who failed to protect children.

Justice for Kids® attorneys also care about improving child welfare policy throughout Illinois.

• “Illinois Child Welfare Crisis: 36 Years of Failed Reform at DCFS”
• “Understanding Illinois Child Welfare: Frequently Asked Questions About Foster Care”
• “Broken Trust: How Overburdened Caseworkers Are Failing Illinois’ Most Vulnerable Children”
• Commentary on DCFS child sex trafficking cases, children sleeping in offices, and youth stuck in psychiatric hospitals long after discharge—

Our Illinois Child-Welfare, Foster Care, and Abuse Services

Justice for Kids® works with Illinois co-counsel to pursue civil cases on behalf of children and families harmed by DCFS decisions, foster-care providers, residential facilities, and other institutions. While every case is unique, many of our Illinois-focused matters involve the following types of harm:

Illinois Foster Care Abuse and Neglect Cases

Our Illinois foster care attorneys review cases where children in DCFS custody suffered:

• Physical abuse, such as hitting, choking, bizarre punishment or other violence by foster parents, other caretakers or other children in the home.
• Sexual abuse or exploitation in foster homes, relative placements, shelters, group homes or other living arrangements.
• Chronic neglect, including lack of supervision, refusal to provide food, clothing, or medical care.
• Repeated placement disruptions, where a child is shuffled from home to home, each move deepening trauma.

We look closely at whether DCFS and private agencies:

• Ignored prior reports of abuse or neglect.
• Licensed or left children with foster parents or other children who had red flags concerning the potential for danger in their history.
• Failed to follow up on warning signs, school reports, or medical concerns.
• Violated Illinois rules, regulations, court orders, child welfare standards of care or other placement standards.

Institutional and Residential Facility Cases

Many Illinois children are placed not in traditional foster homes, but in:

• Group Homes
• Residential treatment centers
• Psychiatric hospitals and units
• Detention facilities or juvenile justice programs
• Other locked or secure facilities

In these settings, youth may encounter:

• Physical or Sexual Abuse
• Improper use of seclusion and restraint
• Overmedication or inappropriate psychiatric treatment
• Peer-on-peer violence, bullying, or exploitation
• Staff abuse or neglect, including failure to supervise or intervene
• Any other type of harm or injury

Our role is to examine whether DCFS and those facilities followed applicable child welfare standards of care, responded to complaints, investigated incidents properly, violated rules or procedures, and took appropriate steps to protect children once they knew—or should have known—of danger.

Children’s Civil Rights in Illinois

Illinois children have civil rights protected by both state law and federal law, including 42 U.S.C. § 1983. This was the basis of B.H. v. Johnson, the Illinois class action litigation that has been pending almost four decades and that still hasn’t been finished. The lawsuit alleged that Illinois was violating children’s constitutional and statutory rights by leaving them in dangerous, inappropriate, or unstable placements without adequate services or oversight. Although the class action is seeking prospective relief to its consent decree to improve child welfare practice in Illinois, this case does not seek damages for the class of children who have been injured because of the deficient practices.

A civil-rights–focused Illinois child welfare lawyer may explore issues such as:

• Physical, sexual or emotional abuse of children who in the custody of DCFS
• Unnecessary institutionalization, when children are kept in locked or hospital settings longer than their clinical needs require.
• Excessive force or abuse by staff in schools, detention centers, or residential facilities.
• Discrimination against children with disabilities, including denial of reasonable accommodations in education or care.

 

One of our blog pieces, “Children’s Civil Rights Lawyer in Chicago, Illinois – What They Do and How They Help,” discusses how civil-rights litigation can be used as a tool to protect children facing discrimination, abuse, or systemic neglect in Chicago and across the state.

Children with Disabilities and Special Needs

Illinois children with disabilities are especially vulnerable when schools, foster parents, and agencies fail to provide appropriate supports. In collaboration with Illinois-licensed counsel, we review cases involving:

• Child welfare services such as residential placement, counseling and disability services determined by professionals to be necessary for the child
• IEPs and 504 Plans that were ignored or poorly implemented.
• Children with autism, intellectual disabilities, or mental-health needs placed in inappropriate settings.
• Lack of access to required therapies or educational supports.
• Discriminatory discipline or exclusion practices that target students with disabilities.

In every case, we examine the intersection of DCFS’ and its child welfare providers responsibilities, school obligations, and disability rights to understand how the system failed and what can be done about it.

Serving Chicago and Communities Across Illinois

Although many of the most publicized DCFS cases have centered on Chicago, the child-welfare crisis in Illinois does not stop at the city limits. Children and families in communities throughout the state experience the impact of DCFS decisions, local providers, and institutional placements.

Working with Illinois-licensed counsel, Justice for Kids® reviews cases involving children from:

• Naperville
• Aurora
• Rockford
• Bolingbrook
• Des Plaines
• Hoffman Estates
• Evanston
• Elgin
• Skokie
• Schaumburg

Whether a child is placed in a foster home in the suburbs, a residential facility, hours away from home, or a specialized program in another part of the state, the same principles apply: DCFS and its contractors have a duty to keep children safe, follow the law, and act when warning signs appear.

If a child you care about has been harmed in Chicago, Naperville, Aurora, Rockford, Bolingbrook, Des Plaines, Hoffman Estates, Evanston, Elgin, Skokie, Schaumburg, or any other community in Illinois, you can contact Justice for Kids® to discuss what happened and learn more about potential options.

What to Expect When You Contact Justice for Kids® About an Illinois Case

Reaching out about a child-welfare case can feel intimidating. Many families and foster parents have already been through multiple meetings with DCFS, court hearings, and service providers. They may be afraid of retaliation or weary of being ignored.

Here’s generally what you can expect when you contact Justice for Kids® to discuss an Illinois matter:

1. Initial Conversation
   You share the broad outline of what has happened—who the child is, what DCFS or the courts have done, and what your current concerns are. This may happen by phone, through an online form, or in another format described on our website.
2. Preliminary Review
   If it appears that there may be a civil case to explore, we discuss how records might be obtained, such as DCFS files, medical records, or court documents. We also talk about timelines, privacy questions, and potential next steps.
3. Investigation and Strategy
   If we move forward, the team reviews records, consults experts when needed, and evaluates the options—negotiation, litigation, or other strategies aimed at both compensation for the child and systemic accountability.
4. Trauma-Informed Approach
   Throughout, we are mindful that children and families have already been through significant trauma. We work to limit unnecessary interviews, protect a child’s privacy, and ensure that legal action becomes a path toward safety—not another source of harm.

Frequently Asked Questions: Illinois Foster Care and DCFS

How many children are in foster care in Illinois?

Illinois consistently ranks among the states with the highest number of children in foster care. While exact numbers fluctuate, as of January 2025, more than 18,000 children were in DCFS custody or involved with the agency at any given time. The sheer size of the system makes oversight and accountability critical. Through the years hundreds of thousands of children, many of whom have been injured, are in the custody of DCFS.

Can Justice for Kids® represent children and families in Illinois?

Justice for Kids® collaborates with Illinois-licensed attorneys to represent children and families in Illinois. In certain cases, our attorneys may request pro hac vice admission from the court, which—if granted—allows them to participate in that case alongside local counsel. Licensing and admission rules vary, and we will always explain how representation works for your specific situation.

What kinds of Illinois cases does Justice for Kids® review?

Working with Illinois co-counsel, we typically review cases involving:

• Abuse, neglect, or wrongful death of children in DCFS custody or under DCFS supervision.
• Institutional abuse or neglect in hospitals, residential centers, detention facilities, or shelters.
• Civil-rights violations involving abuse, unnecessary institutionalization, discrimination, or excessive force.
• Cases where children in DCFS care were sexually assaulted, exploited or trafficked.

Do I have to be a biological parent to contact you?

No. We regularly hear from:

• Attorneys or GALs representing the children
• Foster parents
• Relative and fictive-kin caregivers
• Court-appointed advocates
• Former foster youth
• Community members concerned about a child’s safety

If you believe a child has been harmed by DCFS decisions or placements, you can reach out—even if you are not the child’s biological parent.

What if I’m afraid of retaliation from DCFS or a provider?

That concern is understandable. We can talk confidentially about your fears, including what protections might be available and what steps can be taken to reduce risk. In many cases, transparency and accountability become a protective force rather than a liability.

Speak with Justice for Kids® About an Illinois Case

If you are an attorney foster parent, relative caregiver, advocate, or former foster youth in Illinois and you’re concerned about how DCFS handled a child’s case, you do not have to navigate this alone.

Justice for Kids® is available to review Illinois child-welfare cases

Our mission is simple:

• Protect children.
• Hold systems accountable.
• Push for change so children do not have to endure the same harm.

Whether the child you’re worried about lives in Chicago, Naperville, Aurora, Rockford, Bolingbrook, Des Plaines, Hoffman Estates, Evanston, Elgin, Skokie, Schaumburg, or anywhere else in Illinois, you can reach out to us.

To discuss a potential Illinois case, contact Justice for Kids® through our website or by phone. We will listen, review your concerns, and help you understand what options may be available.

When public systems fail Illinois’ children by allowing them to be injured when they were supposed to be protected, legal advocacy can be the last—and sometimes only—line of protection for now and the future of these children.

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