In a major victory for local government entities, Sean Conway of the Bond Conway Smith Law Firm has successfully defended an Illinois township before the Illinois Appellate Court, securing a complete affirmation of the lawsuit’s dismissal in Mankame v. Bloomingdale Township et al., 2024 IL App (3d) 230381-U.
The Appellate Court’s decisive ruling firmly validates the absolute immunity protections granted to local public entities under Section 3-104 of the Illinois Local Governmental and Governmental Employees Tort Immunity Act.
The underlying wrongful death lawsuit, initiated by the decedent’s estate, sought damages from Bloomingdale Township following a fatal bicycle and vehicle accident. The plaintiff asserted claims of negligence and willful and wanton misconduct regarding a trail to road design and lack of signage.
Sean Conway with the Bond Conway Smith Law Firm obtained dismissal of plaintiff’s claims by establishing that the township holds absolute immunity against lawsuits concerning the initial provision of traffic and trail warning signs. The appellate court concurred, ruling that the Township was afforded absolute tort immunity from plaintiff’s claims grounded in the Township’s failure to initially provide for traffic signage under Illinois law.
This ruling confirms the legal contours of the Tort Immunity Act to safeguard local government resources from open-ended liability and highlights the Bond Conway Smith Law Firm’s ongoing commitment to top-tier litigation defense on behalf of local governmental entities. The full appellate court ruling can be accessed directly through the Illinois Courts Official Archive.