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Employment Rulings in the Seventh Circuit

The Seventh Circuit covers the federal courts in Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin. The rulings below come from the circuit's court of appeals and the federal trial courts within it.

Of the 2,293 published rulings we track here (19732026), the breakdowns below show how they were decided. They describe published opinions only — not the odds of any particular situation.

How These Rulings Ended

Of the 2,293 published rulings we track in the Seventh Circuit.

Defendant Win
994 (43%)
Plaintiff Win
418 (18%)
Mixed Result
401 (17%)
Dismissed
288 (13%)
Remanded
154 (7%)
Settlement
38 (2%)

What Happens at Each Stage

A workplace lawsuit moves through stages, and a ruling can end it at any of them. Here is where the 2,252 rulings we could classify by stage were decided.

Appeal
987 (44%)

A higher court reviewing an earlier decision. Many published opinions come from this stage, after a lot has already happened in the case.

Summary judgment
465 (21%)

A ruling where the judge decides the case — or part of it — without a trial, because one side argues the key facts are not in dispute. For workers, getting past this step is often the biggest hurdle.

Of the 465 summary-judgment rulings here, 273 ended the case in the employer’s favor and 191 let the worker’s claims continue; the rest resolved in other ways.

Motion to dismiss
632 (28%)

An early request — usually by the employer — to throw the case out before any evidence is gathered.

Trial verdict
60 (3%)

A judge or jury heard the evidence and reached a decision. Relatively few disputes get this far.

Settlement / consent decree
35 (2%)

The two sides resolved the dispute by agreement, sometimes with court approval. Most settlements are private and never show up in published opinions.

Default judgment
34 (2%)

A decision entered because one side did not respond to the case at all.

Other rulings
39 (2%)

Procedural decisions and orders that do not fit the main stages above.

States in This Circuit

Browse rulings from courts in each state the Seventh Circuit covers.

Recent Rulings in the Seventh Circuit

International Union of Operati v. Wisconsin Legislature

Dec 17, 20207th CircuitDefendant Win

International Union of Operati v. Wisconsin Legislature

Dec 17, 20207th CircuitDefendant Win

BARRETT

Dec 16, 2020S.D. Ind.Plaintiff Win

Leskovisek

Dec 11, 2020C.D. Ill.Plaintiff Win

Joseph Ocol v. Chicago Teachers Union

Dec 9, 20207th CircuitDefendant Win

Mausser

Dec 9, 2020C.D. Ill.Mixed Result

Joseph Ocol v. Chicago Teachers Union

Dec 9, 20207th CircuitDefendant Win

O'Leary

Nov 30, 2020E.D. Wis.Dismissed

MARTON

Nov 30, 2020S.D. Ind.Defendant Win

Clarson

Nov 30, 2020N.D. Ill.Defendant Win

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.

Nov 25, 2020W.D. Wis.Plaintiff Win

Dean

Nov 24, 2020N.D. Ill.Mixed Result

Carlson

Nov 23, 2020N.D. Ill.Mixed Result

Puffer

Nov 20, 2020C.D. Ill.Mixed Result

Employers & Laborers Locals 100 & 397 Pension, Health, Welfare and Annuity Funds v. Ehret, Inc.

Nov 16, 2020S.D. Ill.Settlement

Wisconsin Laborers Pension Fund v. R.L. Davis Contracting Services, L.L.C.

Nov 12, 2020W.D. Wis.Plaintiff Win

Dougherty

Nov 5, 2020N.D. Ill.Remanded

Central Laborers' Pension Welfare and Annuity Funds v. M.D. Magary Construction Company

Oct 30, 2020S.D. Ill.Mixed Result

Adam Delgado v. U.S. Department of Justice

Oct 29, 20207th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Adam Delgado v. U.S. Department of Justice

Oct 29, 20207th CircuitRemanded

Adam Delgado v. U.S. Department of Justice

Oct 29, 20207th CircuitPlaintiff Win

International Union of Operating Engineers v. Ryan & Associates, Inc.

Oct 27, 2020N.D. Ill.Plaintiff Win

DOE

Oct 26, 2020S.D. Ind.Defendant Win

International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 150, AFL-CIO v. Adamo Demolition Company

Oct 26, 2020N.D. Ill.Remanded

Siebert

Oct 21, 2020N.D. Ill.Defendant Win

Martin

Oct 20, 2020INNDPlaintiff Win

Teamsters Local Union No. 705 v. Central Contractors Service, Inc.

Oct 9, 2020N.D. Ill.Plaintiff Win

Donegal Services, LLC v. International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150, AFL-CIO

Oct 8, 2020N.D. Ill.Mixed Result

Jimenez

Oct 8, 2020N.D. Ill.Defendant Win

Blevins

Oct 6, 2020N.D. Ill.Plaintiff Win

Gill

Oct 6, 2020N.D. Ill.Defendant Win

Blevins

Oct 6, 2020N.D. Ill.Mixed Result

Tucker

Oct 6, 2020N.D. Ill.Plaintiff Win

Tischer, Jessica v. Union Pacific Railroad Company

Sep 30, 2020W.D. Wis.Defendant Win

Adamczyk

Sep 30, 2020S.D. Ill.Dismissed

Strong-Davis

Sep 30, 2020N.D. Ill.Defendant Win

Laborforce, LLC v. Automobile Mechanics' Union Local No. 701, IAMAW, AFL-CIO

Sep 29, 2020N.D. Ill.Defendant Win

Balderas

Sep 28, 2020N.D. Ill.Mixed Result

DONNELLY

Sep 25, 2020S.D. Ind.Defendant Win

GEORGE

Sep 24, 2020S.D. Ind.Mixed Result

Lymon

Sep 24, 2020INNDDismissed

Donald

Sep 22, 2020INNDRemanded

Grillo

Sep 22, 2020N.D. Ill.Mixed Result

Laborers' Pension Fund v. Dinatale Construction Inc.

Sep 16, 2020N.D. Ill.Dismissed

Webb

Sep 16, 2020N.D. Ill.Dismissed

Mark Mlsna v. Union Pacific Railroad Compan

Sep 14, 20207th CircuitRemanded

Mark Mlsna v. Union Pacific Railroad Compan

Sep 14, 20207th CircuitRemanded

Central States, Southeast and Southwest Areas Pension Fund v. Dworkin, Inc.

Sep 8, 2020N.D. Ill.Remanded

Laborers' Pension Fund v. Ruane Construction, Inc.

Sep 8, 2020N.D. Ill.Plaintiff Win

Laborers' Pension Fund v. Ruane Construction, Inc.

Sep 4, 2020N.D. Ill.Plaintiff Win

Browse Other Circuits

Explore employment rulings from the other federal circuits.

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These figures summarize publicly available published court opinions only. Published opinions over-represent summary-judgment rulings (decisions made without a trial) and appeals, because those are the stages where judges most often write formal opinions. Most workplace disputes settle privately and never appear here at all. A ruling’s outcome reflects many case-specific factors and is not a prediction for any other situation. Read more about how we source and classify rulings.

Data sourced from public federal court records via CourtListener.com. Case outcomes extracted using AI analysis. This information is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. The classification of outcomes and case stages is based on automated analysis and may not reflect the full scope of each case.