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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

Gessling

Aug 3, 2009S.D. Ind.Mixed Result

George Nemsky v. International Union of Operati

Aug 3, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

Adams

Aug 3, 2009S.D. Ind.Defendant Win

Addis

Jul 30, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

Cockroft

Jul 28, 2009W.D. Wis.Defendant Win

In Re Fedex Ground Package System, Inc.

Jul 27, 2009INNDMixed Result

Local 65-B, Graphic Communications Conference of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters v. National Labor Relations Board

Jul 10, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

Mayden

Jul 10, 2009INNDMixed Result

Local 65-B, Graphic Communicat v. NLRB

Jul 10, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

Barker

Jul 9, 2009N.D. Ill.Mixed Result

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. International Profit Associates, Inc.

Jul 7, 2009N.D. Ill.Mixed Result

Castronovo

Jul 6, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

John Castronovo v. National Union Fire Insurance

Jul 6, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

Trustees of the Automobile Mechanics Local No. 701 Pension & Welfare Funds v. Union Bank of California, N.A.

Jul 1, 2009N.D. Ill.Mixed Result

EEOC v. AutoZone Inc.

Jun 29, 2009C.D. Ill.Mixed Result

Elborough

Jun 23, 2009W.D. Wis.Mixed Result

United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Olsten Staffing Services Corp.

Jun 18, 2009W.D. Wis.Mixed Result

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Caterpillar, Inc.

Jun 18, 2009N.D. Ill.Plaintiff Win

Barker

Jun 3, 2009N.D. Ill.Plaintiff Win

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Synergy Health Inc.

Jun 2, 2009E.D. Wis.Dismissed

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Management Hospitality of Racine, Inc.

May 27, 2009E.D. Wis.Mixed Result

Kauspadas

May 22, 20097th CircuitDismissed

Edmundas Kauspadas v. Eric Holder, Jr.

May 22, 20097th CircuitDismissed

Teresa R. v. Madison Metropolitan School District

May 20, 2009W.D. Wis.Plaintiff Win

GCIU-Employer Retirement Fund v. Goldfarb Corp.

May 11, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

GCIU-Employer Retirement Fund v. Goldfarb Corporation

May 11, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

Adams

May 6, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

Adams

May 6, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

Adams

May 6, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

Adams

May 6, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

Wayne Adams v. Jeffrey Rotkvich

May 6, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

Wayne Adams v. Oscar Szczerbinski

May 6, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

New Process Steel v. National Labor Relations Board

May 1, 20097th CircuitPlaintiff Win

New Process Steel, L.P. v. NLRB

May 1, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

Adams

Apr 28, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

Adams

Apr 28, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

Kevin Adams v. Retail Ventures, Incorporated

Apr 28, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

Richardson v. Astellas U.S. LLC Employee Benefit Plan

Apr 23, 2009N.D. Ill.Defendant Win

Antonetti

Apr 21, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

Scott Antonetti v. Abbott Laboratories

Apr 21, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

Ward

Apr 16, 20097th CircuitRemanded

International Union of Operati v. Joseph Ward

Apr 16, 20097th CircuitRemanded

Green

Apr 9, 2009N.D. Ill.Plaintiff Win

City of St. Clair Shores General Employees Retirement System v. Inland Western Retail Real Estate Trust, Inc.

Apr 1, 2009N.D. Ill.Dismissed

A. Bauer Mechanical, Inc. v. Joint Arbitration Board of the Plumbing Contractors' Ass'n & Chicago Journeymen Plumbers' Union 130

Mar 25, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

Trustees of the Teamsters Union Local No. 142 Pension Trust Fund v. McAllister, Inc.

Mar 17, 2009INNDPlaintiff Win

Clear Channel Outdoor, Inc. v. International Unions of Painters & Allied Trades, Local 770

Mar 12, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

Clear Channel Outdoor v. International Unions of Painte

Mar 12, 20097th CircuitDefendant Win

Walsh

Mar 9, 2009N.D. Ill.Defendant Win

Ekstrand

Mar 3, 2009W.D. Wis.Defendant Win

Browse Other 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.