Your Parent Was Supposed to Be Cared For.
Bedsores, unexplained falls, weight loss, medication mistakes — when a nursing home fails a resident, Illinois law gives that resident and their family the right to answers and accountability. Marker Law reads the records and finds out what really happened.
The Nursing Home Care Act Gives Residents Real Rights
Illinois licensed long-term care facilities are governed by the Nursing Home Care Act (210 ILCS 45). The Act sets out a residents' bill of rights and makes the facility's licensee responsible for injuries caused by the negligent or intentional acts of its employees and agents. Facilities that take Medicare or Medicaid also have to meet federal care requirements. Those rules exist because residents depend entirely on the people around them — and when a home cuts corners on staffing, supervision or basic care, the harm shows up fast.
- The right to be free from abuse and neglect, and from unnecessary physical or chemical restraints
- The right to adequate and appropriate medical care and an individual plan of care
- The right to privacy, to manage your own financial affairs, and to have visitors
- The right to raise a complaint about care without fear of retaliation or discharge
- A claim under the Act can recover actual damages plus costs and attorney's fees
Worried You Are Overreacting?
Families almost never call too early. If something looks wrong — a wound nobody explained, a fall nobody told you about, a parent who has stopped eating — a Marker Law attorney will look at it with you and tell you honestly whether there is a case. The consultation is free.
Talk to Marker Law — Free ConsultWhat to Do If You Suspect Neglect
The steps you take in the first days matter — for your loved one's safety and for the record of what happened.
Address the Medical Need
Safety first. Ask for an evaluation, insist a doctor sees the wound or the change in condition, and get your loved one to a hospital or a different provider if that is what the situation calls for.
Photograph & Write It Down
Photograph wounds, bruises, soiled bedding and the room, dated where you can. Keep a simple log of what you saw, when you saw it, who you spoke to and what they said.
Request the Records
Ask the facility in writing for the chart, care plan, medication records and incident reports. A resident or their legal representative has the right to see and get copies of the record.
Report It
Concerns about a licensed Illinois facility can be reported to the Illinois Department of Public Health, and suspected abuse to local law enforcement. Complaint findings become part of the record.
Sign Nothing New
Do not sign a settlement, release or new admission agreement — including an arbitration clause — because the facility asks you to. Have an attorney read it first. The consultation is free.
How Marker Law Handles Nursing Home Cases
These cases are won in the paperwork. Marker Law attorneys go through it line by line.
Get the Full Record
Marker Law attorneys request the complete chart — care plan and assessments, nursing and wound-care notes, medication administration records, fall and incident reports — along with staffing schedules and the facility's inspection and complaint-investigation history from the Illinois Department of Public Health.
Prove What the Care Should Have Been
The care plan says what the facility promised; the charting shows what it actually did. Where the two do not line up, Marker Law works with medical professionals to explain the standard of care, the cause of the injury, and what the resident went through.
Negotiate — or Go to Trial
Facilities and their insurers are represented from day one, and they respond to firms that are ready to file. If the offer doesn't reflect what your family lost, Marker Law attorneys are prepared to take the case to a jury. No recovery, no fee.
Neglect & Abuse in Illinois Nursing Homes
Most of these cases start the same way: a family notices something that nobody at the facility can explain.
Bedsores & Pressure Ulcers
Pressure ulcers develop when an immobile resident is not turned, repositioned and kept clean and dry. They are largely preventable with the right care plan, and a serious wound is one of the clearest signs that care broke down.
Falls & Fractures
Facilities are supposed to assess each resident's fall risk and put precautions in place — supervision, bed and chair alarms, assistance with transfers, safe footwear. Repeat or unwitnessed falls, and falls nobody reported to the family, deserve a hard look.
Malnutrition & Dehydration
Unexplained weight loss, sunken features, confusion and repeated urinary tract infections can point to residents who are not getting help with meals and fluids. Weights and intake are supposed to be tracked in the chart.
Medication Errors
Missed doses, wrong doses, the wrong drug, failure to monitor, and sedating a resident with antipsychotics for staff convenience rather than a documented medical need. Medication administration records show what was actually given.
Wandering & Elopement
Residents with dementia can leave a unit or the building entirely when supervision, alarms and secure doors fail. Elopement cases are among the most dangerous — and the facility's own assessments usually show the risk was known.
Understaffing, Abuse & Exploitation
Chronic short staffing is behind much of the neglect above. Separately, physical, sexual and verbal abuse, improper restraint, and financial exploitation of a resident's money or property are all violations of the Nursing Home Care Act.
Damages in an Illinois Nursing Home Case
Illinois law allows recovery for the harm itself, not just the bills that came with it. What fits your case depends on the facts.
Medical & Care Costs
Hospital stays, wound care and surgery, therapy, and the cost of the additional care the injury made necessary — past and future.
Pain, Suffering & Disfigurement
Physical pain, emotional distress, disability and disfigurement, and the loss of the normal life the resident had before — all compensable elements under Illinois law.
Costs & Attorney's Fees
Where a claim is brought under the Nursing Home Care Act, the statute allows a resident whose rights were violated to recover actual damages plus costs and attorney's fees from the facility.
Survival Claim
If the resident has died, the estate can pursue the claim the resident had while alive — including the pain and suffering they endured before death.
Wrongful Death
Illinois law allows the surviving spouse and next of kin to recover for their grief, sorrow and mental suffering, and for the loss of that person's society and companionship.
An Honest Assessment
No two nursing home cases are alike, and no lawyer can promise a result. A Marker Law attorney will tell you what your case realistically involves before you decide anything.
25+ Years of Recognition
Frequently Asked Questions
Straightforward answers to the questions Marker Law clients ask most often about this topic.
We Care & Want to Listen. It’s FREE.
Tell us what happened. We want to help, and there is never a fee for a consult with us.