After several years lying dormant, followed by several more years of being the bane of Illinois businesses, the Illinois General Assembly has undertaken concerted efforts to amend the Biometric Information Privacy Act of 2008 (BIPA) to curb what has been termed “annihilative liability.” Unlike prior failed attempts by the General Assembly, most of which occurred before settlements in verdicts started rolling in, it appears that 2024 might be the year that changes to BIPA will be enacted.

On Jan. 31, 2024, Sen. Bill Cunningham introduced S.B. 2979 ostensibly to answer the call from the Illinois Supreme Court that the General Assembly “make clear its intent regarding the assessment of damages under the act” in Cothron v. White Castle, 2023 IL 128004 (Ill. Feb. 17, 2023).