Civil Rights Defense

Ancel Glink is a leader in civil rights litigation.

Our attorneys successfully defend public entities and officials against claims of:

  • Police misconduct
  • Unlawful policy and practice
  • Employment discrimination and retaliation
  • Sex discrimination in education
  • Sexual abuse
  • Hate crimes
  • Sexual harassment
  • First Amendment violations

Ancel Glink’s litigators are attorneys of records in hundreds of published opinions and verdict reports involving civil rights cases. Our litigation team regularly obtains favorable defense verdicts, summary judgment, and dismissals in favor of our clients. The following are just a few examples of our successes: 

  • Prevailed before a federal jury in a class action case involving illegal recording of telephone conversations at a police dispatch center. Amati v. City of Woodstock
  • Successfully defended the City of Chicago and police officer defendants before federal juries in Section 1983 police misconduct litigation. Acuna v. City of Chicago; Lopez v. City of Chicago
  • Obtained success before federal juries in favor of municipalities and their officers in excessive force and false arrest cases involving police shooting, tasing and other uses of force. Adams v. City of Des Plaines; Berryhill v. Village of Streamwood; Clarett v. Lansing; Foley v. Village of Gurnee; Oh v. City of Des Plaines
  • Defeated civil rights claims at trial against a police officer who fatally shot a college student who attacked the officer after resisting arrest. Estate of Uwumarogie v. Village of Glen Ellyn
  • Successfully defended a school district in a federal bilingual education discrimination class action. Cortez v. Calumet School District 132
  • Prevailed on summary judgment in favor of a city and police chief on claim brought by former police officer alleging his termination violated the First Amendment. Lalowski v. City of Des Plaines
  • Obtained summary judgment in favor of a city involving a municipal policy claim following the alleged sexual assault of the plaintiff. Swinney v. Waukegan
  • Prevailed before federal jury in Title IX discrimination litigation against school districts and school administrators involving sexual abuse claims. Doe v. Smith and Champaign School District
  • Prevailed on appeal in sexual abuse claim on ruling that attorney investigations are protected from disclosure in discovery by virtue of the attorney-client privilege following the Supreme Court's Upjohn decision. Sandra TE v South Berwyn School District
  • Defeated at trial the claims of a billboard company involving a city’s denial of the company’s application for twelve billboards which the company claimed violated its First Amendment rights. Covenant Media v. City of Des Plaines
  • Prevailed in dismissal of case by a pro se plaintiff alleging discrimination based on race and political beliefs. Chapman v. Stricker
  • Prevailed on summary judgment by establishing qualified immunity in case defending police officer from claims for First Amendment unlawful search and seizure and State law malicious prosecution. Sparing v. Olympia Fields
  • Obtained summary judgment in favor of two police officers involving a federal conspiracy claim following the arrest of the plaintiff. Maniscalco v. Simon