Step One: Decide to ask for another look at your case

The Department of Human Rights investigates discrimination charges. They decide if there is substantial evidence to support a charge. If the Department finds that there is not substantial evidence, they will dismiss all or part of your charge.

The Department also may dismiss your discrimination charge for lack of jurisdiction or your failure to proceed with the investigation. The Department’s Notice of Dismissal explains why they dismissed your charge.

If you do not agree with the Department’s dismissal, you can file a Request for Review with the Human Rights Commission. Some reasons that you might not agree include:
    • you think the Department missed something important,
    • you think the Department made a mistake, or
    • you think the Department came to the wrong conclusion.

The Human Rights Commission is an administrative court system. The Commission makes decisions on complaints of discrimination, approves settlements, and reviews the Department’s dismissal of discrimination charges. The Commission has seven Commissioners, including a Chair. They are all appointed by the Governor of Illinois. The Commissioners are quasi-judicial officials with a range of civil rights experience. The Commissioners come from a variety of fields and bring unique perspectives to the Commission.

The Commission’s mission is to provide a neutral forum for resolving complaints of discrimination filed under the Illinois Human Rights Act. The Commission is also responsible for furnishing information to the public about the Act and the Commission. To fulfill this mission, the Commission strives to provide professional, competent, and considerate service to everyone who seeks information from us or who has a case before the Commission.

A Request for Review is a written document asking the Commission to review a determination made by the Department of Human Rights. It is just like an appeal.

The Notice of Dismissal that you receive from the Department has a Request for Review form. If you want the Commission to review your case, you must fill out the Request for Review form and file it with the Commission.

There will be a deadline on the Request for Review form that you receive. You must file the Request for Review or ask for an extension by this deadline. Go to the "Step Two: Write a Request for Review" page to learn more.