The Chicago Justice Project has filed a new Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request with the Chicago Department of Finance’s Office of the Comptroller as part of our ongoing effort to understand the full financial costs of litigation involving the Chicago Police Department (CPD).
This filing is one of four coordinated FOIA requests submitted to city agencies seeking records related to litigation costs, settlements, judgments, insurance coverage, and risk management practices connected to CPD officers and employees.
While the public occasionally learns about large settlements and court judgments, much less is known about how those payments are processed, tracked, analyzed, and incorporated into the City’s financial management systems. The Office of the Comptroller is a critical piece of that puzzle because it is responsible for processing and accounting for many of the payments resulting from civil litigation against the City.
Our FOIA request seeks records that will help the public better understand not only how much Chicago spends on police-related litigation, but also how the City tracks those expenditures and the data systems it uses to manage them.
Why the Office of the Comptroller Matters
When a settlement is approved or a court judgment is entered against the City, the Office of the Comptroller often plays a central role in processing and accounting for those payments. As a result, the office possesses records that can provide important insight into how police-related litigation costs move through the City’s financial systems.
Understanding these processes is essential for anyone seeking a complete picture of the financial impact of police misconduct litigation on Chicago taxpayers. The public deserves to know not only the size of these payments, but also how they are documented, tracked, and analyzed.
What We Are Requesting
Litigation and Cost Analyses
The first section of our request seeks records, reports, memoranda, emails, and analyses concerning litigation involving the Chicago Police Department from 2019 to the present.
Among the records requested are:
- Analyses of CPD-related litigation trends and outcomes.
- Documents identifying litigation costs and liabilities.
- Records discussing the types of cases the City wins and loses.
- Analyses identifying officers, districts, or departments associated with significant litigation exposure.
- Requests submitted by the Department of Law for payment of settlements and judgments.
These records can help reveal how City agencies understand and evaluate the financial consequences of police-related litigation.
Databases, Tracking Systems, and Litigation Data
The second section focuses on the databases and electronic systems used to track litigation-related information.
Specifically, we are seeking records that identify:
- Litigation databases maintained by the Office of the Comptroller.
- Electronic Litigation Management Systems.
- Internal tracking systems.
- Third-party databases available to Comptroller staff.
- Data dictionaries explaining database fields and data structures.
- Training materials used to manage and access these systems.
The request specifically references systems identified in the Office of Inspector General’s report Use of Litigation Data in Risk Management Strategies for the Chicago Police Department, including TeamConnect and related litigation-management tools.
We have also requested non-privileged case-level data from these systems from 2019 to the present, along with documentation sufficient to explain any information withheld from public release.
Access to this information could help illuminate how litigation data flows between city agencies and whether that information is being used to identify trends, recurring issues, or opportunities for reform.
Settlements, Judgments, and Insurance Arrangements
The third section of the request focuses on the actual payment of settlements and judgments involving CPD officers and employees.
Among the records requested are:
- Documents related to Community Insurance Center.
- Records concerning any insurer or entity that provides coverage for police-related settlements and judgments.
- Records relating to the payment of settlements and court judgments involving CPD personnel.
- Analyses of payment data related to settlements and judgments.
These records will help provide greater transparency regarding whether and how insurance mechanisms are used and how the City manages the financial burden of police-related litigation.
Accountability in the FOIA Process
Like the other requests in this series, this filing also seeks records showing how the Office of the Comptroller conducts its search for responsive documents.
Specifically, we have requested records identifying:
- Where searches were conducted.
- Who conducted those searches.
- Which employees or offices were asked to provide records.
- Responsive records that were identified but not produced.
These requests help ensure transparency not only about the underlying records but also about the City’s compliance with Illinois’ Freedom of Information Act.
Why This Matters
For years, Chicago taxpayers have paid enormous sums to resolve lawsuits involving the Chicago Police Department. Yet there remains no comprehensive public understanding of how those costs are tracked across city agencies, how payment decisions are processed, or how litigation data is being used to reduce future liability.
The City collects a vast amount of information through lawsuits, settlements, and judgments. Properly analyzed, that information can identify problematic practices, recurring misconduct, management failures, and areas where reforms could reduce both harm and financial risk. The public has a strong interest in understanding whether that information is being effectively used.
This FOIA request is designed to help answer those questions.
Looking Ahead
The Comptroller request is one part of a larger effort by the Chicago Justice Project to obtain records from multiple city agencies involved in police litigation, risk management, settlement payments, and financial oversight. As records are produced, we will review them, analyze the data, and share our findings with the public.
Transparency is essential to accountability. By better understanding how Chicago tracks and pays for police-related litigation, we can have a more informed public conversation about the true financial costs of policing and the policies needed to reduce those costs in the future.
The requests are embedded below.
