FOIA section 7(1)(n)

FOIA

Employee grievance/discipline adjudication records

5 ILCS 140/7(1)(n). Employee grievance/discipline adjudication records (except final discipline outcomes)

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4 issues across 4 determination letters:3 violation found · 1 no violation.

Counts are per issue, not per letter, and come from automated extraction checked against sampled letters. Determination letters are not binding precedent.

Authorities the Bureau cites most on this issue

Peoria Journal Star v. City of Peoria, 2016 IL App (3d) 140838 cited 3 times
Kalven v. City of Chicago, 2013 IL App (1st) 121846, ¶24, 7 N.E.3d 741, 748 (2013) cited 2 times
Internal investigation records of an assistant police chief's accident (Pub. Acc. Op. No. 13-011) cited 1 times
Names of employees in misconduct allegations (Pub. Acc. Op. No. 21-010, at 7-8) cited 1 times

Drafting brief for an AI assistant

Copy this into your assistant to help draft a request, appeal, or challenge to a denial that turns on this issue. It carries the rules and decisions, not your facts: add those yourself. Machine-readable version: foia-7-1-n.json.

TOPIC: 5 ILCS 140/7(1)(n) - Employee grievance/discipline adjudication records
SOURCE: Illinois Attorney General Public Access Bureau decisions compiled at https://illinoisfoia.org/issues/foia-7-1-n/
NOTE: Determination letters are not binding precedent; they show how the Bureau applies the law. Verify every decision against the source PDF before citing it.

VIOLATION FOUND (3):
- Withholding emails as related to employee grievance under 7(1)(n)
  Rule: The phrase 'relating to' in section 7(1)(n) must be read narrowly; communications that precede and exist independently of a grievance are not exempt.
  Decision: Emails about a school employee's compensation (non-binding determination letter, June 21, 2024) https://illinoisfoia.org/opinions/letter-77963/
- Withholding grievance investigation records under 7(1)(n)
  Rule: Section 7(1)(n) exempts only records of formalized adjudications, not records of investigations that precede any disciplinary adjudication.
  Decision: Records on a student's medical homebound instruction grievance (non-binding determination letter, December 22, 2022) https://illinoisfoia.org/opinions/letter-73794/
- Withholding investigation records under section 7(1)(n)
  Rule: Section 7(1)(n) exempts only records of a formalized adjudication, not records of a preliminary investigation that precedes any adjudication.
  Decision: Complaints and investigatory findings about a public employee (non-binding determination letter, June 8, 2022) https://illinoisfoia.org/opinions/letter-69508/

NO VIOLATION (1):
- Withholding of termination and reinstatement records under section 7(1)(n)
  Rule: Records relating to a public body's adjudication of employee grievances or disciplinary cases are exempt, but the exemption does not extend to the final outcome of cases in which discipline is imposed.
  Decision: Employment, termination, and reinstatement records for a university employee (non-binding determination letter, April 8, 2016) https://illinoisfoia.org/opinions/letter-40002/

MOST-CITED AUTHORITIES: Peoria Journal Star v. City of Peoria, 2016 IL App (3d) 140838; Kalven v. City of Chicago, 2013 IL App (1st) 121846, ¶24, 7 N.E.3d 741, 748 (2013); Ill. Att'y Gen. Pub. Acc. Op. No. 13-011; Ill. Att'y Gen. Pub. Acc. Op. No. 21-010, at 7-8

TASK FOR THE ASSISTANT: Using only the decisions above, help draft a letter. Argue from the rule and cite the decision by name and date. Do not invent decisions.

Violation found (3)

Withholding emails as related to employee grievance under 7(1)(n)
Rule: The phrase 'relating to' in section 7(1)(n) must be read narrowly; communications that precede and exist independently of a grievance are not exempt.
Violation found Emails about a school employee's compensation · June 21, 2024
Withholding grievance investigation records under 7(1)(n)
Rule: Section 7(1)(n) exempts only records of formalized adjudications, not records of investigations that precede any disciplinary adjudication.
Violation found Records on a student's medical homebound instruction grievance · December 22, 2022
Withholding investigation records under section 7(1)(n)
Rule: Section 7(1)(n) exempts only records of a formalized adjudication, not records of a preliminary investigation that precedes any adjudication.
Violation found Complaints and investigatory findings about a public employee · June 8, 2022

No violation (1)

Withholding of termination and reinstatement records under section 7(1)(n)
Rule: Records relating to a public body's adjudication of employee grievances or disciplinary cases are exempt, but the exemption does not extend to the final outcome of cases in which discipline is imposed.
No violation Employment, termination, and reinstatement records for a university employee · April 8, 2016