LEGAL SERVICES

Providing free legal representation to survivors of sexual harm

We provide free legal services for survivors of sexual assault, sexual stalking, and sex trafficking with any background or identity who were harmed in Cook County, IL, and are aged 13+. Our attorneys assist survivors in criminal and civil matters, including:

  • Upholding victims’ rights within the criminal justice system by advocating for the survivor. For example: joining them at law enforcement interviews, following up with police, arguing in court, and more
  • Getting legal protection from offenders through protective orders
  • Pushing for support, accommodations, and accountability from employers and schools (often through Title IX)
  • Seeking financial damages from perpetrators, employers, or schools through civil lawsuits
  • Taking action against revenge porn and cyber sexual abuse
  • Helping survivors of sex trafficking clear criminal records

CAASE cannot accept cases involving criminal defense, divorce, custody, property in common or other family court issues, immigration, or cases that involve survivors who do not want to participate in a legal process, even if they are minors. If CAASE can’t assist you, we will try to connect you to another attorney and support resources.

Update – 4/12/24: We will be closing our legal intake temporarily for cases in the Northwest suburbs (Rolling Meadows, Skokie, Bridgeview, and Maywood). We are also temporarily closed for employment law cases.

Contact Us To Learn More

To learn more about our free legal services or schedule a consultation, please call our legal intake line at 773-244-2230, ext. 205 or email legal@caase.org. We’re available 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday – Friday. All personal information will be kept confidential. Please allow up to 72 hours for responses.  

Our Legal Staff speaks Spanish, Portuguese, Urdu, and Hindi. Translation services are also available in all languages.

Helping Survivors Navigate the Criminal Justice System

The criminal justice system can be intimidating and that can keep victims of crime from engaging with it. But if you are a survivor of a sexual assault in Cook County, you have CAASE on your side. Our crime victims’ rights attorneys can assist you with free legal information, support, and representation. We can:

  • Help you understand the steps in the criminal justice process—from reporting the crime through prosecution and potential outcomes
  • Provide legal representation during each phase
  • Assist with navigating the criminal investigation
  • Help you understand and assert your rights as a crime victim

Learn more about our Victims’ Rights Representation here.

Protective Orders

Illinois allows individuals to get protective orders against another person. A protective order requires that the perpetrator stay away from the protected person, as well as their home, school, and workplace. Violation of a protective order can result in an arrest and criminal charges, or the person may be held in contempt of court. There are three different types of protective orders in Illinois. They are for survivors of sexual assault or abuse, domestic violence, and stalking. Learn more about the different protective orders below. 

Protective orders for survivors of sexual assault or abuse 

If you are a survivor of sexual assault or sexual abuse, you can seek a protective order known as a Civil No Contact Order (CNCO) against your perpetrator. A CNCO requires the perpetrator to avoid contacting the survivor and to stay away from their home, school, and workplace. 

You can seek a CNCO regardless of whether or not you reported your sexual assault to law enforcement. You also do not need to have a relationship with the perpetrator in order to get a CNCO. 

CAASE can help you file for a CNCO and answer your questions about the process. Contact us to learn more and set up a consultation. 

Protective orders for survivors of domestic violence

If you have experienced domestic violence, you can seek an Order of Protection (OP) against your abuser through the Illinois Domestic Violence Act. An OP requires the perpetrator to avoid contacting the survivor and to stay away from their home, school, and workplace. It also has other options for survivors, such as requirements about custody and property restrictions. 

CAASE does not handle cases involving family court such as divorce or custody, but we can assist with OPs for certain cases that also involved sexual assault or abuse. We can also refer you to other agencies if you need help with a family court matter. 

Protective orders for stalking

If you are a stalking survivor, you can apply for a Stalking No Contact Order (SNCO) against your stalker. This requires the stalker to avoid contacting you and to stay away from you, as well as your home, school, and workplace. 

CAASE can help you seek an SNCO if the stalking you experienced includes actual or threatened sexual harm. Contact us for more information about SNCOs.

Civil Lawsuits

Survivors of gender-based violence like domestic violence, sexual assault, and threats of the same may sue their perpetrator in Illinois state civil court for monetary damages or other remedies, such as an injunction to prevent the perpetrator from doing a specific act. There are several different laws that allow a survivor to sue their perpetrator, including the Gender Violence Act, a provision that is specifically directed towards gender-related violence.

Other Facts about the Gender Violence Act:

  • Victims have 7 years to file suit against the perpetrator.
  • Any person who is the victim of gender-based violence may use this law against the perpetrator.
  • Any attorney may represent these survivors.

Support for Student Survivors of Sexual Assault or Harassment

After experiencing sexual harassment or assault, student survivors may need support in order to feel safe and continue their education. CAASE can help students (age 13+) with:

  • Requesting extensions of deadlines, the opportunity to make up schoolwork, and/or the ability to switch classes
  • Moving to new housing and/or changing work schedules
  • Reporting the incident to their school and/or participating in the school disciplinary process
  • Accessing mental health services
  • Requesting a no-contact directive or safety plan from the school
  • Appealing a school disciplinary decision
  • Filing a complaint against the school if the case was mishandled
  • Pursuing a protective order in civil court
  • Making a police report and navigating the criminal justice system
  • Other accommodations and remedies

Legal Help for Survivors of Commercial Sexual Exploitation, Including Prostitution and Sex Trafficking

If you have a criminal record as a result of sex trafficking or prostitution, CAASE can assist you with trying to clear your criminal record. This can be for prostitution arrests or convictions, but also for other offenses that you received as a result of your experience in the sex industry, including drug-related convictions and warrants.  

Survivors of the sex trade also have other legal rights and protections available to them including Civil No Contact Orders and the Gender Violence Act (see above). Survivors can also sue individuals and businesses that recruited, harmed, profited from, or maintained them in the sex trade under the Predator Accountability Act. Contact CAASE to learn more and schedule a consultation. 

Revenge Porn and Cyber Sexual Abuse

CAASE helps survivors of cyber sexual abuse, such as sextortion and revenge porn. These types of sexual harm involve an abuser using sexually explicit images or videos against a victim. “Sextortion” is when someone threatens to reveal nude photos or other evidence of sexual activity unless the victim provides something of value, like money or even sexual favors. Cases that don’t involve extortion often fall under the category of “revenge porn,” a term commonly used to describe the distribution of sexually explicit images or videos of individuals without their consent. You can learn more about these forms of abuse here.

In Illinois, it is both a criminal offense and a civil violation to threaten the distribution or to distribute nonconsensual sexual photos and video, regardless of how they were taken. The attorneys at CAASE are prepared to help you deal with these types of cyber sexual assaults.

CAASE attorneys can assist you with both civil and criminal cases in response to cyber sexual exploitation. 

Name and Gender Marker Changes for Trans, Nonbinary, and Gender Nonconforming Survivors

If you are a TGNC survivor in Cook County seeking a name and/or gender marker change, the attorneys at CAASE can help! CAASE provides free legal services to TGNC survivors of sexual harm who need their names and gender markers changed on their personal documents. Learn more here.

For Attorneys: Pro Bono Project

The CAASE Pro Bono Project connects private attorneys with local survivors of sexual assault and sex trafficking to ensure that every survivor has access to the quality legal counsel they want and need. Learn more here.

Supporters

Our Legal Services are supported by individual donations to CAASE as well as through grants provided by:

  • Chicago Bar Foundation
  • Department of Justice’s Legal Assistance for Victims Grant
  • ICJIA Victims of Crime Act
  • Lawyers Trust Fund of Illinois
  • Polk Bros. Foundation
  • Illinois Bar Foundation
  • Illinois Attorney General’s Violent Crime Victim Assistance Fund
  • ICJIA Community Based Violence Intervention and Prevention Fund
  • City of Chicago DFSS Legal Services for Gender-Based Violence and Human Trafficking Survivors

CAASE is committed to providing an environment that is free of discrimination and harassment. We are committed to being responsive to any reports of unethical or unlawful conduct, including but not limited to harassment and discrimination, when they are brought to our attention directly. Additionally, as a recipient of funds through the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority (ICJIA), CAASE complies with all additional requirements for responding to reports to ICJIA and its related entities.

If a CAASE program participant believes that they have been discriminated against or that their civil rights have been violated, the individual may file a complaint with ICJIA, who will then forward the complaint to the IDHR or the OCR for investigation. Complaint forms and instructions can be found on ICJIA’s website at https://icjia.illinois.gov/about/publications/. Complaints can also be submitted directly to the Office for Civil Rights; Office of Justice Programs; U.S. Department of Justice, at 810 Seventh Street N.W., Washington, DC 20531 or by visiting: https://ojp.gov/about/ocr/complaint.htm. Employment complaints may be submitted directly to the EEOC, at https://www.eeoc.gov/employees/howtofile.cfm. Complaints can also be submitted directly to the Illinois Department of Human Rights, 100 West Randolph Street, 10th Floor, Intake unit, Chicago, IL 60601, 535 West Jefferson, 1st Floor, Intake Unit, Springfield, IL 62702, or by visiting https://www2.illinois.gov/dhr/FilingaCharge/Pages/Intake.aspx.