A Cook County jury has awarded a gay couple a $104 million verdict in a 2016 I-90 crash case—including $24 million recognizing the couple’s civil union, a rarity in catastrophic-injury litigation.
The judgment, handed down Oct. 9, includes loss-of-consortium damages for plaintiffs Rob Rosā and Michael Johnson, despite the fact that the pair were in a civil union rather than married when the crash happened.
Loss-of-consortium awards, which compensate a spouse for the loss of companionship and shared day-to-day life, are typically only granted when couples are legally married at the time of injury.
Attorney Tim Cavanagh, who represented the couple with Cavanagh Sorich Law Group, said he believes this may be the first verdict in Illinois where a same-sex couple in a civil union received such damages in a catastrophic injury case.
“Rob and Michael were in a civil union in Wisconsin at the time of the crash, and the defense tried to throw out the loss-of-consortium claim,” Cavanagh said. “The typical rule in Illinois and most states is that you’d have to be married to allow for that claim. As far as I know, this is the first verdict in Illinois where there was a loss-of-consortium award for a couple that was not married but was in a civil union.”
At the time of the crash in 2016, same-sex marriage had only recently become legal nationwide. Many same-sex couples, including Rob and Michael, still relied on earlier legal relationships such as civil unions or domestic partnerships when their relationships began.
The case stems from a March 25, 2016 limousine crash near the Fox River Bridge on the Jane Addams Memorial Tollway, as Rosā and Johnson traveled with four friends from Madison to O’Hare Airport en route to a vacation in Mexico.
Their vehicle struck a concrete construction barrier and flipped, leaving Rosā paralyzed from the neck down and killing one passenger. The couple later married in the hospital.
“We didn’t even know if he was going to survive,” Johnson recalled during a press conference after the verdict. “We lost a dear friend in the accident.”
The crash launched nine and a half years of litigation, including two trips to the appellate court and one to the Illinois Supreme Court. Early in the case, Cavanagh said a lower court ruled the limousine driver was solely responsible for the crash—a decision later overturned on appeal, allowing the case to proceed to trial.
“We had one very bad adverse ruling where a judge granted summary judgment and said the limo driver was the sole proximate cause,” Cavanagh said. “We thought she was legally wrong, and we were vindicated when it went to the appellate court. The court said, ‘This is why we have juries.’”
Evidence presented at trial showed the Illinois Tollway failed to install required signs warning drivers of a lane shift in the construction zone, and that the temporary barrier layout deviated from standard safety practice.
Cavanagh said the jury responded strongly to internal documents showing the agency approved the design knowing the safer layout specified in contract plans was not followed in the field.
“They were required to have six signs warning of the lane shift and curve, and they only had one sign,” he said. “They never could explain why they changed their barrier design away from the continuous wall that would have been safer. Not one engineer could explain that decision.”
The verdict, Cavanagh said, reflects both accountability and recognition of the couple’s commitment to one another—including Johnson’s decision to leave his job to become Rosā’s full-time caregiver.
“By any account, these two have an amazing relationship,” he said. “Michael has been a true hero in this, and I think the jury recognized what he has done for Rob.”
Jurors reportedly hugged Rosā and Johnson after the verdict was read, Cavanagh said.
“We are very grateful to the jury, the judge and our legal team,” he said. “Not only did the jurors see the negligence in the case and how it has devastated our lives but they also recognized our love and commitment to each other. Michael has been there for me every step of the way in every way possible.”
While the verdict guarantees resources necessary to support Rosā’s care, it does not restore the life the couple once shared.
“I still live in pain 24 hours a day,” Rosā said in the press conference after the verdict. “No amount of money will take that away or give us back the way of life we have lost.”
The award will help fund long-term care, therapy, accessibility modifications, and rehabilitation. Rosā said he hopes to continue work at the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab and pursue additional programs, including one in California.
Cavanagh said he hopes the verdict sends a message to public agencies and contractors to follow federal safety standards and design requirements.
“When you have a road like this and you’re doing reconstruction work, you have a responsibility to do it safely,” he said. “On a toll road where people are paying to use it, you almost have a heightened responsibility.”