On April 1, 2026, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, which consolidated three interlocutory appeals, issued a significant ruling in Clay v. Union Pacific Railroad Co., that resolves the question of whether Illinois’s 2024 amendment to the Biometric Information Privacy Act (“BIPA”) applies retroactively to cases pending when it was enacted.[1] The court answered in the affirmative, and held that the amendment applies retroactively. This decision is a victory for businesses facing astronomical exposure in pending BIPA litigation.
