A lawsuit alleging that Chief Illiniwek violates the Illinois Civil Rights Act has been dropped.

The Illinois Native American Bar Association filed the suit in March hoping it would force the University to drop Chief Illiniwek as a symbol of the Champaign-Urbana campus. Judge David Donnersberger ruled Sept. 23 that the complaint “failed as a matter of law” because the state legislature approved the use of Illiniwek.

“The judge agreed with one of the arguments made by the University in pleading for dismissal of the case in that the plaintiff did not make a case under the law,” said University spokesman Tom Hardy.

Chief Illiniwek is a symbol of University athletics. He was created in 1926 and is represented by a round logo and a student performing at basketball, football and volleyball games.

The lawsuit, filed in Cook County Circuit Court, claimed that Chief Illiniwek violates the Illinois Constitution and the Board of Trustees’ own non-discrimination policy, as well as the 2003 Illinois Civil Rights Act. That act went into effect Jan. 1, 2004, and states that “No unit of state, county, or local government in Illinois shall … subject a person to discrimination under any program or activity on the grounds of that person’s race, color, or national origin.”

But in 1996 the Illinois legislature approved a statute allowing Chief Illiniwek to remain the symbol of the University. That statute said, in part: “Chief Illiniwek is, and may remain, the honored symbol of a great university, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.”

Donnersberger said that the legislature’s endorsement of Chief Illiniwek was grounds enough for the dismissal. Because the legislature specifically endorsed the Chief, the Illinois Civil Rights Act does not “impliedly” repeal it, Donnersberger’s decision said.

The Champaign News-Gazette reported Saturday that Kim Cook, president of the Illinois Native American Bar Association, said that organization would meet soon to decide whether it would appeal the decision. The organization has until Oct. 23 to appeal.

There are no other pending lawsuits against the University regarding Chief Illiniwek.

The dismissal papers said the plaintiffs couldn’t sue the individual trustees on this matter.

“The judge tossed the ball into the legislature’s court, which is an interesting turn of events,” Richard Hutchison, an attorney who is representing the bar association, told the News-Gazette. “We argued the use of the Chief as a sports mascot is not using the Chief as an honored symbol of the University, but the judge listened to the arguments of the defendant on that issue and basically said, ‘Go to the legislature.'”