Attorneys for actor Jussie Smollett have asked a court to dismiss a defamation lawsuit brought by the Nigerian brothers who police have said helped the actor fake the alleged racially-motivated attack in Chicago in January, and to sanction the Osundairo brothers and the lawyers who are representing them.
Lawmakers sold 21 new taxes and fees as necessary to rebuild crumbling roads and bridges and balance the budget. Instead, taxpayers will be funding dog parks, swimming pools, snowmobile paths, a vacant theater and pickleball courts.
A former girls soccer coach at a North Shore Catholic high school has served his former employers with a defamation lawsuit, saying they ruined his coaching career and smeared his reputation based on allegedly false reports he had “verbally abused” and made “inappropriate comments” to the girls on his team at Loyola Academy.
The Illinois Supreme Court says a teachers union lobbyist will be allowed to double his pension after he served as a substitute teacher for one day. The decision came over dissents from other justices on the court who said the law allowing the pension boost was merely written to benefit a handful of union employees at taxpayer expense.
CHICAGO (Legal Newsline) - As of Oct. 29, 2018, a medical sterilization firm called Sterigenics was in full compliance with state and federal regulations over its use of ethylene oxide, a carcinogen. Then on Oct. 30, it wasn’t.
A Chicago federal judge has ordered the arrest of two men who are suspected of helping the political organization of Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, after the men have allegedly repeatedly ignored requests from the court to testify under oath in a lawsuit accusing Madigan and his organization of dirty election tricks.
A judge has sealed off municipal lawyer Michael Del Galdo's divorce case from public view, as Del Galdo seeks to keep his financials under wraps. But billing and payment records obtained under FOIA shows Del Galdo's law firm has continued to collect likely millions of dollars in taxpayer-funded money in recent years from the Cook County suburban governments he and his firm represent.
Two Chicago-based housing assistance organizations have won the right to continue, for now, with a lawsuit against the Cook County Assessor’s office for past property tax assessment practices they claim discriminated against black and Hispanic homeowners, particularly in Chicago.
A contentious divorce case involving a lawyer who represents the town of Cicero and a host of other local governments in Chicago’s suburbs has produced a pitched courtroom battle over his estranged wife’s efforts to reveal who pays him, how much he earns and the depth of his purported links to Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan and other prominent Democratic lawmakers, and other influential figures in Illinois government.
The following contract-related cases were on the docket in the Circuit Court of Cook County on Dec. 31. All case details are allegations only and should not be taken as fact:
The Circuit Court of Cook County reported the following activities in the suit brought by Chicago Tribune against Aquarius Institute on December 31: 'Contract Complaint Filed' and 'Summons Issued And Returnable'
A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit brought by a former Chicago Heights homeowner, who claimed he and other homeowners in poor and minority neighborhoods in Cook County were forced to pay more than they should in property taxes because, he said, Cook County Assessor Joseph Berrios inflated the taxable value of homes in those neighborhoods.
The city of Harvey and a man identified as the brother of the mayor, who may or may not be a police officer, are facing a lawsuit from two businesses alleging city officials conducted harassing inspections and improperly seized vehicles, among other disciplinary action.
A court-appointed monitor of Cook County patronage is asking a federal judge to release her from her oversight duties, saying she believes the county’s government has undergone “profound transformation” in its employment practices and has a culture in place to keep politics from unduly influencing who gets county jobs and who doesn’t.
A Chicago federal judge has refused to allow attorneys for a failed primary challenger to Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan the chance to obtain a copy of a 2014 inspector general’s report detailing the ways Madigan wields clout and influence in Illinois, saying the contents of the report would be of no value to the ex-candidate’s lawsuit accusing Madigan of pulling strings and using underhanded tactics to undercut his candidacy.
Asking a federal judge to dismiss it from a lawsuit brought by a former campaign worker against several political organizations connected to Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, the Democratic Party of Illinois said it isn't liable for sexual harassment the woman said she suffered at the hands of a Madigan aide.
Illinois’ powerful Speaker of the House Michael J. Madigan has formally joined the court fight to prevent a former candidate who is suing the speaker and some of his political allies, from obtaining the release of a 2014 inspector general’s report his lawyer says is needed to substantiate the ex-candidate’s claims, by shedding light on how Madigan’s political organization operates.
Two Chicago-based housing assistance organizations have asked a Cook County judge to reject the attempt by lame duck Cook County Assessor Joseph Berrios to sidestep their discrimination lawsuit, saying their legal action over allegedly racially discriminatory property tax assessment practices is more than just a dispute over property taxes.
Cook County former top prosecutor Anita Alvarez has threatened to sue prominent Illinois journalist Kerry Lester and Kim Foxx, who succeeded Alvarez as Cook County State’s Attorney, unless Lester agrees to retract statements attributed to Foxx in Lester’s new book on sexual harassment in Illinois politics, in which Foxx claims Alvarez failed to act to stop ongoing sexual harassment within her office because the alleged harasser was a friend.
