News published on Cook County Record in June 2016

Two suburban bus companies have accused diesel truck and bus maker Navistar of racketeering, alleging Navistar knowingly sold defective school buses on the front end, and then its affiliated companies continued to reap profits on the back end from money paid by the bus companies to consistently service and repair the buses’ purportedly faulty engines and braking systems.

The federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued regulations last month about what employers can and cannot do to encourage or even require employee participation in employer-sponsored wellness programs, while still complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Genetic Information Non-discrimination Act (GINA).But those new rules have come amid pitched legal battles over whether the commission’s interpretation of those law is even correct.

As attention increasingly builds on lead content in municipal drinking water in Chicago and elsewhere, an Illinois city has become the first community to receive aid from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency specifically targeted at alleviating problems with waterborne lead.

CHICAGO — A mother is suing a Harvey day care facility, alleging negligence in allowing her son to stay overnight.

A Winnetka resident, whose lawsuit challenged whether the stormwater utility fee slapped on property owners by the north suburban village is actually a tax, has clearance to sail on, after a state appeals panel said the legal arguments in the challenge hold enough water to survive the village’s attempt to sink it via motion to dismiss.

CHICAGO — A widow is suing a Chicago railroad, alleging insufficient measures were taken to protect her late husband from contracting leukemia.

The city of Chicago has halted its attempt to collect hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxes from a large local parking garage operator, after an apparent settlement deal appeared to end the legal action that came about two months after a Chicago administrative law judge ruled state law doesn’t let City Hall go after garage operators for taxes actually owed by valet parking outfits that pay to use the garages.

A woman who claimed she was the whistleblower who alerted the federal government to health care fraud at a suburban hospice facility, costing Medicare millions of dollars, has brought a malpractice action against the lawyer whose bad advice she blames for costing her the reward she believes she was due under the law for reporting the misdeeds of her former employer.

CHICAGO — A Chicago woman is suing Northwestern Memorial Hospital and other defendants, alleging they assaulted her when they removed her from their property. 

CHICAGO — An employee is suing a Cook County business, alleging the defendant retaliated against him for filing for compensation benefits.

CHICAGO — A customer is suing Home Depot, alleging insufficient measures were taken to prevent injuries to the plaintiff as the defendant's store in Carol Stream.

CHICAGO — A Park Ridge customer is suing a Denny's restaurant, alleging negligence led to her suffering injuries.

A state appellate court has ruled that Cook County has the authority to regulate solid waste and recycling facilities, upholding a summary judgment by the Cook County Circuit Court against the National Waste and Recycling Association.