Chicago ad company sues Logan Square preservation group, members for defamation

A Chicago advertising company is suing over claims its reputation was harmed and revenue was lost as a result of allegedly false accusations lodged by a Logan Square preservation group and some of its members.

Media Communications Inc., doing business as VisualCast, filed a defamation and civil conspiracy lawsuit Feb. 14 in the Cook County Circuit Court against Logan Square Preservation, Andrew Schneider, Evan War, George Dohrman, Alyssa Sorresso, Leanor De La Torre and Patricia Lauber.

The suit alleges that since 2011, the defendants have been contacting VisualCast's clients falsely stating that its advertising space at 2616 N. Milwaukee Ave. is "illegal."

Media reports published last year detail a dispute between the group and company over billboard space on a building located in an area of Logan Square that had been designated as a historic district.

According to the suit, at least one of the defendants wrote to two different clients that VisualCast had contracts with, threatening them with lost business if their advertisements weren't removed from the plaintiff's space.

The suit alleges that both of these clients backed out of their contracts, which resulted in lost income and a damaged reputation for VisualCast.

VisualCast is seeking damages in excess of $670,000, attorneys' fees and court costs. It is being represented in the case by attorneys Edward X. Clinton Jr. and Julia C. Williams of The Clinton Law Firm in Chicago.

Cook County District Court Case No. 2014L001545.

This is a report on a civil lawsuit filed at the Cook County Courthouse. The details in this report come from an original complaint filed by a plaintiff. Please note, a complaint represents an accusation by a private individual, not the government. It is not an indication of guilt, and it only represents one side of the story.