A long running defamation lawsuit brought by two brothers who headed troubled online brokerage Ditto Trade against Tribune Media and Chicago media executive Larry Wert quietly came to an end.
While a judge denied a request by Wert for sanctions against the brothers, Joseph and Avi Fox, the judge earlier this year also declared an end to the Foxes’ legal quest for $100 million in damages.
Judge Jerry A. Esrig on Jan. 31 denied the Fox brothers’ request to reconsider his earlier order from July 2019 dismissing their lawsuit. He then dismissed the lawsuit with prejudice.
The Fox brothers had 30 days to appeal, and they did not.
The Fox brothers became engulfed in a blizzard of litigation in the months and years following the collapse of Ditto Trade in 2015.
Ditto Trade, for instance, was required to pay former CEO Paul Simons $2.7 million after he was fired for allegedly uncovering and reporting alleged violations of the federal Securities and Exchange Commission by Ditto Trade under Joseph Fox. Fox served as CEO of Ditto Trade's parent company, Ditto Holdings.
Fox countersued Simons and others, alleging intentional infliction of emotional distress, demanding $100 million.
Joseph Fox also sued his former lawyers, asserting they didn’t properly represent him in those proceedings.
Joseph Fox and his brother, Avi, later filed separate defamation actions against Crains Communications and Larry Wert, along with Tribune Media, demanding $100 million in damages.
The legal effort against Crain’s remains pending. According to the Cook County court docket, the Foxes have appealed to the Illinois First District Appellate Court in that case.
Judge Esrig, however, ended their lawsuit against Wert and the Tribune.
In the litigation against Wert and Tribune, the Foxes alleged Wert worked with radio host Marc S. Mandel, of Boulder, Colo., to further a scheme to ruin Ditto Trade’s reputation and business. They also alleged Wert influenced Crain's to publish "a knowingly false article" that "permanently destroyed" the Foxes' reputation.
Last summer, Judge Esrig said the foundations of the Fox brothers’ complaint – a letter from Wert’s lawyer to Ditto Trade’s board, CEO and lawyers, and an email Wert sent to Ditto shareholders, allegedly threatening the Fox brothers – can’t be used to support their defamation claim under the legal doctrine of absolute litigation privilege. The judge said Wert’s email did not meet the legal standard as defamation, but rather expressed Wert’s opinions concerning Joseph Fox’s explanation of his actions to others involved in Ditto Trade.
Wert had asked for the Fox brothers to be sanctioned by the judge, asserting their lawyer should have known the communications couldn’t be used to buttress their case. The judge denied that request.
Wert has been represented in the case by attorneys from the firm of Akerman LLP, of Chicago.