Protect Our Parks, Inc. v. Buttigieg
April 8, 2024
U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit (97 F.4th 1077)
Thomas G. Gardiner, Catherine M. Keenan (GKWW)
Seventh Circuit appeal challenging the location of the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago’s Jackson Park. Thomas G. Gardiner represented the plaintiffs-appellants in what the court described as the latest challenge to the planned center.
5 Walworth, LLC v. Engerman Contracting, Inc.
June 20, 2023
Wisconsin Supreme Court (2023 WI 51)
Thomas G. Gardiner (GKWW)
A Lake Geneva homeowner sued general contractor Engerman after a newly built pool complex began leaking almost immediately upon completion, ultimately requiring demolition and full reconstruction. Engerman’s insurers sought to deny coverage, arguing that defective workmanship by a subcontractor was not a covered “occurrence” and that damage was limited to the insured’s own work. The Court of Appeals reversed the circuit court’s grant of summary judgment to the insurers, holding that while defective workmanship is not itself an “occurrence,” it may cause one — here, the cracking, leaking, soil saturation, and resulting damage to the surrounding retaining walls, patio, and deck constituted covered property damage. The case was remanded for further proceedings on coverage.
Bridgeview Health Care Center v. Jerry Clark
March 21, 2016
U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit (816 F.3d 935)
Vincent A. Lavieri (GKWW) represented the defendant
A small business owner hired a marketing company to send 100 fax advertisements to businesses within 20 miles of Terre Haute, Indiana. Instead, the marketing company blasted nearly 5,000 unsolicited faxes across three states, prompting a class-action lawsuit under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act. The Seventh Circuit affirmed that the defendant was liable only for faxes sent within the 20-mile radius he had authorized, finding no agency relationship existed for the thousands of unauthorized faxes sent beyond that range — a result that limited his exposure to $16,000 rather than the potentially massive judgment sought by the class.
Duff v. Central Sleep Diagnostics
September 10, 2015
U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit (801 F.3d 833)
James B. Koch and Shannon Virginia Condon (GKWW) represented the plaintiff-appellee
GKWW represented the court-appointed receiver for Central Sleep Diagnostics, a company whose promoter defrauded investors through a scheme that funded personal luxuries including vacations, a Land Rover, and gambling. When a former attorney for the company attempted to leapfrog other creditors by secretly obtaining a state-court lien against medical-malpractice settlement proceeds — in violation of a federal stay order — the Seventh Circuit affirmed the district court’s decision to include those proceeds in the receivership estate and distribute them pro rata among all creditors. The court found the appeal frivolous and ordered sanctions against the former attorney under Rule 38.
Nichols v. City of Chicago Heights
April 30, 2015
Illinois Appellate Court, First District (2015 IL App (1st) 122994)
Thomas G. Gardiner, Barry C. Owen, and Kyle P. Carson (GKWW) represented the defendant
After a heavy rainstorm in April 2006 caused raw sewage to flood the basements of approximately 5% of Chicago Heights residents, a group of homeowners sued the city for negligence. GKWW successfully argued that the city was entitled to discretionary immunity under the Tort Immunity Act, as the city council’s decisions about how to allocate limited funds among competing sewer rehabilitation priorities were discretionary policy judgments — not ministerial duties performed in a prescribed manner. The appellate court affirmed summary judgment for the city, also rejecting the plaintiffs’ res ipsa loquitur claim because the city did not have exclusive control over the sewer system.
Bank of Commerce v. Fyre Lake Ventures, LLC
March 13, 2015
U.S. District Court, Central District of Illinois (84 F. Supp. 3d 807)
Thomas G. Gardiner (GKWW) represented defendant Kenneth Hoffman
Foreclosure action arising from a defaulted $9 million loan for a development project. Thomas G. Gardiner represented guarantor Kenneth Hoffman, who argued he had been released from liability through a prior settlement agreement with the FDIC. The court found the release language ambiguous and denied Hoffman’s motion for summary judgment, preserving the issue for trial.
Devyn Corporation v. City of Bloomington, Illinois
September 18, 2015
Illinois Appellate Court, Fourth District (2015 IL App (4th) 140819)
Thomas G. Gardiner, Richard C. Gleason, and Michelle M. LaGrotta (GKWW) represented the defendant
A property owner within a tax-increment-financing district challenged the City of Bloomington’s actions in levying, collecting, and spending incremental tax revenue after the district’s estimated completion date of December 21, 2009. GKWW successfully argued that the estimated date of completion was just that — an estimate — and not an absolute termination date, and that the city’s actions were lawful under the Tax Increment Allocation Redevelopment Act. The appellate court affirmed summary judgment for the city on all counts and upheld the denial of the plaintiff’s repeated attempts to amend its complaint.
Moon v. Liu
October 29, 2015
Illinois Appellate Court, First District (2015 IL App (1st) 143606)
James B. Koch and Michelle M. LaGrotta (GKWW) represented the plaintiff
A church deacon sued 20 fellow congregants of the Lakeview Korean Presbyterian Church after they signed a memorandum entitled “Reprimand of Deacon Moon,” which alleged among other things that he had threatened to report church members’ offerings to the IRS. The plaintiff claimed defamation per quod, false light invasion of privacy, and intentional infliction of emotional distress, arguing the statement was particularly damaging within the Korean immigrant community. The appellate court affirmed dismissal of all three counts, finding the plaintiff failed to allege sufficient special damages for his defamation claim, could not satisfy the reasonable-person standard for false light by relying solely on cultural sensitivities, and did not plead conduct extreme and outrageous enough to support an emotional distress claim.
Typenex Co-Investment, LLC v. Solar Wind Energy Tower, Inc.
July 20, 2015
U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois (123 F. Supp. 3d 1017)
Thomas G. Gardiner, Barry C. Owen, and Micah Jon Hughes (GKWW) represented the defendant/counter-plaintiff
GKWW represented Solar Wind Energy Tower, a publicly traded alternative energy company, in a dispute with investor Typenex over a $500,000 convertible note. After Typenex failed to follow the promised payment schedule and sought to convert the debt into equity, GKWW filed counterclaims alleging Typenex committed securities fraud and common law fraud by quietly removing the agreed-upon payment terms from the final documents. The court allowed the fraud counterclaims to proceed, finding a strong inference of scienter and that SWET’s reliance on Typenex’s assurances was not unreasonable.
Village of East Dundee v. Village of Carpentersville
June 20, 2016
Illinois Appellate Court, Second District (2016 IL App (2d) 151084)
Richard C. Gleason, Thomas G. Gardiner, and Michelle LaGrotta (GKWW) represented the plaintiff
When Wal-Mart announced plans to close its East Dundee store and open a Supercenter in neighboring Carpentersville using $4.3 million in TIF funds, GKWW sued on behalf of East Dundee challenging Carpentersville’s approval under the TIF Act’s 10-mile relocation provision. The trial court dismissed for lack of standing, but the appellate court vacated that dismissal, finding East Dundee had been improperly denied its right to a substitution of judge. The case was remanded for further proceedings before a different judge.
In re Estate of Bennoon
June 20, 2014
Illinois Appellate Court, First District (2014 IL App (1st) 122224)
Thomas G. Gardiner and Michelle M. LaGrotta (GKWW) represented the petitioner-appellant
GKWW represented a Ukrainian woman claiming to be the great-niece and paternal heir of a decedent who died in Cook County with no known paternal heirs. Her claim rested on apostille-certified birth and marriage certificates from Ukrainian archives. The public administrator countered with a genealogist and a Ukrainian National Archives official who testified that the archival records had been falsified — pages glued into registry books with mismatched ink, altered numbering, and incorrect source codes. The appellate court affirmed the denial of the heirship petition, finding no error in qualifying the genealogy expert, refusing comity to an ex parte Ukrainian court order, or crediting the respondent’s witnesses.
In re Hudson
March 5, 2013
U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit (710 F.3d 716)
Thomas G. Gardiner (GKWW) represented the petitioner
GKWW sought a writ of mandamus on behalf of Daniel Hudson, a former federal prisoner who sued under the Federal Tort Claims Act after medical personnel at a Kansas prison allegedly failed to diagnose a blood clot in his leg. After the district court transferred the case from Illinois to Kansas, Hudson petitioned the Seventh Circuit to reverse the transfer, arguing that he, his treating physicians, and family witnesses were all in Illinois. Judge Posner acknowledged the case was close but denied the petition, finding that more than two-thirds of potential witnesses were in or near Kansas and that the petitioner had not met the demanding standard required for mandamus relief.
Martinez v. Sun
September 13, 2012
U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois (896 F. Supp. 2d 710)
Barry C. Owen (GKWW) represented the plaintiff
Civil rights action under 42 U.S.C. Section 1983 on behalf of a man wrongly detained for 18 days on a 1981 murder warrant intended for someone else. Despite the plaintiff’s wife providing identity documents to Chicago police, the Extradition Unit failed to expedite his release. The court granted the officers qualified immunity but noted the case’s most troubling aspect: a simple notation from a prior mistaken arrest in 1999 would have prevented the entire ordeal.
Acosta v. Scott Labor LLC
July 15, 2005
U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois (377 F. Supp. 2d 647)
Thomas G. Gardiner (Gardiner Koch & Weisberg) represented defendant Form House, Inc.
Hispanic workers filed a class action alleging wage theft and overtime violations against a staffing company and its principals. One of the individual defendants filed a counterclaim against lead plaintiff Acosta for intrusion upon seclusion, alleging Acosta secretly videotaped the office and the footage aired on the local news. The court dismissed the counterclaim, holding that the employer failed to allege any private facts or a reasonable expectation of privacy in a shared office area, and that workplace videotaping to document misconduct does not constitute an invasion of privacy as a matter of law.
State ex rel. Mirbeau of Geneva Lake, LLC v. City of Lake Geneva
October 27, 2010
U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Wisconsin (746 F. Supp. 2d 1000)
Thomas G. Gardiner, James B. Koch, John R. Wrona, and others (Gardiner Koch & Weisberg) represented defendants James Connors and Richard Malmin
Thomas G. Gardiner, James B. Koch, John R. Wrona, and others represented defendants James Connors and Richard Malmin in a federal civil rights and tortious interference dispute. Plaintiff Mirbeau alleged that the defendants conspired with city officials to derail its zoning amendment application and interfere with its contract to purchase 54.5 acres for a mixed-use development in Lake Geneva. The court granted defendants’ motions to dismiss, finding that Mirbeau failed to allege the defendants shared a goal of violating the plaintiff’s constitutional rights and that the tortious interference claim was time-barred under Wisconsin’s two-year statute of limitations.
Schroeder v. Winyard
August 7, 2007
Illinois Appellate Court, Second District
Thomas G. Gardiner (GKWW)
Alienation of affections suit in which the plaintiff sued the defendant for destroying her marriage through a year-long affair with her husband. The appellate court affirmed summary judgment for the defendant, holding that her liability had been discharged in a prior Chapter 7 bankruptcy because the plaintiff failed to show the defendant subjectively intended to cause injury.
Smith v. Elzey (In re Smith)
July 18, 2002
U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Northern District of Illinois
Thomas G. Gardiner, John R. Wrona (GKWW)
Represented defendant Kaplan and Layne Financial Services in a bankruptcy adversary proceeding. The debtor alleged she was deceived into signing over her home through a fraudulent mortgage scheme involving excessive loan fees and a deed in lieu of foreclosure obtained under false pretenses. The court denied the plaintiff’s motion for default judgment against co-defendant Century Mortgage, finding unresolved issues including potential res judicata from the prior dismissal of GKWW’s client and possible federal preemption of the state law claims.
Illinois v. Wardlow
January 12, 2000
U.S. Supreme Court (528 U.S. 119)
James B. Koch, Lynn N. Weisberg, Thomas G. Gardiner (GKWW)
Argued before the U.S. Supreme Court on behalf of respondent Wardlow in a landmark Fourth Amendment case. The question was whether unprovoked flight in a high crime area constitutes reasonable suspicion for a Terry stop. The Court reversed the Illinois Supreme Court in a 5-4 decision, holding that the combination of the defendant’s presence in a high narcotics area and his unprovoked flight upon seeing police gave officers reasonable suspicion to conduct an investigatory stop.
Additional Links:
https://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/98-1036.ZO.html
https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/us-supreme-court/528/119.html
https://www.oyez.org/cases/1999/98-1036
People v. Asselborn
March 26, 1996
Illinois Appellate Court, First District (278 Ill. App. 3d 960, 664 N.E.2d 110)
Thomas G. Gardiner (Gardiner, Koch & Hines) represented the defendant-appellant
Following a bench trial conviction for arson and a sentence of 30 months’ probation, GKWW’s predecessor firm appealed on the ground that the defendant never signed a written jury waiver as required by the Code of Criminal Procedure — an issue on which Illinois appellate districts were split. The defense argued that the absence of a written waiver entitled the defendant to automatic reversal, citing decisions from the Second and Third Districts. The First District affirmed the conviction, siding with the Fourth District’s view that the failure to obtain a written waiver was harmless error where the defendant had knowingly and voluntarily waived his right to a jury trial in open court through counsel, without objection, reasoning that the written-waiver requirement is a statutory right rather than a constitutional one.
Widell v. Wolf (Wolf Industries)
December 30, 1994
U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit
James B. Koch, Lynn N. Weisberg (GKWW)
Represented the plaintiff-appellant, a commodities broker who sought to vacate an arbitration award of $57,500 in favor of a customer who alleged unauthorized trading. The Seventh Circuit affirmed dismissal, holding that the broker’s “public policy” argument was a thinly disguised attempt to relitigate the merits and that arbitral awards are not subject to judicial review for factual or legal errors.
Genin, Trudeau & Co. v. Integra Development International
February 16, 1994
U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois
Thomas G. Gardiner, John L. Hines Jr. (GKWW)
Represented the plaintiff in a licensing dispute over water-filled vinyl placemats called “Splashies.” The plaintiff alleged the defendant broke an oral exclusive licensing agreement by secretly negotiating and signing a written license with a competitor. The court dismissed the trademark infringement and breach of contract claims but allowed the promissory estoppel claim to proceed, finding the defendant’s conduct fell within the equitable estoppel standard under Illinois law.
CFTC v. Thomas W. Collins
July 7, 1993
U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit
John L. Hines Jr., Thomas G. Gardiner, James B. Koch (GKWW)
Represented respondents in a federal enforcement action where the Commodity Futures Trading Commission subpoenaed copies of their personal income tax returns during an investigation into suspected off-exchange commodities trading. The Seventh Circuit reversed the district court’s order enforcing the subpoenas, holding it was an abuse of discretion to compel production without any showing that the Commission actually needed the tax returns for its investigation.
Monaco v. Fuddruckers, Inc.
August 13, 1993
U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit
James B. Koch (GKWW)
Represented the plaintiff-appellant, a skilled butcher who alleged age discrimination under the ADEA after his employer reduced his wages, hours, and vacation time, leading him to quit. The Seventh Circuit affirmed summary judgment for the employer, finding that the adverse changes were made by corporate management for legitimate business reasons unrelated to age, and that isolated age-related remarks by a local manager were insufficient to establish a causal connection to the employment decisions.
Wieboldt Stores, Inc. v. Schottenstein
September 16, 1991
U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois
Thomas G. Gardiner (GKWW)
Represented defendants State Street Venture, One North State Street Limited Partnership, BA Mortgage and International Realty Corp., and third-party defendants Boulevard Bank and Bennett & Kahnweiler in complex litigation arising from the leveraged buyout of Wieboldt Stores. The bankruptcy trustee alleged the LBO constituted a fraudulent conveyance of the retailer’s assets. The court denied all pending motions for summary judgment and dismissal, finding genuine issues of material fact on claims including legal malpractice, fraudulent conveyance, and agency liability.
Johnson v. Martin (two separate cases)
September 12, 1991
U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit
Thomas G. Gardiner (GKWW)
Represented the defendants, including the Chicago Police Superintendent and the City of Chicago, in a civil rights case brought by a probationary officer who was discharged after testing positive for morphine and codeine during random drug screening. The officer claimed his liberty interest in reputation was violated. The Seventh Circuit affirmed dismissal, holding that stigmatizing information retained in a personnel file but never publicly disclosed does not constitute the “public disclosure” required to support a constitutional defamation claim.
Additional Links:
https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/567298/johnson-v-martin/
https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/9001505/johnson-v-martin/