» CASES IN THE NEWS

An article on Courthouse News Service site yesterday described a recent California lawsuit that contained some allegations about very, very creepy activities at a North Hollywood Sears Store. A number of plaintiffs are alleging that a Sears maintenance man installed dozens of spy cameras and peepholes in fitting rooms and bathrooms and uploaded the captured ph… Read More

Stella’s Sports Complex, the Lyons, Illinois batting cage facility that is a second home to Little Leaguers from February to September, is being sued. According to online reports today, Michael Rhodes, a “semi-professional ball player”, is claiming he was injured at the facility after being struck by a baseball. The reports indicate Rhoades w… Read More

A victim of sexual abuse recently filed suit against the Boy Scouts of America for failing to protect him from a known child molester. The victim, who is not named, was molested from 1985 through 1987 while a member of the Boy Scouts. The perpetrator, Thomas Hacker was a Scout Master and had met the victim through Boy Scout activities. Hacker is currently serv… Read More

On Tuesday the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a lawsuit alleging that a Romeoville company wrongfully fired a 60 year old employee because she had a prosthetic leg. The company in question, Staffmark Investment, LLC hired Dorothy Shanks in October of 2010. She was then assigned to inspect Sony electronics at the Staffmark facility… Read More

Got behind on my blogging due to some business travel last week, but back at it. First thing that caught my eye were the numerous articles about the release of the “Boy Scout Perversion Files”. The existence of the “perversion files” first came to light in 2010, when six former boy scouts filed a lawsuit in Oregon claiming a former Boy… Read More

Last week a jury in a Denver federal courtroom hit an Illinois company with a $7.2 million dollar verdict in a “popcorn lung” lawsuit. The plaintiff, Wayne Watson had alleged that Glister-Mary Lee Corp. failed to warn consumers that the butter flavoring on it microwave popcorn contained diacetyl. Diacetyl has been linked to a chronic condition know… Read More

Recently, in Vincent v. Strathmoor, the Illinois Supreme Court was presented with a singular question of law: – does a claim for punitive damages based upon allegations of willful and wanton violations of the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act(210 ILCS 45/1-101 et seq) survive the death of the nursing home resident, upon whose behalf the case was brought? Th… Read More

The Illinois Appellate Court[4th Dist] recently issued an opinion clarifying when a worker can recover for an unexplained fall at work. In Baldwin v. The Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission, the facts are pretty straightforward. Cathy Baldwin worked as a security guard. On October 8, 2006 she was working inside guard duty, which called for her to w… Read More