Chicago Business Litigation Lawyer Blog
Seventh Circuit Gives a Wide Berth to Business Judgment Rule Following the Deference Required by the Indiana Legistlature in a Shareholder Oppression Case
No withstanding allegations of majority shareholder oppression, the Seventh Circuit rejected those arguments paying deference to the business judgment rule because of the Indiana Legislature’s directive to give officers and directors a wide berth for their business decisions. The Court observed:
“Indiana has statutorily implemented a strongly pro-management version of the business judgment rule,” G & N Aircraft, Inc. v. Boehm, 743 N.E.2d 227, 238 (Ind. 2001)— the rule that creates “a presumption that directors making a business decision, not involving self-interest, act on an informed basis, in good faith, and in the honest belief that their actions are in the corporation’s best interest.” Grobow v. Perot, 539 A.2d 180, 187 (Del. 1988), overruled on other grounds in Brehm v. Eisner, 746 A.2d 244 (Del. 2000).
You can listen to the oral argument before the court here:
Oral Argument in 7th Circuit Case Finding Alleged Libel Against American Bar Association Was Non-Actionable Opinion
The Board of Forensic Document Examiners defamation sued for libel claiming it suffered harm to its reputation due to an article that appeared in a journal published by the American Bar Association. The trial court granted the defendants motions to dismiss the action, finding that article didn’t sufficiently identify the Board or its members as the targets of the criticism and if it had done so, it would still be only the opinion of the author and therefore non-action as a libel case. You can listen to the oral argument below:
You can read the final decision of the 7th Circuit here. Continue reading ›
DiTommaso Lubin’s Chicago Libel Defamation and Slander Attorneys Named 2019 Super Lawyers
Super Lawyers named Chicago and Oak Brook defamation libel and slander attorney Peter Lubin a Super Lawyer in the Categories of Class Action, Business Litigation, and Consumer Rights Litigation. Patrick Austermuehle of the Firm was named a Rising Star again and has a great deal of experience as a Chicago Defamation Libel and Slander Attorney. Peter Lubin and Patrick Austermuehle have achieved this honor for many years which is only given to 5% of Illinois’ attorneys each year. You can review their record of accomplishment here. You can look at reviews by the clients here.
DiTommaso Lubin’s Oak Brook and Chicago business trial lawyers have over thirty years experience in litigating defamation, breach of fiduciary duty and shareholder oppression lawsuits. Our Chicago non-compete agreement and trade secret theft attorneys prosecute and defend many types of unfair business practices and emergency business lawsuits involving injunctions, and TROS, covenant not to compete, franchise, distributor and dealer wrongful termination and trade secret lawsuits and many different kinds of business disputes involving shareholders, partnerships, closely held businesses and employee breaches of fiduciary duty. We also assist businesses and business owners who are victims of fraud.
DiTommaso Lubin’s Wheaton and Waukegan business litigation attorneys have more than two and half decades of experience helping business clients unravel the complexities of Illinois and out-of-state business laws. Our Chicago business, commercial, class-action, and consumer litigation lawyers represent individuals, family businesses and enterprises of all sizes in a variety of legal disputes, including disputes among partners and shareholders as well as lawsuits between businesses and consumer rights, auto fraud, and wage claim individual and class action cases. In every case, our goal is to resolve disputes as quickly and successfully as possible, helping business clients protect their investments and get back to business as usual. From offices in Oak Brook, near Schaumburg and Orland Park, we serve clients throughout Illinois and the Midwest.
When It’s More Than Just Cake
The glass ceiling continues to prove itself to be more shatterproof than many women suspected. Most of the time, just when a woman thinks she’s broken through – or is about to breakthrough – all she finds are more roadblocks. This allegedly turned out to be the case for Nancy Saltzman after she joined ExlService Holdings in 2014 as the firm’s general counsel. As an attorney with twenty years of experience under her belt, Saltzman was the most senior female executive when she joined the publicly traded consulting firm. But even with Saltzman on the executive team, the firm’s leadership consisted primarily of men.
Saltzman said she took her role as part of the company’s leadership very seriously, knowing other women looked up to her as a role model and an example of what women could achieve, both in the company and in the world at large. But the rest of the firm’s leadership allegedly saw Saltzman’s position on the team as a challenge that needed to be squashed.
In a recent discrimination lawsuit filed against Exl, Saltzman alleges Rohit Kapoor, the firm’s CEO, blocked her from opportunities to advance her career, subjected her to more scrutiny than her male peers, and micromanaged her to a much greater extent than her male colleagues. For example, Kapoor allegedly denied her travel request for a work trip in which every other member of the executive team traveled abroad to meet with clients. Kapoor then allegedly criticized Saltzman for not spending enough time with clients. Continue reading ›
7th Circuit Argument in Libel Case Reversing Verdict for Plaintiff For Failure to Prove Actual Malice in Case of Public Interest
You can view the decision here.
Our Naperville, IL libel and slander lawyers concentrate in this area of the law. We have defended or prosecuted a number of defamation and libel cases, including cases representing a consumer sued by a large luxury used car dealer in federal court for hundreds of negative internet reviews and videos which resulted in substantial media coverage of the suit; one of Loyola University’s largest contributors when the head basketball coach sued him for libel after he was fired; and a lawyer who was falsely accused of committing fraud with the false allegation published to the Dean of the University of Illinois School of Law, where the lawyer attended law school and the President of the University of Illinois. One of our partners also participated in representing a high profile athlete against a well-known radio shock jock.
DiTommaso Lubin’s Chicago Shareholder Oppression Attorneys and Chicago Defamation Attorneys Honored by Super Lawyers
Super Lawyers named Chicago and Oak Brook shareholder oppression attorney Peter Lubin a Super Lawyer in the Categories of Class Action, Business Litigation, and Consumer Rights Litigation. Patrick Austermuehle of the Firm was named a Rising Star again and has a great deal of experience as a Chicago Defamation Libel and Slander Lawyer. Peter Lubin and Patrick Austermuehle have achieved this honor for many years which is only given to 5% of Illinois’ attorneys each year.
DiTommaso Lubin’s Oak Brook and Chicago business dispute lawyers have over thirty years experience in litigating defamation, breach of fiduciary duty and shareholder oppression lawsuits. Our Chicago non-compete agreement and trade secret theft lawyers prosecute and defend many types of unfair business practices and emergency business lawsuits involving injunctions, and TROS, covenant not to compete, franchise, distributor and dealer wrongful termination and trade secret lawsuits and many different kinds of business disputes involving shareholders, partnerships, closely held businesses and employee breaches of fiduciary duty. We also assist businesses and business owners who are victims of fraud.
DiTommaso Lubin’s Wheaton, Schaumburg, and Evanston business litigation attorneys have more than two and half decades of experience helping business clients unravel the complexities of Illinois and out-of-state business laws. Our Chicago business, commercial, class-action, and consumer litigation lawyers represent individuals, family businesses and enterprises of all sizes in a variety of legal disputes, including disputes among partners and shareholders as well as lawsuits between businesses and consumer rights, auto fraud, and wage claim individual and class action cases. In every case, our goal is to resolve disputes as quickly and successfully as possible, helping business clients protect their investments and get back to business as usual. From offices in Oak Brook, near Naperville and Aurora, we serve clients throughout Illinois and the Midwest.
Seventh Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Defamation Suit Filed by Non-Profit Organization against American Bar Association — Naperville Defamation Attorneys Near Chicago and Schaumburg
The Board of Forensic Document Examiners (“Board”), a non-profit organization that administers a certification program for forensic document examiners, filed a defamation lawsuit against the American Bar Association (“ABA”) alleging that it suffered reputational harm from an article published in an ABA law journal. A federal district court dismissed the claim finding that the statements in the journal article were non-actionable opinion protected from liability by the First Amendment. The non-profit appealed and the Seventh Circuit, agreeing with the district court, affirmed the dismissal.
The summer 2015 edition of The Judges’ Journal, a journal published by the ABA, contained an article written by Thomas Vastrick, a forensic document examiner who was certified by one of the plaintiff’s competitors, the American Board of Forensic Document Examiners. The article purported to offer judges guidance for evaluating the qualifications and credentials of forensic document examiners, which analyze and compare handwriting and provide expert testimony in judicial proceedings. In the four-page article, Vastrick urged judges to look for experts certified by the American Board of Forensic Document Examiners and to “be wary of other certifying bodies.”
The article did not mention the Board by name. Nonetheless, the Board believed that the article defamed its members by creating the impression that they were “lesser qualified” examiners than those certified by the American Board of Forensic Document Examiners. The Board responded to the article by filing suit alleging defamation per se and invasion of privacy on behalf of its members generally and one member specifically who was singled out in Vastrick’s article.
The Board’s complaint focused on four specific statements in the article. The first statement urged judges that to be “an appropriately trained forensic document examiner,” the examiner should have completed “a full-time, in-residence training program lasting a minimum of 24 months[.]” The next statement claimed that “The American Board of Forensic Document Examiners … is the only certification board recognized by the broader forensic science community, law enforcement, and courts for maintaining principles and training requirements concurrent with the published training standards” and warned judges to “be wary of other certifying bodies.” The remaining two statements generally warned judged to look out for and be wary of examiners certified by any certification board other than The American Board of Forensic Document Examiners. Continue reading ›
In Lawsuits Alleging Fraud and Abuse, Is the Victim the Patient or the Consumer? — Best Chicago Fraud Lawyers — Chicago Consumer Fraud Defense Attorneys Near Elmhurst and Naperville
What if you paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for new, original paintings by a famous artist, only to be told that the artist hasn’t painted in years and the paintings were created by someone you’ve never heard of? According to a series of lawsuits, Adam Max, son of the famous painter, Peter Max, has allegedly been taking advantage of his father’s declining mental health in order to make a profit for himself and a few of his business partners by selling new paintings with his dad’s name on them. The problem is that Max is allegedly no longer painting.
Widely considered to be a countercultural icon in the ‘60s and ‘70s, Max was one of the few painters to become a household name and have his work displayed on the White House lawn, the cover of Time Magazine, and even postage stamps. Now he’s 81 years old and suffering from dementia, but new paintings with his name on them continue to sell for tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars. Whether he’s really painting them is up for debate.
According to one of the many lawsuits between Max’s friends and family members, his son, Adam, together with three business associates, allegedly took over Max’s studio in order to profit off what is already one of the most lucrative art franchises of the 20th century. They have allegedly filled the studio with 18 painters they recruited (many of them off the street) and are paying minimum wage in order to produce paintings in Max’s famous style. Max is then allegedly instructed to hold out his hand and sign his name to each painting so his son can sell them at auction. Continue reading ›