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John M. Fitzgerald

TDR Wins Appeal in Commercial Guaranty Litigation

Share:TDR partners Gino L. DiVito and John M. Fitzgerald and TDR associate Ashley Crettol Insalaco, along with their co-counsel, won an impressive victory in the Illinois Appellate Court in Koenig & Strey GMAC Real Estate v. Renaissant 1000 South Michigan I, LP, 2016 IL App (1st) 161783.  TDR represented three individuals who signed a guarantee […]

Certification Revocation Kills Appellate Jurisdiction

Share:The District Court giveth, and the District Court taketh away.  In Kenosha Unified School District No. 1 Board of Education v. Whitaker (per curiam) (slip op. Nov. 14, 2016), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit faced a somewhat unusual circumstance.  A transgender student sued his school district for denying him access to […]

TDR Successfully Defends Accounting Firm From Claims By Former Client

Share:TDR partners Caesar Tabet, Mark Horwitch and John Fitzgerald recently obtained the dismissal of an accounting malpractice suit in Indiana state court filed against one of the country’s largest public accounting firms. The plaintiffs were seeking millions of dollars in damages, and the lawsuit had been pending for about two years when TDR stepped in […]

TDR Wins TRO in Federal Court in Corporate Governance Dispute

Share:TDR partners Caesar Tabet, Daniel Stanner, and John Fitzgerald, and TDR associate Uri Abt successfully represented a minority owner of a Delaware Limited Liability Company.  The controlling members planned to sell the assets of the company and then to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.  The controlling members scheduled a shareholder meeting to approve that transaction.  […]

Plaintiff X: Orders Denying Leave to Litigate Anonymously Are Immediately Appealable

Share:There seems to be an increase in judicial decisions addressing a litigant’s right, if any, to use the court system without disclosing his or her name.  Perhaps this trend is inspired by people’s experience on the Internet, where one may interact with others, express opinions, and engage in all manner of transactions without unmasking oneself.  […]

Seventh Circuit Indicates Willingness to Revisit Causation Standard for ADA Claims

Share:Although it left the issue undecided, the Seventh Circuit recently noted that the 2008 amendments to the Americans with Disabilities Act may have altered its causation standard.  The case, Arroyo v. Volvo Group North America LLC, No. 14-3618, 2015 WL 5846595 (Oct. 6, 2015), was discussed by John M. Fitzgerald and Uri Abt in “The Bottom […]

Circuit Court Lacks Jurisdiction to Review Arbitrator’s Ruling In Favor of Failed Bank

Share:John M. Fitzgerald and Uri Abt discuss a recent Illinois appellate court opinion interpreting the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery and Enforcement Act (FIRREA), the federal law governing claims against failed banks, in their regular column in the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin.  The appellate court held that the plaintiff’s failure to file an administrative action before the FDIC within […]

Appellate Court Considers Illinois’ Relation Back Rule After Krupski

Share:In their regular column in the the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin, “The Bottom Line,” John M. Fitzgerald and Uri Abt discuss a recent a Illinois appellate court opinion that answered two certified questions about Illinois’ relation back rule in light of the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Krupski v. Costa Crociere S.p.A., 560 U.S. […]

When Does an FMLA Claim Accrue?

Share:In Barrett v. Illinois Department of Corrections (opinion issued Oct. 20, 2015), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit decided an important issue of first impression within this circuit: When does an FMLA claim based upon a wrongful denial of family and medical leave accrue? Deeming out-of-circuit authority to be “thinly reasoned” and […]

10 TDR Attorneys Recognized as Super Lawyers or Rising Stars

Share:Once again, SuperLawyers® Magazine has recognized nearly three-fourths of TDR partners for their high-degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. Congratulations to: SuperLawyers•Karina Zabicki DeHayes•Gino L. DiVito•Mark H. Horwitch•Timothy A. Hudson•Christopher D. Liguori *•Michael I Rothstein•Caesar A. Tabet Rising Stars•John M. Fitzgerald *•Brian C. Haussmann•Daniel I. Konieczny * – First time honoree in this category […]

Abt and Fitzgerald Co-Author CDLB Column

Share:Administrative Remedies Must Be Exhausted Before Filing Claim TDR attorneys Uri B. Abt and John Fitzgerald co-authored a column in the October 21st (subscription may be required) edition of the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin.  The column, “Federal Act Should Have Put End to Claim Quickly,” examined a recent Illinois Appellate Court decision on a matter […]

John Fitzgerald Named as One of 40 Illinois Attorneys under Forty to Watch

Share:Supplement to Chicago Daily Law Bulletin and Chicago Lawyer TDR partner John Fitzgerald was named as one of the top 40 lawyers under forty years of age in Illinois.  Clients and professional colleagues nominated Mr. Fitzgerald for the honor.  More than 1,200 lawyers were nominated for the award.  Mr. Fitzgerald was recognized for, among other […]

Fitzgerald Quoted in News Article on Illinois Supreme Court’s Upcoming Term

Share:TDR Partner John Fitzgerald was interviewed by reporter Andrew Maloney of the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin for its article on September 8th (subscription required) about the Illinois Supreme Court’s upcoming term.  Fitzgerald, whose practice is focused primarily on appeals and commercial litigation, commented on the implications of the Illinois Supreme Court’s eventual ruling in Price […]

Illinois Supreme Court Sides With TDR

Share:Unanimous Opinion Strikes Down Pension Law In a unanimous opinion, the Illinois Supreme Court affirmed a lower court ruling that a 2013 pension reform law is unconstitutional.  TDR represented a group of retired teachers in successfully challenging the law. TDR Founding Member Gino DiVito, who argued the case before the Court, said, “We are delighted that today’s […]

Victory in Pension Lawsuit

Share:On November 21, 2014, Sangamon County Circuit Court Judge John Belz issued an order (linked) finding Public Act 98-0599, a pension reduction law that was enacted in December 2013, unconstitutional and void in its entirety.  Working with attorneys representing various other plaintiff groups, TDR partners Gino L. DiVito, John M. Fitzgerald, Brian C. Haussmann, and […]

TDR Victorious in Professional Liability Matter

Share:Tabet DiVito & Rothstein LLC obtained a favorable judgment for our client, a prominent international law firm, in an action alleging professional liability with respect to patent litigation.  The court dismissed, with prejudice, all claims against our client, and entered an order barring all contribution claims. This case was originally filed in the US District […]

TDR Successfully Represents Abbott Laboratories in Appeal Concerning Insurance Coverage Dispute

Share:Tabet DiVito & Rothstein successfully represented Abbott Laboratories in an appeal concerning Abbott’s dispute with Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s, London, over insurance coverage for a pharmaceutical product recall.  In its opinion, the Illinois Appellate Court, First District, affirmed the circuit court of Cook County’s award to Abbott of over $80 million in damages.  TDR attorneys […]

John Fitzgerald Quoted in Crain’s Chicago Business Regarding Pension Litigation

Share:TDR partner John Fitzgerald has been quoted twice in Crain’s Chicago Business articles concerning the pending constitutional challenge to Public Act 98-0599, which diminished the pension benefits received by members of State retirement systems.  In a Crain’s article published on April 23, 2014, John was quoted on the significance of the Illinois Appellate Court’s recent […]

TDR Wins Summary Judgment for Engineer in Cook County Personal Injury Action

Share:On May 12, 2014, Judge Daniel Gillespie entered summary judgment for an Indiana engineer who was a defendant in a personal injury action filed in the Circuit Court of Cook County.  Plaintiff is an Illinois ironworker who was injured while off-loading and staging I-beams at a construction site.  Plaintiff alleged that the I-beams were constructed […]

TDR Successfully Represents the RTA Before the Illinois Supreme Court in Tax Litigation

Share:Tabet DiVito & Rothstein successfully represented the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) before the Illinois Supreme Court in a case argued by partner Gino DiVito.  The Supreme Court’s decision in Hartney Fuel Oil Co. v. Hamer, 2013 IL 115130 is a landmark case that will determine the way that Illinois sales tax obligations are imposed on […]

Fitzgerald Named to Appellate Lawyers Association’s Board of Directors

Share:TDR partner John M. Fitzgerald has been named a director of the Appellate Lawyers Association, an association of lawyers who practice in the courts of review and judges who serve on those courts. Fitzgerald also serves as co-chair of the Appellate Lawyers Association’s Rules Committee, which meets several times a year to review proposed changes […]

DiVito, Haussmann and Fitzgerald Author Article on Attorney-Client Privilege

Share: The July 2013 edition of the Illinois Bar Journal included an article by TDR partners Gino L. DiVito, Brian C. Haussmann and John M. Fitzgerald.  Their article, New Limits on Subject Matter Waiver of Attorney-Client Privilege, discusses the new standard for subject matter waiver of the attorney-client privilege that was announced in the Illinois […]

TDR Wins Appeal in the Illinois Supreme Court

Share:TDR secured a significant victory in the Illinois Supreme Court, which today issued an important decision concerning a matter of first impression in Illinois:  whether the extrajudicial (i.e., out of court) disclosure to a third party of attorney-client communications waives the attorney-client privilege over private, undisclosed attorney-client communications concerning the same “subject matter.” In a […]