IN THE CIRCUIT COUNTY Joel A. BrodskY, couRT OF COOK COUNTY' rLLrNOrs DEPARTMENT, LAW DIVISION Plaintiff, V. ..!j""f ?i J1,rf.i q.:ft3 ! 'i ! JLU'".i a d{u .- -:-_Lliu-1'/ ia*uf,t L CASE NO. T .: =E i_: ',i : i-:"$ L . b'e:- "'' ;j:" ;;i..l{i* !- JURY TRIAL DEMANDED Steven A. Greenberg, individually ) and d/b/a Steven A. Greenberg and ) Associates, Ltd. r dD Illinois ) Corporation, Steven A. Greenberg, ) Ltd., a Dj-ssolved Il-linois ) Corporation, Steven A. Greenberg ) and Associates, Ltd., an Illinois ) Corporation, Tribune ComPanY, a ) Foriegn CorPoration, StacY St. ) Clair, individuallY and as an ) agent and emPloyee of Tribune ) Company, AOL, Inc., a Delaware ) Corporation, d/b/a AOL Patch, the ) Patch, the Patch.com' the Joliet ) Patch and Shorewood Patch, Patch ) Media Corporation, a Delaware ) Corporat ion d/b/ a the Patch, and ) Joseph Hosey, individuallY, and ) as agent and editor of the Patch, ) the Joliet Patch and the Shorewood) Patch, ) ) Defendants. ) COMPI,AINT NOW COMES Plaintiff, Joel A. Brodsky, by his attorney' walter Maksym, and complaining of Defendants steven A. Greenberg, individually and d/b/a Steven A' Greenberg & Associates, Ltd. , d/b/a steven A. Greenberg Ltd. and Steven A. Greenberg, Ltd., a Dissolved IlIinois CorPoration, Steven A. Greenberg and Associates, Ltd', dh Illinois Corporation, the Tribune Company, a Foriegn Corporation' and St,acy St. Cl-air, individually and as reporter' employee, and agent of the Tribune Co', AOL' Inc' ' a i: ' "91 :-- .:. - ^.:Ti ]'r{l::l k '. ".r r.rl-.j'*': -:; {} -{ 1i';' Fr! \r,...j.,.. '.,., ;r tr.' (]3 il5 .y? *n "r fft #r' 'a r-- r l-** gl 1'r F"*l { i**"1 :5i I ti {",u"i f^)
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Joel Brodsky Lawsuit Against Patch, Chicago Tribune and Others
The suit, filed by former Drew Peterson attorney Joel Brodsky, accused reporters and another former Peterson attorney of deliberate attempts to defame him, but it was dropped about a year later.
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IN THE CIRCUITCOUNTY
Joel A. BrodskY,
couRT OF COOK COUNTY' rLLrNOrsDEPARTMENT, LAW DIVISION
Pla in t i f f ,
V .
. . ! j " " f ? i J 1 , r f . i q . : f t 3! ' i ! J L U ' " . i a d { u
. - - : - _ L l i u - 1 ' / i a * u f , t L
CASE NO. T .: =E i_: ',i : i-:"$L . b'e:- "' ' ;j:" ;;i..l{i* !-
JURY TRIAL DEMANDEDSteven A. Greenberg, ind iv idual ly )and d/b/a Steven A. Greenberg and )Assoc ia tes , L td . r dD I l l i no i s )Corporat ion, Steven A. Greenberg, )L td . , a D j - sso l ved I l - l i no i s )Corporat ion, Steven A. Greenberg )and Assoc ia tes , L td . , an I l l i no i s )Corporation, Tribune ComPanY, a )Fo r iegn CorPora t i on , S tacY S t . )Cla i r , ind iv idual lY and as an )agent and emPloyee of Tribune )Company, AOL, Inc. , a Delaware )Corporat ion, d /b/a AOL Patch, the )Pa tch , t he Pa tch .com ' t he Jo l i e t )Patch and Shorewood Patch, Patch )Media Corporat ion, a Delaware )Corporat ion d/b/ a the Patch, and )Joseph Hosey, ind iv idual lY, and )as agent and edi tor o f the Patch, )the Jo l ie t Patch and the Shorewood)Pa tch , )
)D e f e n d a n t s . )
COMPI,AINT
NOW COMES Pla int i f f , Joel A. Brodsky, by h is at torney '
wal ter Maksym, and compla in ing of Defendants s teven A.
Greenberg, ind iv idual ly and d/b/a Steven A' Greenberg &
Assoc ia tes , L td . , d /b /a s teven A . Greenberg L td . and S teven
A . G reenbe rg , L td . , a D isso l ved I l I i no i s CorPora t i on ,
S teven A . Greenberg and Assoc ia tes , L td ' , dh I l l i no i s
Corporat ion, the Tr ibune Company, a For iegn Corporat ion '
and St ,acy St . Cl -a i r , ind iv idual ly and as repor ter '
emp loyee , and agen t o f t he T r ibune Co ' , AOL ' I nc ' ' a
30. On in format ion and bel ie f , a t a l l t imes re levant ,
Patch.com was a local and hyper local b log and websi tes
plat form owned by AoL and operated in r l - l - ino is and 23 other
states wi th ln the uni ted s tates by patch Media corporat i -on,
a Del -aware Corporat ion ( "Patch Media") d /b/a the . .patch, , .
Hosey, AOL and Patch Media are somet imes here inaf ter
co l l ec t i ve l y re fe r red to as the "Hosey De fendan ts " .
31 . I n o r abou t 2008 Hosey au tho red and had pub l i shed ,
con t ra ry to h i s p ro fessed se l f -po r t ray as an ob jec t i ve new
repor te r , a b iased and fac tua l l y f a l se book en t i t l ed "Fa ta l .
Vows: The Tragic Wives of Sergieant Drew Peterson" ("Fatal
Vows" ) wh ich , i n 2012 , was made j -n to a f i lm t i t Led "Drew
Peterson: Untouchable" ("Untouchabl -e" ) produced and
broadcast by L i fe t ime Enter ta inment serv ices, LLC d/b/a the
Li fe t ime Movie Network and A&E Telev is ion Networks, LLC.
32. On in format ion and bel ie f , in order to hype,
dramat ize, se l1 and prof i t promot ing Fata l_ Vows,
Untouchable, and sequels thereto, s tar t ing in 2009, and
cont inu ing on a regular bas is of a t l -east every month
thereaf ter (and every day dur ing the sav io Murder Tr ia l )
though January of 2013, Hosey in tent ional ly , knowingly and
ma l i c i ous l y and w i th reck less d i s rega rd fo r t he t ru th
authored, and AoL and Patch Media in conjunct ion wi th Hosey
and each other , in tent ional ly , knowingly and mal ic ious ly
and wi th reck less dI -sregard for the t ru th caused to be
publ ished on the Patch a in terconnected and cont inuous
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se r ies o f f a l - se and m is lead ing s to r i es , f a l se and
mis leadj -ng s tatements, fa lse and mis leading repor ts , fa lse
and mis leading quotat ions, and fa lse and mis leading
innuendo , ( t he " fa l se and m is lead ing s ta temen ts " ) a l l o f
and concern ing Brodsky, which Hosey knew, and the other
Hosey Defendants and Patch knew or should have known to be
fa l se and m is lead ing .
33. At a l l - t imes re levant , the Hosey Defendants knew
or should have known that when said fa lse and mis leading
statements were made i t could or would be l ike1y to cause
harm to the in terests of the Brodsky having a pecuniary
val -ue and p lace h im in a fa lse l ight in the publ ic eye.
34 - That sa id fa lse publ icat ions p laced Brodsky and
his law pract ice in a fa lse l ight in the publ ic eye thereby
causing h im d i rect pecuniary loss to be suf fered as a
resul t o f sa id d isparagement inc lud j -ng lost prof i ts , loss
of good wi I I and other damages.
35 . Tha t du r ing the a fo resa id pe r iod , Hosey , and by
extension the Hosey Defendants, in what can only be
descr ibed as the worst type of ye l low journal ism, and in
fur therance thereof caused to be publ ished on the Patch a
interconnected and cont inuous ser ies of ar t i -c les which were
noth ing an in tent ional defamatory smear campaJ-gn against
Brodsky, publ ished wi th the in tent by Hosey to in jure
Brodsky ' s repu ta t i on and po r t ray h im in a fa l se l i gh t i n
the pub l i c eye .
36. In fur therance of th is smear campaign, Hosey
fa11ed to , and i n t ru th d idn ' t r ea l l y ca re to , p rope r l y
invest igate the factual bas is of the sa id defamatory
accusat ions agai -nst Brodsky, or f ind out sa l ient and
re levant facts and factors, invest igate whether the
defamatory accusat ions had were t rue or fa l -se or had any
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basis in fact because Hosey d idn ' t care whether nor not
anyth ing he publ ished about Brodsky was t rue or not , as
long as i t was a defamatory smear of Brodsky.
37. Fur ther , before launching h is in tent ional - ,
de l iberate and scurr i lous media at tack on Brodsky, Hosey,
and the Hosey Defendants, never cared to or wanted to make
any meaningfu l or leg i t imate inqui ry in to the basis of what
they was publ ish ing, or even make a leg i t imate at tempt to
p rov ide a fa i r o r ba lanced ve rs ion o f t he fac ts , ox to
publ ish any re levant contradic tory in format ion wi th respect
the re to . Hosey ac ted i n t h i s manner because he i s , j - n f ac t ,
noth ing but a bul ly masquerading as a journal is t , who
bel ieves that he had a I j -cense to defame, and conduct an
intent ional - smear campaign against , Brodsky for h is own
perverse p leasure, whi le advancing h is l i terary and f i i_m
wr i t i ng ca ree r .
38. The Patch, Patch Media, AOL Patch, knew, or were
wi1 l fu11y b l ind to the fact that Hosey was engaging in the
worse type of ye l low journal ism, devoid of an t rue
journal is t ic s tandards, and in contravent ion of the i r
pub l i shed p ledge tha t Pa tch webs i tes ac t w i th j ou rna l l s t i c
in tegr i ty , and they a l - lowed Hosey to cont inual ly publ ish a
ser ies of ar t j -c l -es which any reader can easi ly recognize as
nothing more than a defamatory smear campaign by Hosey
aga ins t B rodsky .
39 . Tha t t he Hosey De fendan ts a re j o in t l y and
vicar ious ly l iab le for the damages thereby caused Brodsky
because Hosey was at a l l t imes act ing wi th in the scope of
h i s agency .
40 - The Hosey Defendants foregoing defamatory
statements and conduct cast and por t rayed Brodsky in a
fa l se l i gh t i n t he pub l i c eye .
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4 ! . The fa l se l i gh t i n wh ich the B rodsky was p laced
would be h igh ly of fens ive to a reasonable person.
V{HEREFORE PLAINTIFF PRAYS that a judgment be entered
in h is favor and against the Hosey Defendants, jo in t ly and
severa l ly , for compensatory and punj - t ive damages in great
excess o f f i f t y t housand do l l a r s ( $50 ,000 .00 ) , cos t s , and
such other and fur ther re l - ie f as may be just and proper in
the premj-ses.
COUNT IX( I l - l - ino is Decept ive Trade Pract ices Act
Cla im Against the Hosey Defendants)
I -AL. Brodsky re-a l leges paragraphs 1 though 4I
Count VI I I as paragraphs 1 through 38 of th is Count IX
i f f u1 l y s ta ted he re in .
42 . A t a l l t imes re levan t , t he f l l i no i s Decep t i ve
Trade Pract ices Act prov ides in re levant par t , "a person
engages in a decept ive t rade pract ice when, in the course
o f h i s o r he r bus iness , voca t i on , o r occupa t ion , t he pe rson
d ispa rages the goods , se rv i ces , o r bus iness o f ano the r by
fa l se o r m is lead ing rep resen ta t i on o f f ac t . " 815 ILCS 510 /2
43 - As s ta ted a fo resa id , s ta r t i ng i n on o r abou t
star t ing in 2009, and cont inu ing on a regular bas is of a t
least every month thereaf ter (and every day dur ing the
Savio Murder Tr ia l - ) though January of 20L3, Hosey
intent ional ly , knowingly and mal ic ious ly and wi th reck less
disregard for the t ru th authored, and AOL and Patch Media
in con junc t i on w i th Hosey and each o the r , i n ten t i ona l l y ,
knowingly and mal j -c ious ly and wi th reck less d isregard for
the t ru th caused to be publ ished on the patch a
i -n terconnected and cont i -nuous ser ies of fa lse and
mis lead ing s to r i es , f a l se and m is lead j -ng s ta temen ts , f a l - se
and mis leading repor ts , fa lse and mis leading quotat ions,
o f
A S
2B
and fa l -se and mis leading innuendo, ( the . ' farse and
mis leading s tatements") a l l - o f and concern ing Brodsky,
which Hosey knew, and the other Hosey Defendants and patch
knew or should have known to be fa l -se and misr-eading.
44 - The Hosey Defendants knew the fa l -se and mis leading
statements of and concern ing Brodsky, wourd be publ ished on
the Patch and on the rnternet , and thereby repor ted, which
i t was ' to the publ ic , and one or more other actual or
po ten t i a l c l i en ts o f B rodsky .
45 . The Hosey De fendan ts d id so w i th the i n ten t t o
cal - I in to quest ion, the competency and in tegr i ty o f
B rodsky ' s l ega1 ab i l i t y , sk i l - 1s and rep resen ta t i on , and
serv ices in order to in f l ic t pecuniary harm on h im so as to
det .er and d issuade current and potent iar c l ients f rom doing
bus iness w i th h im and to des t roy the marke tab i l i t y o f h i s
lega l se rv i ces .
46. The Hosey Defendants made said fa lse and
mis leading ser j -es of s tatements wi th the in tent to
d i spa rage B rodsky ' s p ro fess iona ] se rv i ces i n o rde r
d iscredi t them and h is reputat ion and to in f l - ic t pecuniary
harm on h im so as to deter and d issuade potent ia l c l ients
f rom reta in ing or do ing business wi th h im and to reduce the
marke tab i l i t y o f h i s l ega1 se rv i ces .
41. At a l - l t imes reLevant , the Hosey Defendants knew
or shouLd have known, or recognized that when made, the
said ser ies of fa lse and d isparaging s tatements were fa lse
or misreading and that they coul -d or woul -d be l ikery to
cause ha rm to B rodsky ,s pecun ia ry i n te res ts .
48. At aL l t imes re levant , the Hosey Defendants sa id
fa lse and mis leading communicat ions commerc ia lJ-y d isparaged
Brodsky in h is profess ion and busj -ness thereby causing h im
di- rect pecuniary loss to be suf ferec l by them as a resul t o f
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the d isparagement inc lud ing damage to h is profess ional_
reputat ion, rost prof i ts , loss of good wi l - l - and other
damages.
49. The Hosey Defendants sa id decept ive t rade
pract ices have caused and wi l l cont inue to cause Brodsky
damages and i r reparable harm for which there is no adequate
remedy at l-aw.
WHEREFORE, PLAINTfFF pRAyS that th is Cour t enter a
judgment in h is favor as fe l - l_ows:
A. f ind ing that the Hosey Defendants have engaged in
a decep t i ve t rade p rac t i ce w i th respec t t o p la in t i f f s i n
h i s bus iness and p ro fess ion , -
B. issu ing a pre l iminary and permanent in junct ion,
enjo in ing and prohib i t ing the Hosey Defendants and the i r
agen ts , se rvan ts , emp loyees , o f f i ce rs , a t to rneys ,
successors and ass j -gns f rom commerc ia l ly d isparaged Brodsky
in h i s bus iness and p ro fess j -on , .
C . award ing h im los t p ro f i t s , l oss o f good w i l l ,
genera l , compensatory, economic, puni t ive and t rebte
damages against the Hosey Defendants, jo in t ly and
seve ra l l y , as the p roo fs w i l l show a t t r i a l ;
D. award ing h im costs against the Hosey Defendants,
j o in t l y and seve ra l l y , and
E. grant ing h im such other and fur ther re l ie f
against the Hosey Defendants, jo in t ly and severa l ly , as may
be jus t and p rope r i n t he p remises .
l -a in t i f
, h i sa
Wa1ter MaksymAttorney at Law2056 N. L i -nco1n AvenueChicago, IL 606L4-4525Te I : 3L2 -218-4475e-mail- : wmaksymGgmail . comCook Coun ty A t t y . No . 55061