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Robert R. Thomas v. The Kane County Chronicle
Date: 11-15-2006
Case Number: Unknown
Judge: Donald J. O’Brien Jr.
Court: Circuit Court, Kane County, Illinois
Plaintiff's Attorney:
Joseph A. Power Jr.
Defendant's Attorney:
Steven Mandell and Steve Rosenfeld of Mandell Menkes LLC, Chicago, Illinois
Robert R. Thomas sued The Kane County Chronicle on a defamation theory claiming that a newspaper columnist for the paper falsely wrote
in 2003 that Thomas, the chief justice of the Illinois
State Supreme Court,
had traded his vote for a political favor, and had
acted with malice. He claimed that the reporter, Bill Page,
had essentially accused him of official misconduct,
a felony, when he wrote that he had traded his vote
on a disciplinary case in exchange for political support
for his favored candidate in a local judicial race.
Defendant claimed that the allegations against Judge Thomas were
true but that because the report was based on information
from confidential sources, it was not possible for it to
produce the witnesses to prove the true of the statements
made in the article.
About This Case
What was the outcome of Robert R. Thomas v. The Kane County Chronicle?
The outcome was: Plaintiff's verdict for $7 million, with $5 million for damaging his reputation, $1 million for future economic losses and $1 million for humiliation.
Which court heard Robert R. Thomas v. The Kane County Chronicle?
This case was heard in Circuit Court, Kane County, Illinois, IL. The presiding judge was Donald J. O’Brien Jr..
Who were the attorneys in Robert R. Thomas v. The Kane County Chronicle?
Plaintiff's attorney: Joseph A. Power Jr.. Defendant's attorney: Steven Mandell and Steve Rosenfeld of Mandell Menkes LLC, Chicago, Illinois.
When was Robert R. Thomas v. The Kane County Chronicle decided?
This case was decided on November 15, 2006.