Contact me at markploftus@aol.com

Will be spending several hours tomorrow responding to a silly motion in a retaliatory discharge case. In Illinois, an employer cannot fire an employee when that employee exercises his right under the Workers' Comp Act, i.e. files a claim when hurt at work. My client was injured while working, and ultimately had to have surgery on his back. The client is a nice, older man who isn't educated. His employer, fired him not long after the injury(but before he filed his claim). I filed suit for him and his employer is moving to dismiss the case, saying that they fired him before his Worker's Comp petition was on file, so, they weren't doing anything in retaliation. Thankfully, the Courts of Illinois have addressed this issue countless times. And the employer's argument just doesn't cut it. In my case, the employee had advised them he would be pursuing his Worker's Comp rights for his injury. The employer was well aware of his plans. And previous decisions have made it quite clear that there is no requirement that the petition be on file before one can proceed with a retaliatory claim. If that was the case, every employer would just fire the employee the day they got hurt and hire someone to take his place. Thankfully, the Courts of Illinois have recognized that employers somtimes jerk their employees around before they actually file a claim, in an effort to "persuade" them not to file. So there is no requirement that the claim be on file. The motion should be denied, and I anticipate it will be by the judge. I will report in a future post.

Celebrity Justice News...

Apparently Gary Condit, the former congressman who was reputedly linked to Shandra Levy, has filed a libel action against some of Tabloid papers for certain reports they made as that drama unfolded. His lawsuit apparently asked for many millions of dollars in damages. The Tabloids have promised to vigorously defend the case. Condit may ultimately come to regret this lawsuit. The Tabloids have promised a vigorous defense. One of the defenses in these types of cases is proving the truth of the allegations. And that can sometimes result in revelations the plaintiff may not want to be made public. I check up on how that is unfolding and report.