By John Flynn Rooney
Chicago Daily Law Bulletin
November 01, 2010 Volume: 156 Issue: 213
The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear an appeal stemming from a more than $3 million award in favor of a former sales manager at a Chicago television station.
The high court on Monday denied without comment a petition for certiorari filed on behalf of Joseph Stroud, owner of Jovon Broadcasting Corp., in a retaliation lawsuit brought by Jerri Blount. Joseph Stroud et al. v. Jerri Blount, No. 09-1572.
“This has been for Jerri Blount a decade-long battle that proves the rich and powerful still have to answer to the law,” said Chicago attorney Martin A. Dolan of Dolan Law Offices P.C., who represents Blount along with Robin B. Potter of Robin Potter & Associates P.C.
Blount asserted that Stroud retaliated against her after she supported co-worker Bonnie Fouts’ federal discrimination suit against Jovon. Blount maintains that Stroud told her not to testify against him, and when she refused to agree, he fired her.
In November 2005, a Cook County Circuit Court jury awarded Blount more than $3 million, including $2.8 million in punitive damages.
Blount worked at Jovon Broadcasting from 1993 to 2000. In her highest position, she was a sales manager earning $250,000 annually to sell infomercial time on WJYS-TV Channel 62.
The lawsuit brought by Blount against Stroud and the company that ran Channel 62 in Chicago, has bounced between the 1st District Appellate Court and Illinois Supreme Court in recent years.
The 1st District most recently upheld the jury’s verdict in Blount’s favor in June 2009.
In January, the Illinois Supreme Court denied a petition for leave to appeal brought on behalf of Stroud and Jovon Broadcasting. Lawyers for Stroud and Jovon Broadcasting contended that the jury’s punitive damages award was constitutionally excessive, referring to the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in State Farm Mut. Automobile Insurance Co. v. Campbell, 358 U.S. 408 (2003). Illinois Supreme Court Justice Anne M. Burke took no part in that court’s action earlier this year. Jerri Blount v. Joseph Stroud, et al, No. 109370.
“The victory here is not only a testament to her perseverance, but also to the strength of the laws that protect employees against employers that try to take advantage of their powerful status,” Dolan said.
When the case was wending through the Illinois courts, the National Employment Lawyers Association, the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association and the Edwin F. Mandel Legal Aid Clinic, affiliated with the University of Chicago Law School, all filed briefs supporting Blount’s position, Potter said.
“This became a case of national significance,” Potter said.
Blount “has changed the face of employment discrimination in Illinois through amendments to the Human Rights Act,” Potter said.
Blount now works as an independent media sales and advertising consultant based in the Chicago area, her attorneys said.
“She’s looking forward to just moving on with her life,” Dolan said of his client.
Blount’s lawyers now plan to file a motion with the 1st District Appellate Court, seeking to lift a stay on the mandate in the case and then have the appeals court order that the mandate be issued to the Cook County Circuit Court, Dolan said.
Blount’s attorneys have been awarded at least $1.2 million in attorney fees.
“We hope for a very smooth road ahead with the defendants in terms of settling all the damages due, including increased attorney fees,” Potter said.
Stroud and Jovon Broadcasting Corp. are represented by Jerold S. Solovy and Michael T. Brody, both partners with Jenner & Block LLP in Chicago. Neither Solovy nor Brody could be reached for comment early Monday afternoon.
jrooney@lbpc.com