Burr Ridge Mayor Wins Battle In Defamation Case Against Political Consultant

BURR RIDGE, IL – A state appeals court on Monday sided with Burr Ridge Mayor Gary Grasso in his 7-year-old lawsuit over defamation.

In the 2019 election, Grasso's then-opponent, Zach Mottl, alleged that Grasso defrauded the government out of $36,000 in property tax exemptions.

Three years ago, Grasso and Mottl settled the lawsuit out of court, with Mottl giving his rival an undisclosed amount of money.

But Mottl's political consultant, Collin Corbett, and Corbett's firm, Cor Strategies, remain as defendants.

In July 2024, a DuPage County trial judge threw out the case against Corbett and the firm. The judge ruled Grasso failed to find that the defendants showed "actual malice," the required standard to prove defamation against a public official.

On Monday, though, the 3rd District Appellate Court ruled a genuine issue remains for a jury to determine whether Corbett defamed Grasso.

According to the ruling, Mottl received bad poll results leading up to the 2019 election, so he was advised to undertake a negative campaign against Grasso.

In a deposition, Corbett, now an independent candidate for governor, acknowledged relying on a research firm's report on Grasso. The report asserted Grasso may have fraudulently benefited from property tax exemptions over two years, to the tune of $12,000.

But Mottl's campaign flyers said the mayor benefited by "more than $36,000."

Grasso held homestead exemptions for homes in Burr Ridge and Chicago, which resulted in breaks on property taxes. A person can only have one such exemption.

Grasso said his main house is in Burr Ridge and that the Cook County assessor mistakenly continued the exemption at his Chicago home from the previous owner.

The appeals court ruled that a jury can still determine whether Corbett and his firm "recklessly disregarded the truth in accusing (Grasso) of $36,000 in tax fraud."

The appeals court sent the matter back to the trial court.

In a concurring opinion, Judge John Anderson said Corbett can tell a judge or jury that he did not know the claims were false.

But Anderson disagreed with letting Corbett get a judge to immediately throw out the lawsuit, an action known as summary judgment.

"(W)e cannot allow a litigant to stroll into a deposition, pull a Jon Lovitz and announce, 'Yeah, I had no idea it was false. Yeah, that's right. Yeah,' then demand a summary judgment because no one possesses contrary evidence from inside his head," Anderson said. "That may be the ticket for comedy. It is not the ticket for summary judgment.

In a statement to Patch, Corbett's lawyer, Keith Brin, said he could usually appreciate the courts throwing a plaintiff a desperate lifeline. But he said he believed the appellate court got this one wrong in doing so.

"The ruling substantially changes the nature of how defamation is handled," Brin said. "We believe the ruling is contrary to precedent, but also inappropriately shifts the burden of proof to the defendant even in the absence of any evidence from the plaintiff. In doing so, it virtually requires that every defamation case go to trial, which will encourage frivolous lawsuits and the unnecessary expenditure of money and resources in the defense of well-established First Amendment law."

In its own statement, Cor Strategies called the lawsuit "nothing more than a frivolous, politically motivated shakedown."

"Cor Strategies has a strict, unwavering policy: we do not reward sleazy politicians who weaponize the legal system just to score a settlement cash-out. We've beaten this frivolous suit once, and we'll beat it again," the firm said.

For his part, Grasso announced his victory at Monday's Village Board meeting.

"I'm glad that I stuck with it," Grasso said. "I'm pretty proud of the decision that came out today."

In the 2019 mayoral election, Grasso defeated Mottl, then a trustee. Grasso, a lawyer, has been the mayor ever since. He originally served as mayor from 2005 to 2012.

Grasso's allies ousted Mottl in the 2021 election.