Judge Again Denies Ex-Mayor's Motion To Dismiss Village Of Orland Park Lawsuit

ORLAND PARK, IL — A Cook County judge has again denied a motion from former Orland Park Mayor Keith Pekau to dismiss the Village of Orland Park's lawsuit against him, the village announced this week.

The village filed its lawsuit against Pekau in July 2025, saying it was seeking the return of village records and to stop the former mayor from continuing to disseminate confidential information through his blog and on social media.

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For his part, Pekau has long vowed he will not be silenced and that he will continue to exercise his First Amendment right.

In a news release, the Village said that Judge Kate Moreland on July 6 denied Pekau's motion to dismiss the Village’s declaratory judgment claim .

"... In doing so, the court concluded that the Village’s allegations can be interpreted as seeking relief only with respect to speech that Pekau gained through his public office, effectively negating Pekau’s public claims that the Village seeks to prevent him from speaking at all," the village said in the release. "As a result of this ruling, the Village’s lawsuit will move forward, and Pekau must now answer the Village’s allegations."

The Village said the court dismissed "certain limited allegations relating to pleading issues" but that the village is permitted to amend its complaint and intends to do so.

In a post on Thursday, Pekau called the village's complaint "the lawsuit that keeps shrinking," saying the court dismissed the village's breach of fiduciary claim, " eliminating its only remaining claim for damages." He added, "In other words, after nearly one year of litigation, the Village is no longer pursuing damages against me. What remains are two requests asking the Court to determine legal rights—not whether I caused financial harm to the Village."

The Village said it previously offered to drop the lawsuit if Pekau agrees to stop disseminating confidential information and return Village records.

But Pekau said the Village " has never identified what makes any particular document impermissible for me to retain," adding that the Village's ethics ordinance "does not prohibit the mere retention of information or documents; rather, it prohibits the use of confidential information for personal gain. The Village has never identified any personal gain on my part, nor has it explained how my alleged conduct falls within the ordinance it cites."

The July 6 ruling isn't the first time the court has denied Pekau's motion to dismiss the case. In December, Moreland denied a previous motion to dismiss and ruled that the Village's claims regarding Pekau's keeping and use of non-public Village records were legally sufficient to move forward.

That time, the judge struck two counts from the lawsuit: a request for injunctive relief and a ban that would prohibit Pekau from disclosing confidential or privileged information. The Village said the latter was struck because it had not yet produced enough facts to justify a prior restraint on speech but said it would re-plead that count.

In January, Moreland upheld the Village's temporary restraining order against Pekau ordering the removal of any publication of confidential information, and allowed the lawsuit to continue.

RELATED: Village Wants Restraining Order Against Ex-Mayor Pekau To Be Permanent