Power company’s admission of bribery means 4 million Illinois customers now deserve compensation
CHICAGO — DiCello Levitt Gutzler LLC and Romanucci & Blandin, LLC together announce the filing of a class action lawsuit on behalf of consumers and businesses alleging that Commonwealth Edison (ComEd) violated the Illinois Consumer Fraud Act and unjustly enriched itself by overcharging its 4 million customers in Illinois for years. The recent $200MM ComEd agreement to pay the government following a federal bribery investigation does nothing to compensate the individuals and businesses who actually overpaid. The lawsuit was filed July 27, 2020 in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Chancery Division.
The suit was filed on behalf of three individuals and three businesses. The plaintiffs have been ComEd customers since at least 2011, the year federal prosecutors say the bribery scheme began. The suit comes less than two weeks after ComEd admitted to the scheme involving jobs, contracts and payments to government leaders in Springfield. No government official has been charged with any wrongdoing.
The class action suit seeks to represent a large percentage of ComEd customers during the period of time established by prosecutors.
“Through rampant and widespread corruption in the form of bribery of Illinois elected officials, ComEd and its parent company, Exelon Corporation, deprived ratepayers of vast sums of money, totaling in the hundreds of millions, if not billions, of dollars,” said attorney Adam Levitt of DiCello Levitt Gutzler LLC.
“The corruption of ComEd has cost consumers and businesses in Illinois far too much for far too long. While it’s important that ComEd came clean about bribery and agreed pay the government, there are 4 million families and businesses across the state that now deserve to be compensated for their overpayment for electricity for years and years,” said attorney Stephan Blandin of Romanucci & Blandin, LLC.
In a separate lawsuit filed earlier, Blandin has also alleged that years of corruption by ComEd has led to a lack of safety standards relating to the inspection and repair of its equipment, which led to a tragic electrocution of two workers in 2016 and continues to pose a significant safety hazard across Illinois. Robert Zulauf was burned to death and his nephew, Jordan Zulauf, lost both arms while working on an electrical pole in Sterling, Illinois.
A copy of the complaint is available here.
About DiCello Levitt Gutzler LLC
DiCello Levitt Gutzler combines excellence in commercial litigation, class action litigation, mass tort litigation, catastrophic injury litigation, medical malpractice litigation, and civil rights litigation. Practicing nationwide—and internationally—from offices in Chicago, Cleveland, New York, and St. Louis, we are an aggressive, attentive, and creative plaintiffs’ firm whose work speaks for itself—billions of dollars in recoveries in some of the highest-profile matters in U.S. history. The firm’s attorneys have successfully led—and are presently leading—many large class and multidistrict actions, including against industry titans such as Apple, Intel, General Motors, and Equifax, and representing businesses and investors in arbitrations and litigation in multiple courts. The DiCello Levitt Trial Advocacy Center proactively assists in all aspects of litigation strategy, framing, and trial preparation, with an in-house focus grouping and mock jury practice, using those tools to streamline cases, refine case messaging, and focus discovery on message-specific issues from the outset of litigation. Revered by clients and respected by defense counsel, our team gets results. For more information about DiCello Levitt Gutzler, please visit dicellolevitt.com or call (312) 214-7900.
About Romanucci & Blandin, LLC
Romanucci & Blandin is a national trial practice committed to fighting for victims of negligence, abuse and wrongful death arising from police misconduct, corporate negligence, civil rights actions, medical malpractice, mass torts and class actions. The attorneys’ steadfast commitment to fighting for those seeking justice around the country has helped the firm obtain multiple verdicts and settlements in the millions of dollars. The Chicago-based personal injury lawyers are dedicated to providing victims who suffered injury as a result of another’s wrongdoing full and fair compensation in a diligent, professional, skilled and caring manner.
The lawyers actively support their communities and provide advocacy at the national, state and local levels on issues that support the U.S. tort system. Founded in 1998, Romanucci & Blandin is widely recognized for representing plaintiffs in numerous practice areas including: personal injury, wrongful death, medical malpractice, workers’ compensation, pharmaceutical, mass torts, civil rights, police misconduct, excessive force, aviation, product liability and premises liability. For more information about Romanucci & Blandin, please visit www.rblaw.net or call (312) 458-1000.