Chloe Polo, Associate Attorney
2023-L-1220 (Cook County)
Plaintiff filed suit against her landlord alleging that she sustained a variety of ailments which allegedly arose due to poor maintenance of the rental unit. Plaintiff’s claims included allegations that the landlord failed to maintain a hot water heater resulting in an alleged exposure to carbon monoxide and allowed lead paint to exist on the premises.
CGW took up defense of the landlord, which became the subject of years of litigation including plaintiff voluntarily dismissing their case and re-filing it. The case underwent many rounds of depositions, including the plaintiff consulting with a toxicologist who found that there was no evidence of any recent toxic exposure.
At the conclusion of discovery, Chloe Polo filed a motion for summary judgment based on the plaintiff’s failure to establish a proximate causation between the landlord’s alleged acts and plaintiff’s own injuries. Chloe argued that Plaintiff failed to provide any qualified testimony from her treating physicians or experts to causally link her ailments to a toxic exposure while residing in the apartment. She further argued that there was not even enough evidence to support a toxic exposure period. There was no evidence that the hot water heater was leaking carbon monoxide and no evidence of any other potential toxic exposure in the apartment. Ultimately, despite the many depositions and experts, Chloe pointed out that the only evidence plaintiff provided to support her claims linking the defendant’s actions to the plaintiff’s injuries was her own testimony.
Despite the fact that Cook County judges are known for their reluctance to grant motions for summary judgment, the judge reviewed the medical and expert testimony and ultimately agreed with Chloe and granted her motion. He agreed that none of the medical doctors or other people that Plaintiff consulted with offered an opinion regarding a toxic exposure.
