Burr Ridge Mayor Gets Hinsdale D86 Legal Work

HINSDALE, IL – Burr Ridge Mayor Gary Grasso, who is a lawyer, has gained Hinsdale High School District 86 as a client.

On Saturday, the school board voted for Grasso to help the board's main firm, Evergreen Park-based Odelson, Murphey, Frazier & McGrath, and pursue "other legal remedies," the district said.

The district isn't saying why it hired Grasso. Patch left a message with him Wednesday.

Grasso's practice includes handling legal malpractice cases. That could come in handy for the district, which is fighting a lawsuit from its former law firm, Chicago-based Robbins Schwartz.

In September 2024, Robbins terminated its relationship, saying the district was "unreasonably difficult" to serve. At that point, the firm was on track to make $1 million a year, an unusually large amount.

Last summer, the firm sued the district over failing to pay $228,000 in legal bills, which board members have questioned.

Earlier this year, Grasso's name appeared twice in the district's legal bills. The Odelson firm indicated it received correspondence from Grasso, categorized as miscellaneous business.

It's unclear what matter Grasso, who is now running as a Republican for DuPage County Board chairman, was dealing with.

Grasso and the school board's president, Catherine Greenspon, know each other.

In 2019, Greenspon, a Burr Ridge resident, donated $400 to Grasso's mayoral campaign.

Last April, Greenspon challenged Grasso, Darien Mayor Joseph Marchese and other area politicians to take part in District 86 students' ice bucket challenge, meant to raise awareness of mental health.

Grasso took her up on it. Both posted Facebook videos of ice water being poured on their heads.