Law Firm Blames 2 Hinsdale D86 Officials For Termination

HINSDALE, IL – Hinsdale High School District 86's former law firm blamed the actions and communications of two officials for the unexpected termination of its contract last year.

This information was contained in a Sept. 9, 2024, letter from the firm to the board.

For more than a year, the district blacked out this part of the letter, keeping the information secret from the public.

At one point, the district's spokesperson made sure Patch attributed the law firm's blame to the district in general, not the board specifically.

In a public records request this month, Patch sought the district's response to a lawsuit from the law firm, Chicago-based Robbins Schwartz.

The district provided the documents, which included the letter as an exhibit.

Over the summer, the firm sued the district over failing to pay $228,000 in legal services.

In its response, the district said the firm's termination of the contract was a material breach, releasing the district from any contractual obligations. The letter served as the district's evidence; the judge likely wouldn't have put up with a redacted document.

A year ago, the district redacted most of the first three sentences of the letter, signed by Joseph Perkoski, Robbins' managing partner.

As Patch reported a year ago, the fourth sentence stated, "As such, we have determined that our representation of the District has been rendered unreasonably difficult and that it is necessary to terminate our continued representation of District 86."

In the previously redacted sentences, Perkoski said the letter was a follow-up to the closed session on Aug. 22, 2024.

"In that discussion, I raised concerns with Board directives on communications and Board member challenges to the validity and consistency of legal advice that we believed was undermining our ability to provide effective legal counsel," he said.

He continued, "Since the meeting, communications and actions by the Board President and the Policy Committee Chair have reinforced our concerns."

Since 2023, the president has been Catherine Greenspon, while the policy committee chairwoman was Peggy James, who did not seek a second term in April's election.

Last November, Patch reported that the law firm stated the board was "unreasonably difficult."

Afterward, the district's communications director, Alex Mayster, emailed Patch to say that the firm's statement said the district, not the board, was unreasonable. He asked for a correction, which Patch did.

Mayster indicated that he based his request on a copy of the letter that Patch sent him. That was the redacted version.

However, the unredacted version shows the law firm specifically blamed two board members.

Mayster, Superintendent Michael Lach and board members did not respond Wednesday to Patch's request for comment.

Last October, the board voted against paying Robbins' bills, with the firm later saying it found out about the action from a Patch story. At the meeting, board members blasted the firm's bills as too high.

In its lawsuit, the law firm said the district's failure to pay was without justification.

In May 2023, a new school board majority brought in Robbins to help it oust then-Superintendent Tammy Prentiss. Advised by Robbins, the board decided to suspend Prentiss during a closed-door meeting. Under state law, such an action was required to be taken publicly, the attorney general said in response to a Patch complaint.

In January 2024, the board hired Robbins as its main attorney, ending ties with the Prentiss-era law firm. In doing so, the board cast aside its months-long plan to seek proposals from prospective firms without explaining.

By summer 2024, Robbins' bills had escalated to the point where the firm was on track to make $1 million in a year. With one exception, board members defended or were publicly silent about the unusually high costs until the termination.

The district has not publicly commented on its feud with Robbins. Earlier this year, it denied Patch's records request for a December letter from Robbins about the unpaid bills.

Patch complained to the attorney general's office. In response, the agency in July issued a rare binding opinion, ordering the district to release the letter. The district complied.

In the letter, the firm warned it would take the district to collections.

Here are the unredacted and redacted versions of the law firm's Sept. 9, 2024, letter: