Ron Tirapelli Ford Lawsuit: General Manager In Pay Dispute As Monthly Salary, Company Bonuses Revealed

SHOREWOOD, IL — Tom Conlin, general manager and dealer principal at the Ron Tirapelli Ford auto dealership in Shorewood right off the Interstate 55 exit, is embroiled in a civil lawsuit he filed against his employer and company president Ron Tirapelli in a legal dispute surrounding his compensation, Joliet Patch discovered.

Will County Courthouse documents reveal that a Chicago law firm is pursuing litigation against Ron Tirapelli Ford after sending Ron Tirapelli a demand letter in late August advising him a lawsuit against his company would be pursued. A key issue in Conlin's lawsuit surrounds a 2021 amendment to his employment agreement to determine his yearly bonuses based on when Conlin became a company shareholder at Ron Tirapelli Ford.

Back on July 16, both sides attended a mediation before Mark Kuchler to resolve their disputes, however, "the parties were unable to reach a resolution of the covered disputes at the mediation," according to Conlin's lawyers, Mark Lyman and Steve Varhola of the Lyman Law Firm.

On Aug. 25, Conlin's lawyers sent a letter that "demanded the company participate in binding arbitration," with the firm adding, "to date, the company has failed or refused to participate in an arbitration addressing the covered disputes in violation of section 12 of the agreement, necessitating the filing of this complaint."

Conlin continues to work as general manager for Ron Tirapelli Ford, his lawyers confirmed for Joliet Patch on Wednesday morning.

Court records reveal that Conlin entered into an employment agreement on Feb. 8, 2020, to become the new general manager of Ron Tirapelli Ford. According to his LinkedIn profile, Conlin previously worked as general manager at Gjovik Ford since 2003 and before that, he worked four years as service manager at Napleton Lincoln Mercury and nearly five years as regional manager with Firestone, dating back to 1994.

According to Conlin's Feb. 8, 2020 employment agreement, which is marked as lawsuit Exhibit A, Conlin received a base salary of $10,000 per month and a monthly bonus "equal to 10 percent of the pretax net profit of the employer from $1 in each such month for the first six months of his employment ... after which the monthly bonus shall be equal to 10 percent of the pretax net profit in excess of $50,000 in each calendar month thereafter ..."

And in addition to his monthly bonus, Conlin's agreement called for a yearly bonus "for each calendar year of the employment period ... until employee becomes a shareholder of company, when such bonus formula shall be adjusted by agreement of the parties. Until then, the annual bonus shall be equal to 5 percent of the employer's net profit in excess of $600,000 after fiscal year end, positive or negative adjustments made by the employer's independent accountants ... and mutually agreed positive adjustments for compensation paid to members of the Tirapelli family other than Ron Tirapelli, whose compensation shall remain at $10,000 per month," Conlin's filing revealed.

As for his employment benefits, Conlin's lawsuit indicates that Ron Tirapelli Ford would pay the costs for his medical health insurance and "to assist the employer in employee's personal marketing efforts of employer products and services, employer shall provide employee with the use of two employer-owned and insured demonstrator vehicles of employee's choice ... which vehicles will be exchanged from time to time in accordance with employer policy."

Conlin's lawsuit listed his home address in Yorkville.

Bonuses For Ron Tirapelli's Daughters Revealed In Lawsuit

Lawsuit Exhibit B consists of an amendment to Conlin's employment agreement, signed Nov. 29, 2022, by himself and company president Ron Tirapelli. The amendment states that Conlin's yearly bonus would be calculated based on any amounts paid to Nicole Tirapelli for her salary and bonus and to Natalie Tirapelli Feher, for her calendar year bonus.

Using 2021 as an illustration, Nicole Tirapelli's salary was $90,600 and her bonus was $91,749, and Natalie Tirapelli's bonus was $91,749, marking a grand total of $274,098. The amendment listed Conlin's percentage of ownership in Ron Tirapelli Ford for 2021 at 25 percent, resulting in an annual bonus for him of $68,525.

"The 2022 calculation will reflect the employee's 30 percent ownership in the company. Employee's ownership for subsequent years shall be determined in accordance with that certain stock option agreement entered into between the parties as of June 1, 2020," stated the agreement signed separately by Conlin and Tirapelli on Nov. 28-29, 2022, respectively.

"After Conlin commenced employment, several disputes arose between the parties, namely, the company's breach of the employment agreement, past due amounts owed by the company to Conlin ... reconciliation of past accounting practices to determine non-company or personal expenses paid by the company and amounts due Conlin by the company for his pro-rata share of non-company or personal expenses paid by the company since Feb. 8, 2020," Conlin's lawsuit outlined.

Will County's Circuit Court Clerk's Office issued a summons on Nov. 25 notifying Ron Tirapelli Ford they are being served with a lawsuit from Conlin, their general manager. Legal representatives for Ron Tirapelli Ford have yet to file a court appearance in regard to the lawsuit.

According to company's history posted on its website and authored by Nicole Tirapelli, "In February of 1984, founder and my father, Ron Tirapelli purchased Fred Emich Ford of Joliet and began his career with the Ford Motor Company as an auto dealer ... Today, I have been honored to become part of the 2nd generation of the family to work in the family business. My father, Ron Tirapelli and I are partners in providing you, our customers, with a happy experience at our dealership. When you drive by in the morning, you may see my father still appraising every vehicle that comes in on trade. He explains that you have to have a 'feeling' to know if the car is keeper or one for wholesale."

Conlin's lawsuit seeks a Will County judge's order compelling Ron Tirapelli Ford to submit to binding arbitration and "appoint Mark Kuchler as the arbitrator in the binding arbitration as permitted in section 12 of the employment agreement."

The lawsuit wants Ron Tirapelli Ford to pay for their general manager's legal costs in connection with his lawsuit and "for any other relief this court deems equitable and just."