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Lawyer’s Wife Loses Battle With Condo Complex To Keep Elevator “Dog-Free”

| Published on April 26, 2017

Now here’s something to chew on.

Holly Geraci, the wife of well-known bankruptcy lawyer Peter Francis Geraci, filed a lawsuit against the condo association where they live after dogs were permitted in the building.

The lawsuit, filed in March 2015, was against the Union Square Condominium Association, according to the Chicago Tribune. It stated that her fear of dogs classified as a disability, and she wished for them to be banned from the building’s elevator, where they intruded on her personal space. Lucky for the condo-dwelling dog lovers, she lost the case.

Although the Geraci’s were given an exception to the former “no-dog” rule for their 10-lb Cairn Terrier, Mrs. Geraci stated that her fear is exclusive to large canines, as she suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder due to childhood trauma. According to the story, she was attacked by a German Shepherd when she was young, leading to her debilitating fear.

However, the jury did not find her PTSD crippling enough to qualify as a disability that’s being discriminated against under the Fair Housing Act.

Photo of a Cairn Terrier

 

During their time in their Ritz-Carlton Residences penthouse, the Geraci’s have filed three other lawsuits against the  Union Square Condominium Association, including one resulting from “a physical altercation with a dog-walker” on the elevator. Mrs. Geraci lost the case.

Since the well-to-do couple recently purchased an unfinished floor to add to their 6,000 square foot living space, once renovations are completed, they will enjoy their own express elevator from the lobby to their home – keeping it decidedly dog-free.

Image Source: Screen Shot via The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Chicago

 

But that doesn’t mean it’s the end of the canine-elevator battle. Graham Miller, an attorney representing the Union Square Condominium Association, told the Chicago Tribune that he wouldn’t put it past the Geraci’s to appeal the verdict.

“I don’t know what they’ll do with this case. They certainly take litigation to its extreme,” he said in the story.

(h/t: Chicago Tribune)

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