Steven Goodwin Sues Union League Club Over 2-Month Suspension for Refusing to Disinvite Date
Updated
Updated · Chicago Tribune · May 15
Steven Goodwin Sues Union League Club Over 2-Month Suspension for Refusing to Disinvite Date
1 articles · Updated · Chicago Tribune · May 15
Cook County Circuit Court received Goodwin’s lawsuit Wednesday, challenging a suspension imposed hours before a Feb. 28 club dinner after he refused to drop fellow member Stephanie Capps as his guest.
Three days before the event, club leaders allegedly pressed Goodwin and then Capps to cancel because her attendance would cause “personal discomfort” to outgoing president Frank DeVincentis’s wife, given Capps had dated him about 8 years earlier.
Less than an hour after Capps declined to withdraw, the club suspended Goodwin, citing a code-of-conduct violation tied to an alleged threat against former president Bob Ryan; the suit says no threat was made.
At an April 28 disciplinary hearing, Goodwin says he got no written complaint and only 5 minutes to respond; the board reinstated him May 1 but left the incident on his permanent record.
The suit seeks a declaratory judgment expunging that record and argues the 1879-founded club violated its own bylaws, exposing internal strains at a prominent Chicago institution already under post-pandemic financial pressure.
What alleged 'threat' led a historic club to suspend a former board member over his dinner guest?
When an elite club’s rules clash with members' rights, who really holds the power?