Suit accuses Supervalu of 'dirty tricks' to thwart Mundelein Walmart

Jewel-Osco's parent company used "dirty tricks" to stop the construction of a rival Walmart store and other retailers in Mundelein, according to a newly filed lawsuit.

The Rubloff Development Group, which headed the long-stalled plan to build the Mundelein Town Center shopping center on Route 60 north of Route 176, accused the Supervalu company of hiring a Massachusetts firm called the Saint Consulting Group to "harass and interfere with" the proposed development and a similar plan in suburban New Lenox, the lawsuit reads.

The complaint was filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Chicago. It's actually an effort by Rubloff and the developers of the New Lenox plan, a Hoffman Estates company called McVickers Development, to protect their use of documents they claim reveal Supervalu and Saint Consulting "orchestrated dirty tricks campaigns to defeat or otherwise delay the establishment of new Walmart stores."

The plaintiffs are seeking a judicial declaration that the documents are not covered by privilege or trade-secret laws that would prevent them from being used in future litigation against Supervalu and Saint Consulting, the lawsuit states.

The documents in question are not included in the lawsuit. They could be provided to the court under seal, the suit states.

A Saint spokesman declined to comment on the lawsuit. A representative for Supervalu could not be reached.

The lawsuit comes on the heels of recent media reports that revealed Supervalu's dealings with Saint Consulting in Mundelein and other communities.

Plans for a Walmart store in Mundelein date to 2004. The Town Center proposal also included Menards, Kohl's, Dick's Sporting Goods and other retailers.

In 2007, however, neighboring residents sued the village to stop the development.

Minnesota-based Supervalu hired Saint to work behind the scenes during the legal battle, according to Saint documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. Supervalu's goal was to block Walmart from competing with Jewel-Osco supermarkets in the area, the documents indicate.

A project manager for Saint arranged for lawyer William Graft to represent the residents, according to the Saint documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. Graft, with area residents, regularly appeared before the village board to oppose the project.

The village won the lawsuit in March, but not before Walmart and other once-interested tenants pulled out.

The lawsuit filed Wednesday by Rubloff states Supervalu and Saint Consulting caused "tens of millions of dollars" in damages including lost profits and out-of-pocket expenses.

The lawsuit alleges Supervalu and Saint routinely destroyed materials that detailed their "unlawful conduct in orchestrating opposition and sham litigation" designed to block the Walmart developments.

According to the lawsuit, Rubloff sent a May 3 letter to Supervalu saying they had "uncovered hundreds of pages of documentation revealing the dirty tricks campaign against the Mundelein development."

Supervalu didn't respond. But on May 10, an attorney for Saint Consulting responded to the letter by threatening to sue Rubloff for possessing those documents, the lawsuit states. The Saint attorney claimed the materials were confidential and requested the return of the documents and the destruction of any copies, according to the Rubloff lawsuit.