Academy Chicago Publishers v. Cheever

Plaintiffs, Academy Chicago Publishers (Academy) and Franklin H. Dennis (Dennis), filed a second amended complaint for declaratory relief against defendant, Mary W. Cheever, in the circuit court of Cook County. Plaintiffs sought a declaration of the parties’ rights under á contract: (1) granting Academy the exclusive right to publish a work tentatively entitled, “The Uncollected Stories of John Cheever”; (2) designating Dennis as the work’s editor; and (3) obligating defendant to deliver the manuscript from which the work was to be published. After a trial on the merits, the trial court…