Gronik, wife’s actions called into question
Attorney says they taunted, teased client during lawsuit
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andy Gronik and his wife, Mary, were once accused of teasing and taunting a woman in the middle of her deposition as part of a lengthy legal spat over the purchase of a Fox Point beachfront house.
“During that deposition, I personally observed the plaintiffs, (Andy) and Mary Gronik, snicker, sneer and laugh at my client throughout her deposition,” Wendy Gunderson, an attorney for Susan Balthasar and her husband, Norman, wrote in a sworn statement in 2011. “It was apparent they were trying to taunt and intimidate
her.”
Gronik, one of seven announced Democrats hoping to oppose Gov. Scott Walker, sued the Balthasars, Shorewest Realtors and several insurance companies after he bought a Hamptons-style house for $3.55 million from the Balthasars in 2009.
Gronik, who has Crohn’s disease, had sought up to $50 million in property and personal damages, arguing his brief move into the moldinfested house likely cut short his business career and, possibly, his life. He settled for at least $6.1 million.
Asked about the allegations regarding his and his wife’s behavior in the Susan Balthasar deposition, Gronik was dismissive.
“Responsible journalism requires review and consideration of all of the documents as they tell the entire story and speak for themselves,” Gronik said via email. Records show that the insurance companies for the Balthasars settled the case for $3.5 million.
In her 2011 deposition, Susan Balthasar appeared to acknowledge some sort of distraction during her testimony, according to a transcript.
“You don’t remember having any discussion with anybody at Kerzner (Remodeling and Construction) about Bondo (a sealant)?” Gunderson, her attorney, asked on Oct. 20, 2011.
“No, honestly, I don’t,” Susan Balthasar responded. She then continued, “I know everybody thinks that’s funny, but I don’t.”
Later in the deposition, Gunderson said Mary Gronik passed a piece of yellow paper over to Nathan Balthasar, who was attending the hearing. On the sheet was written “LIARS” in block lettering. A copy of the note is contained in the federal court file.
Scott Halloin, the lawyer for the Groniks, denied most of the charges in his affidavit. He said a videotape showed that Susan Balthasar was treated with respect and civility. Also, he said, Andy Gronik’s conduct was “among the best I have seen in a very long time.”
But Halloin did concede that Mary Gronik had passed the “LIARS” note to Norman Balthasar during the nearly seven-hour deposition.
Halloin — who inaccurately asserted in Milwaukee County court that Gronik was terminally ill — then tried to
justify the action, accusing Susan Balthasar of committing perjury under oath and claiming Norman Balthasar and Gunderson were very demonstrative during the deposition.
“She is an animated person,” Halloin wrote about Gunderson. “I am not suggesting she stop — I am merely pointing out that this is a pot calling a kettle black.”
The day after his wife’s contentious deposition, Norman Balthasar was put under oath in the case, which wasn’t fully resolved until December 2015. More than 100 people were deposed as part of the litigation.
After six routine questions about his residence
and education, Norman Balthasar — who had recently retired as the longtime chief operating officer at Fiserv Inc. — suffered a heart attack in the middle of the hearing in Halloin’s conference room on Oct. 21, 2011.
“Is he OK?” Andy Gronik said, according to a transcript.
“Norman? Oh, my God,” Susan Balthasar responded. “Call 911 somebody.”
Norman Balthasar died shortly afterward. He was 65.