02-2634 Hoseman v. Weinschneider

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“The express language of the release and covenant at issue here is clear and broad enough to remove any doubt as to their application to this lawsuit. The explicit language of the release covers ‘all claims, known or unknown.’ The covenant not to sue obligates the Trustee to decline to institute ‘any suit or action, at law or in equity’ to pursue a claim against Weinschneider. The Trustee argues, however, that a declaratory judgment action is neither an action at law nor a suit in equity and thus is not within the literal terms of the covenant. While this Court has noted that declaratory judgment actions are neither legal nor equitable, see Moretrench Am. Corp. v. S.J. Groves & Sons Co., 839 F.2d 1284, 1286 (7th Cir. 1988), the Trustee fails to consider the additional language in the covenant, precluding him from ‘tak[ing] any action’ in pursuit of a claim against Weinschneider. Thus, even assuming that a declaratory judgment suits not ‘any suit or action, at law or in equity,’ we believe that the covenant’s language-as well as that of the release-is still broad enough to encompass this suit within its prohibition.”

Affirmed.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Bucklo, J., Kanne, J.