Q: State Agency Rep committed slander and put Red Flag report on person after 40 second phone call.

A: You cannot sue a State Agency in Civil Court. You must sue them in the Court of Claims and then only after filing a Tort Claims Notice (usually within 6 months). That is probably a very bad idea for many reasons, including limited recovery and a long wait time to be paid.

The suggestion that a receptionist, hired to answer the telephone, had the clearance and authority to investigate and red-flag your application, nationwide, in 40 seconds, is patently ridiculous. Government employees are immune from suit on any action taken within the course and scope of their duties. Blackballing an applicant, nationally, is so far outside the course and scope of the duties of a receptionist that the person in question would have no such immunity. You could sue her. You would win. That said, given that your business was never funded, your damages are entirely speculative. The only way to calculate your damages would be for you to secure alternate funding for your business and for the business to be successful, early on. If the business generates a profit of $10,000 per month and the receptionist's actions delayed the business by one year, your damages are $120,000.00

Additionally, there must be some mechanism to request appeal/reconsideration. Nobody is discriminating against you. It is simply the case that some idiot has exceeded his/her authority which has proven a serious detriment to your plans. I do not know the mechanism to request reconsideration so I cannot tell you about the logistics involved. You will need to do some research and ask some questions.

Lastly, it should be obvious that if you need the assistance of the SBA, it would be foolhardy to sue the receptionist unless there was nothing else to be done. The SBDC has more than 30 offices in the state of Illinois. Surely one of them can help you. Good luck.