A candidate for the Lehigh Valley’s seat in Congress, and president of the Pennsylvania Professional Firefighters association, is facing a lawsuit over a property dispute.
The lawsuit says that Bob Brooks owes over $100,000 to Carol Wiley, who loaned Brooks and his then-wife, Jennifer Lynne, $50,000 in 2008.
The couple signed a promissory note agreeing to pay her back over time with interest, the lawsuit says.
According to the suit, the loan was never repaid, and the debt remains outstanding.
In 2004, Brooks and his first wife became owners of a home in Nazareth after it was transferred to them by Michael Wiley, Carol’s husband, the lawsuit states.
Brooks was divorced from his first wife in 2017 and was awarded ownership of the home.
According to the suit, the first wife never signed a deed relinquishing her ownership interest in the home to Brooks.
Wiley sued Brooks and his first wife in 2018, seeking the full amount owed plus legal fees, according to court documents.
Wiley took the matter to court, and in January 2022, a judgement was entered against Brooks for $130,386.36, reflecting the unpaid loan plus interest, according to court documents.
By the time judgement was entered, Bob Brooks had remarried.
In March 2022, Brooks and his new wife, Jennifer Lynn, executed a quitclaim deed transferring the Whitehead Road property entirely into the second wife’s name for $10, the lawsuit says. At the time, county records valued the home at more than $400,000.
On the same day the property was transferred, the second wife took out a $330,000 mortgage on the home, court documents say.
According to the complaint, that loan was more than enough to fully pay Wiley’s judgment, but she received nothing, and the debt remained unpaid.
Robert’s first wife and second wife have nearly identical names, and Wiley alleges that the way documents were signed and recorded made it difficult to tell which “Jennifer Brooks” was involved, something she calls a calculated attempt to disguise the true transfer.
As of February 2026, she says she is owed more than $162,000, with interest continuing to accrue daily.
Brooks, who was a firefighter in Bethlehem, is one of several people running for the Democratic nomination for the seat that represents Lehigh, Northampton, and Carbon counties, and parts of Monroe County.
The seat is currently held by Republican Ryan Mackenzie.
Pennsylvania’s primary election is scheduled to take place Tuesday, May 19, 2026.