The man at the center of Dennis Hastert's stunning downfall may remain anonymous — for now — in his lawsuit alleging the former U.S. House speaker failed to pay the full financial settlement they agreed upon in exchange for his silence about sexual abuse, a Kendall County judge said Thursday.

Judge Robert Pilmer did not rule on the merits of the breach-of-contract suit, filed just days ago. But, in a brief court hearing, the judge said he will allow the litigation to proceed temporarily under the pseudonym James Doe, until it is refiled, under seal and not open to public inspection, with the man's full name included.

The move would allow more time if Hastert's attorneys choose to object. They did not attend court Thursday, nor did James Doe, known in federal court documents as Individual A.

His attorney, Kristi Browne, acknowledged the possibility her client someday could be compelled to testify. If that happened, Browne said, she "anticipates a quick appeal."

"He's a very private person, and this has obviously changed his life," she told reporters outside court. "He has to relive this trauma every time this is in the news."

The court hearing came the morning after Hastert, 74, was sentenced to a 15-month prison term for a federal banking violation related to the hush money payments to Individual A. At least five students involved in Hastert's wrestling program, including an equipment manager who is deceased, alleged at some point their coach sexually abused them at Yorkville High School in the 1960s and 1970s.

Hastert began his political life in the early 1980s, leaving behind his job as a teacher and coach. His final victim may have been Scott Cross, a younger brother of former Illinois House GOP leader Tom Cross. Now 53, Scott Cross read an emotional victim-impact statement at Wednesday's sentencing detailing a one-time incident in the fall of 1979 in which he said Hastert sexually abused him during a massage after wrestling practice one night in the school's locker room.

U.S. Attorney Zachary Fardon addressed the news media after former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert was sentenced to 15 months in prison on April 27, 2016. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune) U.S. Attorney Zachary Fardon addressed the news media after former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert was sentenced to 15 months in prison on April 27, 2016. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune) SEE MORE VIDEOS

Prosecutors said the statute of limitations kept them from pursuing child molestation charges. Instead, Hastert's undoing came from his efforts to conceal the reason he had agreed to pay another former wrestler — Individual A — $3.5 million. The payments began in 2010 and continued for four years until federal authorities questioned Hastert about irregular bank withdrawals. He pleaded guilty last fall to intentionally illegally structuring the withdrawals to avoid scrutiny.

Individual A, a married father who in the 1970s was a standout student-athlete whose family had close ties to Hastert, argues in his lawsuit that Hastert still owes him $1.8 million — plus accrued interest — as part of the out-of-court settlement agreement. He alleges Hastert rejected his suggestion that they put it in writing and promised "to pay every last dollar," the lawsuit said. But Hastert stopped payment after federal authorities questioned him in December 2014 about his withdrawals.

Hastert has admitted sexually abusing Individual A during a one-time incident when the then-14-year-old boy attended an overnight wrestling camp and hadn't yet started high school. He filed the lawsuit under James Doe, saying the use of his real name would cause "great psychological damage to him in the form of shame and embarrassment."

Individual A has declined Tribune requests for comment. Browne, his lawyer, said his right to privacy given the "highly sensitive" issues in the case outweighs any public interest in knowing his name.

Individual A suffered panic attacks for years that led to "periods of unemployment, career changes, bouts of depression, hospitalization and long-term psychiatric treatment," according to the lawsuit. It said he never connected his problems to Hastert until 2008 when he learned for the first time that his former coach had also allegedly inappropriately touched someone else decades ago.

cmgutowski@tribpub.com

Twitter @christygutowsk1