Anucha Browne Sanders will get $11.5 million, including $4 million in legal fees, to settle her claim of misconduct by Isiah Thomas and others. The Garden did not keep quiet about its view of the result, calling it a “travesty of justice”. (Richard Sandomir, “Garden Settles Harassment Case for $11.5 Million”, New York Times, Dec. 11). Earlier: Oct. 2, Oct. 4.
Timothy Balducci, wannabe?
A major early theme of the Dickie Scruggs defense has been that fortyish attorney Timothy Balducci, who was “flipped” by the feds and is cooperating with prosecutors, and who has spoken of sharing with Scruggs knowledge of where there are various “bodies buried”, is a clueless newbie, a mere Timmy Tiptoes who sought to impress his elders in hopes of someday being admitted to their inner circle. Scruggs attorney John Keker used the “wannabe” epithet the other day, saying he didn’t think Scruggs and Balducci “were close at all”, and it had earlier come to mind as I sought to convey the tone of the WSJ’s Oxford Christmas party quotes. Let’s review, then, some of the revelations of recent days:
- As a former principal in the Langston law firm, one of the state’s best known, Balducci had been appointed individually to represent the state of Mississippi as a Special Assistant Attorney General in two high-stakes and politically sensitive matters, the MCI tax dispute and the litigation against drugmaker Lilly seeking reimbursement for outlays on the psychiatric drug Zyprexa.
- According to Alan Lange at Y’All Politics, the agreement from AG Hood’s office in the MCI case retaining the Langston Law Firm refers to “its principal members, Joseph C. Langston and Timothy R. Balducci”, and Langston’s own advertising at the time referred to the firm as being “anchored by longterm partners Langston and Tim Balducci”.
- Scruggs retained Balducci to represent him in the highly sensitive Jones lawsuit, which aside from demanding millions of dollars carried the prospect of laying open the financial arrangements of the Scruggs Katrina Group to a curious world.
- Earlier, Scruggs retained Balducci to represent him in the long-running and highly sensitive Alwyn Luckey fee lawsuit, which per the Times culminated in an eventual $17 million payout to Luckey. The opposing attorney who handled that case for Luckey, Charles M. Merkel, Jr., told the New York Times: “Balducci made part of the closing arguments in one of my cases, and they sat at the same table. When I was negotiating with them, it was generally with Balducci.”
- In the Luckey case, when Scruggs sat for the fantastically sensitive 2004 deposition in which he was obliged to unveil explosive details of how he spread around money to advance the tobacco-Medicaid litigation — the episode that made his national reputation and brought him plus-or-minus a billion in fees — the lawyer on hand representing him, and peppering the proceedings with continual objections, was Balducci.
- After Balducci struck out with former state auditor Steve Patterson to form an independent practice, his firm listed of counsel political and legal notables that included a former governor of the state of Mississippi and the former DA of the county that includes most of Jackson.
P.S. For those unacquainted with the Beatrix Potter reference, the eponymous gray squirrel in her story gets into trouble with his fellows: “Timmy rolled over and over, and then turned tail and fled towards his nest, followed by a crowd of squirrels shouting — ‘Who’s-been digging-up my-nuts?'”
The next wave of defensive medicine
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court has held that a doctor may, in some circumstances, be liable for a patient’s auto accident if the plaintiff can prove that he failed to adequately warn his patient about the risks of driving under medication. (Coombes v. Florio; Childs; Klein blog; update: also Liz Kowalczyk, “SJC ruling adds to doctor liability”, Boston Globe, Dec. 11 via Childs).
The obvious dynamic result from this gigantic expansion of liability, unnoted by the majority: doctors will simply overwarn, and tell all of their patients not to drive. (After all, patients can’t sue their doctors for the damages caused by their being unable to drive.) Some patients will routinely ignore the advice because they won’t be able to distinguish the legitimate warnings from the defensive warnings; other patients will stop taking medication that they should be taking because of the additional unnecessary personal costs; still other patients who could have driven safely will impose huge costs because they obey the defensive warning. None of these indirect expenses caused by the expansion of liability will be measured in accounts of the costs of the tort system.
Disabled accommodation of an alarming sort, cont’d
When you dial 911 from some new Verizon Wireless phones, it seems the phone itself emits an audible alarm. The telecom provider says it installed the feature to comply with federal law requiring that phone services be made “accessible and usable by individuals with disabilities”. Unfortunately, it has a disconcerting effect on users like a nondisabled Austin, Texas woman who dialed 911 because she feared she was about to have a close encounter with vandals on a vacant property she owned. The FCC says it does not require specific ways of meeting the accessibility mandate and that other methods besides audible tones might be found. (Clara Tuma, “Verizon customer calls phone alarm ‘dangerous'”, KVUE, Nov. 9). Reader L.S. writes that the story reminds him of the “Neckbelts” article in The Onion. We noted some years ago that strobe-light-equipped fire alarms, being pressed on government standards-writers as a way to alert deaf persons to emergencies, might prove dangerous to persons with photosensitive epilepsy, many of whom risk being sent into seizures by brightly flashing lights.
Flatley: false accuser is paying me $11 million
Turning the tables on an accuser: “Dance star Michael Flatley has won an $11 million settlement in the United States from a woman who falsely accused him of sexual assault and attempted to extort money from him, he said in a statement.” (“Michael Flatley floors floozy for fortune”, Brisbane Times, Dec. 10). We covered the original $35 million suit against the “Riverdance” impresario, and his later countersuit, on Sept. 14, 2004, Jul. 30, 1006, and Aug. 22, 2006. Needless to say, very few wrongful accusers are likely to have this kind of money on hand to pay over in response to countersuits; but per syndicated columnist Stacy Jenel Smith, the woman who charged Flatley with assault, Tyna Marie Robertson, “had dated other wealthy and well-known men through the years – relationships that sometimes ended in litigation”. (“Dark Side of Fame: Becoming A Target for Sex Charges, Lawsuits”, undated). More, including information on Robertson’s lawyer, D. Dean Mauro, at ABA Journal. Update/clarification Dec. 15: notwithstanding the erroneous use of the term “settlement” in last week’s press reports, OnPoint News makes clear that what Flatley actually got was a default judgment, and that Robertson is unlikely to have means to pay.
FBI searches Joey Langston offices
Yesterday’s sensational developments are covered at the Jackson Clarion-Ledger, Rossmiller, and AP/FoxNews.com. The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal quotes attorney Tony Farese, who among other connections to the principals represents Zach Scruggs, as asserting that the files taken relate to former Langston firm attorney Tim Balducci. However, some other reports, such as Sid Salter’s Clarion-Ledger blog, are indicating that the federal agents also removed files from Langston’s residence. (Update Dec. 12: Langston’s mother says these reports are erroneous, per Salter). Discussions are in progress at Y’AllPolitics and Lotus/folo.
Langston, a prominent figure on the Mississippi litigation scene, has been among lawyers representing Dickie Scruggs following his criminal indictment; the Sun-Herald notes that he also (with Balducci) represented Scruggs in the Alwyn Luckey fee dispute, known to be a topic of interest to federal prosecutors. Readers of this site may also remember Langston from the Foradori v. Captain D’s case two years ago, and more recently from the controversy over the MCI contigency-fee tax-negotiation case.
Call me a patent troll? See you in court
Watch what you say about lawyers, a continuing feature: the blog Troll Tracker has been critical of firms that make a practice of buying up patent rights to sue on them. Now co-founder Ray Niro of the Chicago plaintiffs firm Niro, Scavone, Haller & Niro is threatening to sue Troll Tracker for alleged infringement of a patent on a technique sometimes used in web graphics, JPEG decompression. (If a website posts graphics at all, there is a good chance that it is in similar violation of this asserted patent.) Niro also wants the anonymous blawger’s identity unmasked and is offering a bounty toward that end. (TrollTracker, Dec. 4; John Bringardner, “A Bounty of $5,000 to Name Troll Tracker”, IP Law & Business, Dec. 4; via Ambrogi, who appends an extensive list of blogs commenting on the story).
December 10 roundup
- Joe Nocera’s recent column on the Vioxx settlement infuriated loyalists of the plaintiff’s bar, and they won’t like his new one on lead paint litigation much better [NY Times]
- Trial of Overlawyered favorite Jack Thompson over ethical charges leveled by Florida bar wraps up, but judge won’t rule right away [GamePolitics earlier, more recent posts]
- Two joggers hit by driver alongside Pacific Coast Highway will share $49 million from city of Dana Point — allegedly the bike lane was too wide — so now here come the concrete barriers [LA Times]
- Do makers of anti-PC documentary “Indoctrinate U.” owe cash to Indiana U. for infringing on its logo? [Maloney, OpinionJournal, Coleman] Update Dec. 11: settled.
- Casselberry, Fla. cop who sued parents after boy’s near-drowning in pool has now lost her job following public outcry over the incident [Orlando Sentinel; earlier]
- Lawyer who says he was defamed by commenters on DontDateHimGirl.com is back in court [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Ambrogi, On Point; earlier here, here, etc.]
- Outspoken blog of BU prof Dr. Michael Siegel ticks off “tobacco control” activists [Beam, Globe]
- Warning label alert: old Sesame Street episodes unsafe for children? [Stier, Wash. Times]
- Furor mounts in and out of Canada over “human rights” complaint against Maclean’s over Mark Steyn book excerpt [Wente, Globe and Mail; Eteraz, UK Guardian; Steyn, NRO; Kimball]
- Judge rejects lawsuit by animal rights group challenging UCSF animal testing [SF Chronicle]
- New at Point of Law: How do all those big cases wind up in Judge Jack Weinstein’s court, anyway?; latest Richard Epstein podcast is on antitrust, Microsoft, AT&T, etc.; abuse of the Family and Medical Leave Act; welcome new contributor Marie Gryphon; Yale Law clinic sues Yale-New Haven Hospital; bar official dismisses concerns about cy pres slush funds; breastfeeding accommodation on the job, via lawsuit?; just what New York needs, a new state law school at Binghamton; and much more.
Scruggs indictment VIII
A report in today’s New York Times advances the ball on a number of fronts:
- Per an unidentified official, “federal prosecutors have asked the Justice Department’s Public Integrity Section to examine whether Mr. Scruggs has engaged in multiple bribery attempts of local judges.” DoJ is said to have sent lawyers to Mississippi to check out leads along these lines, and is also said to be interested in possible misconduct by Scruggs in the Alwyn Luckey fee dispute.
- The Times interviews Clarksdale, Miss. attorney Charles M. Merkel Jr., who spent more than a decade in court fighting Scruggs in the Luckey dispute:
“It’s scorched earth with Dickie Scruggs,” says Mr. Merkel, sitting in a wood-paneled office featuring duck-hunting memorabilia and two framed checks representing about $17 million in payments that Mr. Scruggs had to disgorge to Mr. Merkel’s client — a lawyer named Alwyn Luckey who argued that Mr. Scruggs shortchanged him for work he performed on asbestos cases that made Mr. Scruggs rich.
Mr. Merkel and prosecutors say that the Luckey case foreshadowed some of Mr. Scruggs’ woes in the current bribery case. “As far as whether he’s guilty, I can’t say,” Mr. Merkel concedes. “But I’m not surprised, because he’s willing to use any means to an end. And it irks the hell out of me when Scruggs skates on the edge and makes the profession look bad.”
- Keker, as predicted, is labeling Timothy Balducci a “wannabe” and says, of him and Scruggs: “I don’t think they’re close at all.” Merkel, for one, isn’t buying that: “He’s a lot closer to Scruggs than Scruggs would like to portray now,” Mr. Merkel says. “Balducci made part of the closing arguments in one of my cases, and they sat at the same table. When I was negotiating with them, it was generally with Balducci.”
- The Times also picks up on Scruggs’s liberal dispensing of resources to sway Mississippi political influence-holders during the tobacco caper:
In his deposition with Mr. Merkel in 2004, he discussed some $10 million in payments he made to P. L. Blake, a onetime college football star in Mississippi. After running into financial troubles, Mr. Blake became a political consultant for Mr. Scruggs, helping his boss navigate the back rooms of state politics and tobacco litigation.
In the deposition, where he was represented by Mr. Balducci, Mr. Scruggs praised Mr. Blake for keeping “his ear to the ground politically in this state and in the South generally, and he has been extremely helpful in keeping me apprised of that type activity.” Mr. Blake could not be reached for comment.
When Mr. Merkel further pressed Mr. Scruggs about Mr. Blake’s services, Mr. Scruggs elaborated: “He has numerous connections — in terms — when I say connections, I don’t mean that in a sinister way, I mean he just has a lot — he knows an awful lot of people in the political realm. And he — depending on the stage of tobacco litigation proceedings was keeping his ear to the ground, prying, checking. I mean, I never asked who or what or all that.”
David Rossmiller takes note of a letter by Balducci dated August 1 over a regulatory matter which in its cocksure and sarcastic tone suggests that Balducci had not yet been confronted and “flipped” by federal investigators as of that date. This morning he adds a document and link roundup.
The Jackson Clarion-Ledger quotes Jackson attorney Dennis Sweet, who partnered with Scruggs on slavery reparations, as saying he “had a hard time believing that Dickie would involve his son in anything like this,” a comment that perhaps is open to close reading.
At Y’AllPolitics, two commenters discuss how conspiracy investigations logically develop over their life cycle. David Sanders notes that when the timing is up to them, federal investigators prefer not to uncover operations and reveal informants until they are satisfied they’ve caught all the targets in their net, which raises the question of whether they had developed what they considered to be the best evidence they were going to get, or whether some development forced their hand into closing the net before that point. “LawDoctor1960” observes that the indictees will soon get a look at the prosecution’s case, which if damning could induce one or more to join Balducci in “flipping” with resulting further revelations and perhaps further indictments.
The WSJ law blog has some answers to the question put the other day: Where is Mr. Keker?
Folo wonders: does the Scruggs firm (as opposed to Scruggs Katrina) really not have a website, and if so, isn’t that exceedingly strange? Don’t they want to encourage potential clients to approach them?
Finally, for those who are wondering whether there’s any pro-Scruggs blogging to be found, we can report that we’ve spotted a reasonable facsimile at Cotton Mouth and at Pensacola Beach Blog.
Earlier coverage: here, here, here, etc.
Breaking Monday afternoon: FBI agents search offices of another leading Mississippi plaintiff’s attorney, Joey Langston, who has been representing Scruggs in his indictment, and has had many other past dealings with him.
Best of 2007: January
- John Edwards’s support for wacky warnings.
- Author’s suit: Penguin labeled my book “black interest.”
- Kentucky fen-phen litigation heats up—or, at least, the critical fee documentation did when the attorneys burned it.
- Not a huge surprise: environmental lawsuits hurt environment.
- I wasn’t impressed by a trial lawyer’s claim of “forgiveness” at the punitive damages stage.
- Best or worst? Miscellaneous time-wasting spats with Bizarro-Overlawyered: medical malpractice; constitutional history; affluence, accidents and ad hominems; rollover economics.