Posted on 11/04/2003 8:13:47 PM PST by SheLion
BOSTON – A lawyer for the two law firms that helped Massachusetts win $8.3 billion as part of the 1998 tobacco settlement accused the state Tuesday of breaking promises and penalizing the firms for being too successful.
"Is a deal a deal? Is a promise a promise? Is a contract a contract?" Robert Popeo said in opening statements for a lawsuit over how much the firms should receive for their work.
The state responded by arguing that the $2 billion total the firms are seeking violates the rule of reasonableness that governs attorneys' fees.
"Every 90 days for the next 20 years, they will receive over $8 million. The Commonwealth feels this is a substantial and reasonable fee," said assistant Attorney General Dean Richlin. "They say $775 million is not enough. The commonwealth says enough is enough."
The lawyers, awarded $775 million by an arbitration panel, have sued Massachusetts to recover an additional $1.25 billion over the next 25 years they say they're owed for negotiating a landmark settlement with tobacco companies. Richlin says this amount is equivalent to $17,000 for each hour they worked on the case.
The firms are the only ones nationwide to challenge how much they were paid for negotiating the massive $246 billion multistate lawsuit settlement. In other states, lawyers have agreed to receive less than what they were contractually owed.
Two law firms - Brown Rudnick Berlack & Israels and Lieff, Cabraser, Heimann & Bernstein - say they signed a 25 percent contingency fee agreement with Massachusetts in 1995 and in doing so took on all the financial risks to sue an industry that had never paid to settle any public health claims.
"There wasn't anything in there that said 'if we don't like the amount, we're not going to pay you,'" Popeo said.
As one of its key witnesses against the law firms, the state will present a former partner at Brown Rudnick who did the most work on the case.
Richlin said the state will also present three former presidents of Massachusetts Bar Association, who say $775 million constitutes a reasonable fee.
The three other firms that worked for Massachusetts have not joined the suit, but could stand to benefit if the court rules in the law firms' favor.
"Ultimately this case is going to determine whether the state is bound by the same laws as you and me," Popeo said.
Pitiful, isn't it............
I love to be reminded of this. Tell me early, and often. Is Dan rotting in jail? Yes, he is. Did one crooked lawyer actually get what was coming to him. Yes, it actually happened.
I think we should flush them ALL and start over!
Why would you slander thieves like that.
The state govts and the lawyers are SOOO much lower than thieves.
At least thieves only rob one at a time. The state, and federal for that matter, govts and lawyers rob everyone at the same time.
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