Subject:   (Carney) (Reuss) Tobacco Lawyer$... (fwd)] (fwd)
Date:     Sun, 3 Jan 1999 102146 -0600 (CST)
From:     "Roy L. Beavers" <rbeavers@llion.org>
To:       emfguru <rbeavers@llion.org>
--------------------------------------------------



---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: 3 Jan 99 08:31:23 MST
From: Deb Carney 
To: rbeavers@llion.org
Subject: Re: [(Reuss) Tobacco Lawyer$... (fwd)]

I agree that some lawyers are overly avaracious but beware of killing the one
method that may ultimately change the amount of EMR inflicted on people.  
I am a lawyer who has done an environmental case that went for 12 years before
we received 1 dime for our work.  Does anyone appreciate what this is like?  
I have done everything for the Lookout Mountain CARE fight pro bono, as have
our resident scientists and other members. Because I have done so much pro
bono work on this issue in the last year the economic stability of my lawfirm
has suffered, I have had to let go of a cherished staff that I spent years
training, I may have to sell my home, I don't know how our family of 5 will
make it for the next year and more importantly for this group-there is no way
that I could singly represent our residents as a lawyer in EMR litigation.  
Such a fight takes a fortune in expert, court reporter, travel, etc. costs. 
Knowing that I lacked the resources for civil litigation and sensing that all
our efforts with the County and FCC may not be enough, I have contacted many
attorneys to see if they would be willing to take up the fight as a "civil
action."  Many, many respected lawyers have said, "no" it is too costly, too
new. Because the majority of scientists do not think EMR is harmful, you will
be thrown out of court."

Civil litigation is like warfare.  Often the "soldiers" get no pay unless and
until they win.  You never hear about the "soldiers" who fought the good fight
but got nothing because the other side hid evidence or the bad guys won by
starving out the opposition.  I have seen it happen many times.  

Big business is working hard to eliminate contingency fees-can you guess why? 
Once there are no more contingency fee cases, who will have the resources to
take big business to court in an all out fight?  
The large fees in the tobacco lawsuit are because the lawyers took an enormous
risk that they would spend a fortune on costs and years of their time, risk
their economic viability and receive absolutely nothing.  The money the
lawyers get will provide a nest egg that can be tapped to take on other risky
cases-like EMR. 
Deb Carney
 
rbeavers@llion.org wrote:
> 

> .................PEOPLE ARE MORE IMPORTANT THAN PROFITS...............

> 

> ---------- Forwarded message ----------

> Date: Sun, 3 Jan 1999 01:48:02 +0100

> From: Christoph Reuss 

> To: "Roy L. Beavers" 

> Subject: Tobacco Lawyer$... (fwd)

> 

> Dear Roy,

> 

> Happy New Year, and may EMF-L shine on...

> 

> Cheerio,

> Chris

> 

> 

> 

> > Raiding the Cookie Jar Dept.

> >

> > There are some new candidates in the race for Best Rationalization for the

> > $8.2 billion awarded to lawyers in the tobacco settlement. One of my

> > personal favorites is by John Calhoun Wells, chair of the arbitration

> > panel that determined the fees, who noted that without the lawyers "there

> > would be no multi-billion settlement for the states..." I mean imagine the

> > embarrassment to the states if no lawyers had shown up because, say, only

> > a $billion had been offered. Attorney Joseph Rice, whose firm earned a

> > cool $1billion for two years work, asks "Why should the lawyers who

> > carried the burden and led the fight not be paid like a chief executive

> > officer of a corporation?" And we all know how fair their compensation is.

> > Then there is the elegant simplicity of Florida attorney Robert Kerrigan's

> > answer after being awarded $200 million for his work: "It sounds fair to

> > me." I'm sure it does. (AP 12/12/98, NYT 12/22/98)

> 

> 



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Reprinted with permission of Roy Beavers, http://www.feb.se/EMF-L/EMF-L.html