Law firm sues seeking $150K of $1.5B whistleblower settlement, says ex-partner originated the case
A New York plaintiffs law firm has sued a Delaware counterpart, contending that it is entitled to a $150,000 share of a $1.5 billion settlement of a federal whistleblower lawsuit generated by a former partner.
Wolf Haldenstein Adler Freeman & Herz says ex-partner Reuben Guttman drafted the complaint in the case before exiting for Grant & Eisenhofer, Reuters reports. The suit concerned alleged off-label promotion by Abbott Laboratories of Depakote to treat dementia and schizophrenia, for which the prescription drug had not been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Filed Friday in state court in New York, it contends that Wolf Haldenstein put in 267 hours of work on the case and said Grant & Eisenhofer previously agreed that its Big Apple counterpart was entitled to be paid for its work on the case.
Guttman and the managing director of Grant & Eisenhofer didn’t respond to requests for comment by the news agency.
A Los Angeles Times article provides more details about last year’s settlement agreement by Abbott.
