Lawsuit Against Powell Goldstein Lobbyist Breaks D.C. Norms
A May 1 settlement conference is scheduled in an unusual lawsuit against a lobbyist who jumped to Powell Goldstein last October.
The $530,000 lawsuit against lobbyist Harry Sporidis “is a rare window into matters usually settled privately and quietly,” Legal Times reports. The plaintiff is Sporidis’ former employer, the Washington Group, which is owned by the public relations company Ketchum.
The lawsuit contends Sporidis breached a noncompete agreement that he accepted electronically when he took part in a 2005 stock agreement. U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton has turned down three motions seeking to bar Sporidis from working with the clients he took to Powell Goldstein.
James Thurber, an American University professor who studies lobbying, told the publication many of the public relations companies that now own lobbying firms may not understand how Washington works. Lobbyists often switch jobs and take clients with them.
The lawsuit “is breaking norms, serious norms,” he said.
