Scruggs Takes Issue With Letter Claiming Katrina Case Withdrawals
Updated: Are Richard “Dickie” Scruggs and his law firm withdrawing from all Hurricane Katrina-related litigation?
The answer is yes, according to a letter from Don Barrett posted on the Wall Street Journal Law Blog. Barrett is one of the founders of the Scruggs Katrina Group, which represents thousands of policyholders engaged in Katrina-related cases.
Scruggs begs to differ. “The clients will be the ones who will make the call as to their lawyer,” Scruggs told the Law Blog in a later post. “Our firm is committed to representing all Katrina families and other clients in our practice. We do not want to let anyone down or drag anyone down.”
The letter (PDF) was filed with judges who are overseeing Katrina-related litigation with State Farm. In it Barrett says the Scruggs Katrina Group will be re-forming, with Barrett taking over as lead counsel.
Earlier this week, the FBI searched Scruggs’ office in Oxford, Miss. Then news broke that he was indicted on charges he conspired to bribe a judge.
Scruggs is well-known for handling tobacco litigation for the state of Mississippi, asbestos litigation and more recently for suing State Farm on behalf of Hurricane Katrina victims. He is the brother-in-law of retiring Sen. Trent Lott.
Updated 12/27/2007 at 7:42 PM to reflect new information from Scruggs.
