Labaton Sucharow

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Labaton Sucharow
HeadquartersNew York City
No. of offices3
No. of attorneys60+
Major practice areasClass action lawsuits, securities
Date founded1963
Websitewww.labaton.com

Labaton Sucharow is a American plaintiffs' law firm. Founded in 1963, the firm employees over 60 lawyers in offices in New York, Delaware, and Washington, D.C.

In 2014, The New York Times wrote that Labaton Sucharow was part of "a flourishing industry that pairs plaintiffs' lawyers with state attorneys general to sue companies, a collaboration that has set off a furious competition between trial lawyers and corporate lobbyists to influence these officials."[1] The firm has been a major donor to state attorneys general associations, candidates, state party committees, and attorneys general running for governor.[2]

Labaton Sucharow represented several state pension funds in a class action lawsuit against the investment management firm State Street Global Advisors. In 2016, the firm won a $300 million settlement against State Street. That year, The Boston Globe investigated allegations that Labaton Sucharow had inflated hourly bills and that its lawyers had donated money to state pension fund officials.[3][4] In June 2018, retired federal judge Gerald Ellis Rosen, appointed to investigate the allegations, issued "a scathing 377-page report, accusing the firms of trying to 'jack up' their billable hours" and showing "a troubling disdain for candor and transparency that at times crossed the line to outright concealment of facts.'" Labaton Sucharow agreed to pay $4.8 million to settle the special master's investigation into the firm.[5] The New York Times wrote that the firm's "settlement could prompt greater transparency about so-called finder fees that are paid to lawyers — especially those who do little actual work in a matter" and that the firm's settlement agreement brought "to a close an ugly dispute that shined a spotlight on the kinds of behind-the-scenes deals that plaintiffs' law firms reach with other lawyers to build their case."[6]

In 2020, U.S. District Judge Mark L. Wolf slashed Labaton Sucharow's fee award in the State Street case by $10 million and found that the firm had acted improperly by entering into and failing to disclose an agreement to pay $4.1 million to a Texas lawyer who had introduced the firm to the Arkansas pension fund that served as the lead plaintiff in the State Street case. The lawyer sued Labaton Sucharow and two partners at the firm, alleging they had refused to pay him the fees he was owed.[7]

In 2021, French businessman Gerard Sillam and French lawyer Aldric Saulnier sued Labaton Sucharow, alleging that the firm had defrauded them out of fees they earned for "introducing Labaton partners to billion-dollar European money management firms that Labaton was eager to represent in shareholder class actions."[8]

References[]

  1. ^ Lipton, Eric (19 December 2014). "Lawyers Create Big Paydays by Coaxing Attorneys General to Sue". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 January 2022.
  2. ^ "Political Gifts from Plaintiffs' Lawyers". The New York Times. 18 December 2014. Retrieved 3 January 2022.
  3. ^ Estes, Andre (March 1, 2020). "Judge orders Boston law firm to repay millions in inflated legal fees". BostonGlobe.com.
  4. ^ Estes, Andrea. "Firms to pay for probe of their bills". epaper.bostonglobe.com. Retrieved 3 January 2022.
  5. ^ "Labaton Agrees to Pay $4.8M to Settle Special Master's Overbilling Inquiry". www.yahoo.com. October 10, 2018. Retrieved 3 January 2022.
  6. ^ Goldstein, Matthew (10 October 2018). "Law Firm's Fee Settlement Could Shake Up Securities Class Actions". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 January 2022.
  7. ^ Frankel, Alison (27 July 2021). "State Street fallout for Labaton: Lawyer sues over unpaid 'referral' fees". Reuters.
  8. ^ Frankel, Alison (20 September 2021). "Former Labaton consultant's suit details firm's big-money recruiting of Euro clients". Reuters.
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