Following a months-long, blinded selection process, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has announced the selection of two outside legal teams to support her department on two critical litigation fronts: PFAS and opioids.
The result of the selection process, begun in May, was approved by the state Administrative Review Board Sept. 12 and contracts were recently finalized.
“We are eager to get to work with these national experts to pursue litigation to protect Michigan residents from chemical and pharmaceutical manufacturers and distributors that have poisoned our people and our property,” said Nessel. “These firms bring extraordinary skills, experience and resources to the table..."
Opioids
Opioids, prescription and illicit, are one of the main drivers of drug overdoses here and nationwide. The state has already expended significant resources combatting the opioid epidemic, crime related to it, and drug treatment and rehabilitation. The AG?Department sought to determine whether litigation should be brought to protect Michigan, its residents, and the public interest.
A total of seven firms (or teams of firms) responded to the request for proposal issued in May. Upon review of the written presentations, four firms were asked to make oral presentations. The final recommendation by the review team was presented to the AG Aug. 7 but to ensure objectivity in decision-making, the actual identities of the firms were not disclosed to her at that time.
Following substantial vetting, the Department of Attorney General selected the litigation team led by Baron & Budd, P.C. (Dallas, Tex.); the law firm of Levin, Papantonio, Thomas, Mitchell, Rafferty & Proctor, P.A. (Pensacola, Fla.); and the Sam Bernstein Law Firm (Farmington Hills, Mich.). This core group incorporates working relationships with nine additional law firms.
This consortium of firms creates an incredibly deep bench to help make sure Michigan has the expertise available, under one contract, to handle the wide-ranging issues that are present in this historic litigation. While Michigan has only recently engaged these firms, they have been hard at work at the top levels of the existing opioid cases for several years. This partnership has effectively thrown a switch that puts Michigan in a prominent position to maximize any available recovery.
The primary terms of the contract call for AG Nessel to retain total control over all important decisions in any litigation initiated under the contract. The firms assisting will front all necessary costs and be compensated and reimbursed for costs only if there is a recovery. Costs and fees paid to the firms will come only from amounts paid by defendants and the precise amount paid as a fee will be determined via a mediation panel at the end of the contract. If there is no recovery from defendants, the State of Michigan will owe nothing, i.e., no public dollars have been committed.
PFAS
Michigan is one of the first states in the nation to tackle the investigation and regulation of the emerging contaminants known as PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances), a group of potentially harmful contaminants used in thousands of applications globally including firefighting foam, food packaging and other products. They are also used by industries such as tanneries, metal platers and clothing manufacturers. The AG Department sought applications from lawyers and law firms with expertise working with states and pursuing manufacturers and distributors of toxic and harmful substances to explore possibilities for pursuing litigation against entities that manufactured or distributed PFAS compounds that came to be located in the state’s environment.
A total of 15 firms (or teams of firms) responded to the request for proposal. Upon review of the written presentations, five firms were asked to make oral presentations. Two of the selected teams joined forces, and so four presentations were heard by the review team. The final recommendation was presented to the Attorney General in July, under the same terms as above.
Following substantial vetting, the Department of Attorney General selected the litigation team made up of Fields PLLC (Washington, D.C.); Keating, Muething & Klekamp PLL (Cincinnati, Oh.); and DiCello Levitt Gutzler LLC (Chicago).
The combined team brings an unmatched combination of extraordinary trial skills and a track record of successfully litigating and settling dozens of large-scale environmental cases across the United States and internationally. Collectively, they have recovered billions of dollars for their clients and presently represent several states in a wide range of complex, large-scale litigation.
The PFAS litigation partner contracts fall under the same contingency fee circumstances as the opioid contracts, above.
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