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Tobacco trial lawyers say they had to hire Chiles' friendsBy LUCY MORGAN © St. Petersburg Times, published March 25, 1998 The accusations have surfaced in the wake of a bitter squabble between the trial lawyers who helped the state get a record-breaking $11.3-billion settlement last year. The dispute has prompted a criminal investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and caused a state Senate committee to look into the origins of the contract. The uproar has already claimed the job of one of the governor's friends -- former Inspector General Harold Lewis -- and put Lewis and fellow lawyer Tim Howard in the midst of a criminal investigation of loans Howard made to Lewis. Now some members of the trial team have told the Times they were not only forced to hire Howard to act as liaison with the governor's office, but they also had to put the governor's former communications director and two public relations experts with ties to Chiles' office on their payroll. Records kept by the trial team indicate that Sachs Communications was paid $106,307 for media consulting work in 1996 and 1997. In addition the trial team hired two public relations experts with close ties to the governor's office: Anti-smoking lobbyist Beth Labasky received $57,568 and The Commerce Group and its chief lobbyist, Pam Forte, got another $216,820 for lobbying work in 1995 and 1996. Ron Sachs, the governor's former press secretary who operates Sachs Communications, said he also paid some of the money he got to Labasky. Forte is a former committee staff director for Sen. W.D. Childers, R-Pensacola, one of the architects of the 1994 Medicaid liability law that enabled the state to sue the tobacco industry. Labasky is a longtime Chiles supporter who has lobbied against tobacco for several years and frequently appeared at the governor's side during press conferences. A list of expenditures made by the trial team was delivered anonymously last week to Sen. Charlie Crist, R-St. Petersburg, chairman of the Senate committee investigating the contract. The list was prepared by David Fonvielle, a Tallahassee lawyer who supervised finances for the legal team. In all, Fonvielle collected $3.8-million from 11 law firms to cover lawsuit expenses and $10-million from tobacco companies after the settlement was reached in August 1997. He has paid out more than $10.3-million and holds much of the remainder in reserve for trial team members who have declined to participate in arbitration agreed to in the settlement. West Palm Beach lawyer Robert Montgomery and Robert Kerrigan of Pensacola are among the trial team members attempting to enforce the original contract and collect 25 percent of the $11.3-billion or about $2.8-billion. Kerrigan and Montgomery also are questioning how Fonvielle spent the money. They particularly question the hiring of Sachs, Labasky and Forte, as well as contributions made to the Legislature's Black Caucus and the Rainbow Coalition. "We had vigorous and heated discussions over the requirement that we hire Ron Sachs," said Kerrigan. "The governor required it." "I didn't know Ron Sachs from a fence post," Montgomery said. "I didn't make the decision, I just sent my money and they spent it. I had nothing to do with all that political stuff." Fonvielle said he, too, questioned the need to hire lobbyists because he didn't think the trial team should have to lobby the Legislature to keep the 1994 law on the books. A spokeswoman for Chiles said no one was forced to hire Sachs and the lobbyists, but they were extremely important to the fight to keep legislators from repealing the Medicaid liability law. "We were fighting for our lives," said April Herrle, Chiles' communications director. "And let's not lose sight of the fact it is $11.3-billion for the state." The settlement actually goes on indefinitely, but its value over the next 25 years is estimated at $11.3-billion. The finger-pointing likely will go public Monday in Crist's committee, which has subpoenaed Fonvielle to appear, he said. Attorney General Bob Butterworth has agreed to appear before the committee on Friday, April 3. His refusal to appear last week drew criticism from senators who threatened to derail his budget until he showed up. Butterworth said he wanted to be cautious about saying anything that might inflame the volatile relationship between the state and the trial team before a judicial ruling expected sometime later this week.
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ALLAHASSEE -- Some members of the state's tobacco trial team say they were forced to hire Gov. Lawton Chiles' friends when they signed up to represent the state in its fight against tobacco companies.
