Font Size: 
Texas Judge Upholds $182 Million Verdict Against NL Industries
The American Lawyer
October 21, 2009
Stephen Susman still hasn't made any money on a contingency case in which he and co-counsel Tom Melsheimer of Fish & Richards obtained one of this year's largest verdicts in Texas. But on Friday, the charismatic name partner of Susman Godfrey took a step closer to collecting. A judge in Dallas County state district court upheld a July jury verdict totaling more than $182.5 million in damages and interest against NL Industries and its officers.
The case concerns a deal negotiated 11 years ago by the plaintiffs -- Efficasey Environmental, Highland Environmental Management and Industrial Recovery Capital Holdings Company -- to invest in an NL subsidiary that was created to clean up NL's massive environmental liabilities. The plaintiffs had an option to sell back their stock to NL after seven years. But when it came time to sell it back, the plaintiffs alleged, NL had stripped the subsidiary of its assets in an effort to value the stock below what it was really worth.
On Tuesday, NL's lawyer, Richard Sayles of Sayles Werbner, wrote us an e-mail expressing his disappointment with last week's ruling. "The matter will definitely be appealed to challenge the substantial issues presented here," he wrote. "We remain confident that the errors resulting in this judgment will be corrected."
"The plaintiffs invested a great deal of time and money in this firm," said Susman in a statement. "They had high hopes, but also faith that the defendants would act in a straightforward manner. This final judgment is an important step for these investors to achieve some justice."
This article first appeared on The Am Law Litigation Daily blog on AmericanLawyer.com.
