A bitter six-week trial had a sweet ending for former Baron & Budd lawyer Gary Cruciani. On May 19, a Dallas jury took five hours to award Cruciani $8.8 million in damages, finding that Baron & Budd and firm founder Russell Budd made negligent misrepresentations to Cruciani when they hired him.
The trial in Gary Cruciani v. Russell Budd, et al. provided a peek at Baron & Budd’s finances, as well as insight into the deteriorating relationship Budd had with former partner Fred Baron, with whom Budd formed the asbestos litigation firm in 1975. In fact, jurors heard from Baron — who passed away in 2008 — when Cruciani’s lawyer introduced into evidence a videotaped deposition Baron gave in 2006 in a suit he filed against Budd and the firm.
