SOUTH CAROLINA ATTORNEY GENERAL UNDER FIRE … AGAIN
There’s a hard-hitting story in SC Lawyers Weekly this week criticizing S.C. attorney general Alan Wilson – who is already under considerable fire for allegations of selective prosecution in pursuit of public corruption.
The story – written by reporter Phillip Bantz – deals with Wilson’s office using private law firms on a contingency fee basis to sue deep-pocketed pharmaceutical companies.
According to the report, Wilson’s office isn’t the only attorney general’s office in America running this racket – but it is the only one taking a cut of the fees it rakes in from these judgments.
Last week, Cephalon Inc. settled a case that, in part, sought to answer the following question …
Should the attorney general be allowed to hire private lawyers on a contingency fee basis to do the state’s bidding and then take a cut of the firm’s fee after the dust of litigation settles?
Um, no. He should not.
In fact there’s no part of these contingency fee arrangements – which in the Cephalon case accrued to the direct financial benefit of current S.C. House minority leader Todd Rutherford – that don’t give us heartburn.
Bantz’s report extensively quoted James Copland of the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research – who referred to these prosecutorial arrangements as the “paradigmatic examples of shakedowns.”
“These companies are going to have to spend millions of dollars if they try to defend themselves and that’s money they won’t get back even if they were to win,” he told Bantz. “So if you’re going to spend $6 million on your defense, you might as well pay $6 million to settle and walk away.”
Indeed …
There’s also the taxpayer component to consider.
If the state loses these cases, it’s your money walking out the door. If they “win,” the money gets routed into a slush fund for the attorney general’s exclusive use.
Since 2002, an estimated $36.5 million has been paid into this fund – which is not part of the state’s general fund (i.e. not subject to legislative appropriation). While most of the money went to salaries and benefits for government employees, hundreds of thousands of dollars have been routed less-than-transparently to things like “other professional services.”
Hmmmm …
This process strikes us as fundamentally wrong on multiple levels. It’s also unbecoming of an attorney general who spent his first term in office railing against public corruption.
Alan Wilson wants to be the next governor of South Carolina – and he’s staked his claim to this destiny on being an Eliot Ness-style “Untouchable” committed to rooting out rampant self-dealing at the S.C. State House.
Unfortunately, he’s not only failing to root out such self-dealing … he’s apparently got some ethically dubious arrangements of his own to answer for.
58 comments
Wilson is a LOCK for future SC Governor. He defeated Obama multiple times, and was STRONG standing up for the will of a VAST majority of South Carolinians against redlining Marriage for a trendy, liberal special interest political lobby…
That the extremist leftwing Trial Lawyers will do ALL they can do “OFF” Wilson, is not news or surprising. It is truly ‘dog bites man’ journalism, that only an inexperienced, unprofessional dolt would jump at.
How’s that blog…
Translation, I slapped the PISS out of you, so hard with the truth, I broke your Fucking teeth…
I have never been impressed with the Wilsons.
I was impressed with Ann and Nancy, but certainly not Joe and Alan.
Haha! Don’t call people ignorant if you are so ignorant that you apparently don’t know that it would be proper to say “Only the ignorant are shocked.”
SC House Ad Hoc Committee investigating Planned Parenthood in Columbia
and other abortion centers in SC:
SC HHS Medicaid funded 222 child-murders-by-“abortion” statewide, and funded
Planned Parenthood child-murder center in Columbia funded almost $300,000, FY 2011-2015
Obama is like the USSR. What a filthy piece of shit this guy is…
Obama’s Secret Service urged that unflattering information the agency had in its files about Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), should be made public, according to a government watchdog report released Wednesday.
“Some information that he might find embarrassing needs to get out,” Assistant Director Edward Lowery wrote in an e-mail to a fellow director on March 31, commenting on an internal file…
Two days later, a news Web site reported personal info. that the Chaffetz did not get a job w/ the Secret Service…..
0bama sucks. We get that. I never said he didn’t, but this isn’t about 0bama. This is about corrupt people claiming to be “Republicans” and engaging in behavior just as harmful as some of the shit the Democrats are doing, perhaps worse. I recently read a quote from Cicero elsewhere that perfectly explained how these cruds in our midst are more dangerous than the “enemy at the gate”.
Fits and Boz create myths and conspiracy theories that are frankly weird. .Just my opinion.NEVER any substance to their allegations.Just my opinion.Love the blog-informative on many subjects.ALL of these witch hunts, designed apparently to destroy every damn politician or public servant in SC, appear to go no where. Just my opinion.
FBI,CIA HLS,NCAA,DOD,WWF,EPA,SLED.CTN,TVLAND….every damn agency in America is investigating every damn person that has pissed Fits or Boz off? A joke,in my opinion.
These people are investigated and their integrity called into question because their actions are quite questionable. They should be investigated and questioned.
In my opinion it crosses the line investigating/questioning the ‘integrity’ of the public servant and seeps into character destruction of not only the per se public servant but harming their FAMILIES as well.Just my opinion.It is wrong.
That these highly questionable POS’s bring shame upon (perhaps innocent) members of their families is indeed sad. That is still no reason to give them a pass on their corrupt behaviors, allowing them to victimize taxpayers and others via misues of their authority and our office.
Limehouse for an example.FitsNews alleges that Limehouse has apparently done something that is either illegal and/or so personally destructive in his life that may not run again.Okay.Why the picture of the children? Disgusting.
I imagine Limehouse thought that using his family as a prop for his campaign was somehow a good idea. I guess now they will be shamed by that very photo.
Innocent family members often suffer at the hands of crooked relatives. As someone else noted on another thread, earlier today, a burglar won’t get told that if he quits breaking in to homes or businesses and stealing that he will get a pass. The theft these scumbag politicos commit, both from taxpayers as a whole and from individusls and businesses is no different. Their treatment should be no different.
The disgrace of Horry County and town clown of MB agrees with you.
Will never understand how you people can live with yourself-getting up everyday thinking of ways to destroy your neighbors and others in the community-along with their families.
Gutless keyboard cowboys that contribute ZERO to making the place they live better.Spewing lies and falsehoods about those you are jealous of and those that have achieved success is your mantra in an otherwise miserable life.
Carry on.
At least I’m not “contributing” by brokering endless crooked deals that misappropriate tax monies people worked hard to pay for my own self-enrichment. You sound as though you may have been a beneficiary of such, perhaps for a very long time.
Yet you gleefully do the same if they have a D attached to their name.
as Jimmy said I am dazzled that a single mom can get paid $28273 in four weeks on the internet ……..Easy online work for all. Make $5000 to $9000 per week online.4-5hour daily work………read the full info here
.uog……
??? http://GoogleTopCareersGetDailyFinancialJobs/get/morethan$97/h…????????????????????????????????????????????????
Hey nut job, this article is about Alan Wilson. A Republican. It has NOTHING to do with Obama. Like a dog with rabies you need to be put out of your misery. You have a sickness.
Holy Shit! Can’t trust any of ’em!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ob25NFzaZuU
“IF YOU DON’T LIKE IT YOU CAN MOVE”
by Boz Martin
5 years ago
362 views
Nobody can trust you?
This little animation is based on an actual quote from Myrtle Beach Mayor John Rhodes. When a citizen asked him, at a City …
This little animation is based on an actual quote from Myrtle Beach Mayor John Rhodes. When a citizen asked him, at a City Counsel meeting, how he expected to replace the monies lost by banning motorcycle rallys in the city, and imposing a strict helmet law and other restrictions, he replied, “I’m going to raise your taxes, and then I’m going to raise them again, and if you don’t like it, you can move!” We’re hoping to vote this tyrant out on November 3rd, along with his equally arrogant City Council.
If the election goes to a run-off, and Rhodes happens to be one of the candidate, I hope to be able to do develop this into a more involved animation, and have a better rap for it, produced by SCOTTY2DOPE who did the hilarious and right-on-the-money MAYOR JOHN RHODES.
Working overtime to dig up some shit that you think will hurt me, aren’t you?
Forgot to delete that one. Not the best animation job I’ve ever done. I’d just gotten the software.
I need to delete that one. Thanks!
He had to go through some trouble to do that. That’s some serious mental health issue.
Let’s be honest, I don’t work, I’m couch surfing at GrandTango’s, and I have no life, so I have to find something to occupy my time with. LMAO!!!!!!!!
The facts of these suits have been in the news for years. The only thing new here is the critique.
How is this really any different from this state getting slices of federal settlements with the banksters and instead of giving the money to the actual individual citizen victims of the bank fraud, it goes to the Department of Commerce’s slush fund?
Bingo!
Been waiting for someone to look into what “SC HELP” is doing with all that money.
Charlie Condon did the same thing.
There is weak accountability, but unless you can find impropriety in spending for “other professional services,” then there is no scandal.
You mean accusations should have clear and concise evidence supporting them in order to take them seriously?
That’s ridiculous sir.
Some people and orgs will go to any length to make our AG look less than the best AG in the USA. He is the youngest AG as well. He will make a fine governor when he decides to run. I want to be first in line to support him in this. Just like I and a friend of mine were the first to ask him to run for Ag in the first place.
Easy read.FitsNews has apparently turned on Wilson because he didn’t take Haley down?
Just like FitsNews turned on Mark Sanford apparently because Sanford fired him for the CDV conviction?
Wilson will be fine.
Gee Rogue, thanks a lot for that “gift”.
He’s Joe’s boy. Joe is closely associated with most of the Lexington Crime Ring members, maybe all of them. As I predicted, no actions of consequence have come from his office against the kingpins in the Lexington Ring. Can you guess why? Alan is damaged goods and was when he first ran for that office.
Thanks.
Joe’s Boy, close to the Peelers, Metts, Toal. Hunted with Danny Frazier on his farm. Very tight with the Quinns and canonized by the KoolAid drinking “Rogue Elephant”. What more do you need. Rogue called the embarrassment Andre Bauer the hardest working greatest Lt Governor too!
I really like Rogue but don’t understand how he can support some of these people.
Just like the Dumbocraps who will support anyone, as long as they have a D behind their name. Hillary is a prime example, Obummer is another.
Rogue is a great guy and has demonstrated to be of the highest character on FitsNews.
Alleging that he is a convicted felon, like Boz just did in an attempt to intimidate this man, is WRONG.
It’s a matter of public record — NOT an allegation.
Rogue is a ‘convicted felon’? Liar.
IF he’s Specter, yes. Otherwise, who knows? You could be one, yourself, for all we know.
R U on the Sexual Offenders List? …
Absolutely not. But I’m glad it exists.
You sure?
Beyond a doubt.
He upvotes GrandTango and Flip. Enough said.
He thinks for himself, and is not influenced by FITSNews in its never-ending attack on anybody with an R by his name…while burying his head up his ass, as Obama – and the Democrat Party – fundamentally destroys America.
Maybe Rogue is Andre’s butt-boy, the convicted felon and full-time character-assassin Jay Specter.
You attacking someone else for being a “character-assassin”….Now that’s RICH…Very Rich… (:
What’s next, FITNews lamenting liars???…LMAO…
Well said, R.E. You are correct.
The ATTACK ANYBODY in OFFICE strategy is that of the low-intelligence, low-brows.
Wilson has actually taken on the true enemies of our state, but since they are Federal Democrats, FITSNews sides with the elite and powerful, against the noble and brave.
Take Boz’s threats seriously.You are apparently on his radar.Careful what you share about family or friends.
Fits- how is the taxpayer losing money if contingency cases are lost? Do the agreements provide that the state pays costs if the case is unsuccessful? As the article is written, I’m having a hard time understanding how losing the cases equals money walking out the door for taxpayers. Don’t have a dog in the fight, but just wondering if you could be more specific about the arrangement.
The system could use a couple of adjustments. First, the private firms handling the cases should be hired at arm’s length and second, recovered money should go to the general fund rather than the AG. With those safeguards in place I don’t see a problem.
Wow, Will, you simply don’t even try to be accurate any longer, do you?
“There’s also the taxpayer component to consider.
If the state loses these cases, it’s your money walking out the door. If they “win,” the money gets routed into a slush fund for the attorney general’s exclusive use.”
What the heck do you think “contingency” means? The private lawyers pursuing the claims on behalf of the state bear the risk, because they only get paid if there’s a settlement or the case is decided in the state’s favor. The state has no skin in the game thanks to this arrangement. In fact, that fee agreement is easily the most fair fee agreement a state official could enter in to. The alternative is for the state to pay an hourly rate to those lawyers.
“Something’s shaking on Shakedown Street…” – meanwhile these fines are passed through to customers who pay higher prices for drugs, and the R’s smile all the way to the bank and pretend to oppose big government. Can’t blame Alan “Two Bars” Wilson for bellying up to the trough…
What I can’t understand is why Wilson would believe that we believe that he has “not even thought about running for governor.”
I mean, does he think we are that stupid? Are we that stupid?
Of course we KNEW we could trust Alan when Joe-I-Lie-To-Conservatives-Wilson
shouted we should rip down the flag of patriots without YOUR vote
And if we doubted it we were sure to trust Alan when Joe VOTED for flaming RINO John Boehner who kisses up to Obama and makes YOU the goat
And if that didn’t do it what got us to it was when RINO Joe voted to give the most incompetent, black racist presiDENT in history fast-track
So hey—Alan and Joe—just so you know—that long Tea Train IS rolling and we’ll see that you both get sent home permanently to do that RINO crack !!!
Go back to when Wilson was running for AG. His whole campaign focused on how HE was the only candidate who had tried criminal cases because HE was going to trying all these cases. He’s tried none. I suppose since he FAILED passing the bar the first time he thinks he can FAIL in his first elective office. Can’t imagine anyone related to that lyin, Boehner-loving RINO Joe Wilson being governor of this state.