Plaintiffs' Lawyer Sentencing in Kentucky Fen-Phen Case Spotlights Growing Cancer on Civil Justice System

Statement of Lisa A. Rickard, president of the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform, on the sentencing of Shirley Cunningham, Jr. and William Gallion, plaintiffs' lawyers convicted of defrauding their own clients out of tens of millions of dollars in the fen-phen diet drug class action lawsuit:

"The 25- and 20-year sentences of William Gallion and Shirley Cunningham, Jr. – the Kentucky plaintiffs' lawyers convicted of stealing nearly a hundred million dollars from their own clients – are just the latest in a recent string of criminal convictions of some of the highest profile plaintiffs' lawyers in the country.

"These cases should serve as a wake-up call to the growing cancer of greed and corruption on our civil justice system."

ILR seeks to promote civil justice reform through legislative, political, judicial, and educational activities at the national, state, and local levels.

The U.S. Chamber is the world's largest business federation representing more than 3 million businesses and organizations of every size, sector, and region.

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