April 17, 2006
By Steven R. Strahler
Ryan conviction a setback for lead attorney Dan Webb
(Crain's) — Former Gov. George Ryan’s conviction Monday was
a surprising setback for lead attorney Dan Webb, who put his reputation
as the nation’s top white-collar criminal defense lawyer on the
line in the high-profile trial, along with thousands of hours of free
legal services.
Mr. Webb, 60, a former federal prosecutor practicing at Winston &
Strawn LLP, wasn’t able to win acquittal on any of the 18 fraud
and racketeering counts against Mr. Ryan, who now faces a long prison
sentence.
It’s not the first defeat for Mr. Webb, who was voted by his
peers as the lawyer they would turn to if they personally faced a
federal criminal investigation, according to a 2003 survey by weekly
legal newsletter Corporate Crime Reporter. But it underscores the risks
top-gun litigators take on with every trial.
“You either duck the hardballs, or you take a chance. No one
thought it was an easy case,” said legal recruiter Kay Hoppe.
“The biggest impact is going to be emotional for
him—getting beat by the office he led. At the end of the day,
that’s the biggest pain.”
The defeat also deals a blow to Winston, which agreed to defend the
former governor at no charge. Besides foregoing more than $10 million
that Mr. Webb and his team would have commanded from a paying client
during a six-month trial, Winston will face new questions over whether
politics factored into its decision to take the case.
James R. Thompson, the law firm’s chairman, is a former Illinois
governor who promoted the career of fellow Republican Mr. Ryan.
A spokeswoman for Winston said neither the firm nor Mr. Webb would
comment “because the matter is still pending.” Mr. Thompson
and Managing Partner Thomas Fitzgerald did not return calls.
Mr. Webb’s best hope now is to prevail on appeal, as he did once
before after a headline-grabbing loss. He persuaded an appeals court to
throw out a $145 billion jury verdict against client Philip Morris USA
Inc. in a tobacco liability class action suit.
In the wake of the Ryan trial, “I don’t think
anybody’s going to think this case was lost because of anything
he did,” says Joel Berthocchi, a former prosecutor practicing at
Mayer Brown Rowe & Maw LLP.
Mr. Webb won’t have to look for work. Just last month, he was
invited to join another high-profile case. He will head the defense of
entertainment-industry attorney Terry Christensen, indicted in February
in the federal investigation of private investigator Anthony Pellicano.
David G. Crumbaugh, a former Winston partner, now practicing at Latham
& Watkins LLP, doubts that Winston’s bottom line suffered
much during the trial.
“There’s some elasticity of supply on the labor
side,” he said. “You crank people up, get them working
harder. So, (potential revenues are) not gone forever.”
Winston’s worst case scenario may be a retrial if the verdict is
thrown out but not overturned on appeal. That could mean many more
un-billable hours of free legal advice.
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