Lawsuits in Anniston government take financial toll regardless of outcome [The Anniston Star, Ala.]

Dec. 18--Anniston City Councilman Ben Little has filed five lawsuits since 2009 -- one against Mayor Gene Robinson, two against the McClellan Development Authority, one against The Anniston Star, and a challenge to a state law.

Both Little and his attorney are mum when it comes to offering specifics on how much this litigation is costing the councilman. However, according to city records, the bill for one suit involving Little is more than $60,000. Were the fees associated with the other four lawsuits that high, it would mean Little could owe as much as $300,000 in legal fees. Attorneys who spoke with The Star were reluctant to speculate on the amount of legal fees, saying there are too many variables to hazard a guess.

The two lawsuits against the MDA were filed by Little and Councilman Herbert Palmore on behalf of the city, they had said.

Birmingham attorney William Eugene Rutledge has represented Little in all of the lawsuits.

In June 2010, Rutledge approached the City Council asking to be paid for the work he did for Little and Palmore. The council declined to pay the $62,277 bill, with only Little and Palmore approving the expenditure. Rutledge said two weeks ago that he still hasn't been paid for that work.

Both he and Little declined to say how much or if Little had paid Rutledge for the other lawsuits, saying that it's between them. Hugh Evans, attorney for the Alabama Ethics Commission agreed.

"Every citizen has a right to file a lawsuit," Evans said. "Whether or not he's paying the attorney, that's between him and the attorney."

But whether Little is paying for the legal work or not, the lawsuits have been costly for those being sued. The McClellan Development Authority, target of two of the lawsuits, paid $10,000 to satisfy the insurance deductible and the insurance picked up the rest of the fees and court costs, said Jason Odom, attorney for the authority. In addition, the lawsuits hindered the authority in making sales while the suits made their way through the court system.

In June, the authority tried to recoup some of those costs, asking Calhoun County Circuit Judge Malcolm Street, who heard the case, to award attorney fees and costs under the Alabama Litigation and Accountability Act. The act allows plaintiffs to collect the fees in cases where the court finds there was no substantial justification either in whole or in part for the lawsuit. Street denied the request, saying the cases hadn't reached the level required by the act.

William Ross, professor of Law at Cumberland School of Law, said it's difficult to define what might constitute a nuisance or frivolous lawsuit because there is no established legal definition.

"One person's frivolous lawsuit is another person's noble cause," he said.

Ross said many cases are dismissed because of lack of evidence, but the motive of the parties filing the lawsuit is important in determining whether it is a nuisance lawsuit.

"The motive would probably be the most important," he said. "The motive to encourage settlement of lawsuit rather than to adjudicate the claim on its merit."

The nuisance lawsuits have a heavy cost on society, Ross said.

"It wastes taxpayers' money," he said. "It wastes the time of judges. It wastes the time of court personnel and that's definitely a heavy cost particularly today when courts are on such tight budgets."

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