Lawyer to receive $150 million in legal fees from Maryland for tobacco litigation

Saturday, March 23rd 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

(ANNAPOLIS, Md.) - The attorney who represented Maryland in its lawsuit against tobacco companies has agreed to accept $150 million to settle his $1.1 billion claim against the state, Gov. Parris Glendening said.

Peter Angelos, owner of the Baltimore Orioles baseball team, helped the state win an estimated $4.4 billion over 23 years. The money was Maryland's share of the national tobacco settlement reached four years ago.

Angelos' fee was the subject of a lengthy legal dispute. His contract called for him to receive 25 percent of any settlement. But the Legislature later passed a law limiting the fee to 12.5 percent and Angelos sued to get the entire amount under the contract.

Angelos had offered as recently as January to settle for $250 million, but Glendening continued negotiating for a lower fee.

Angelos did not return calls seeking comment, nor did the lawyers representing him in the negotiations with the state.

The agreement frees up more than $120 million tied up in an escrow account, allowing the Legislature to use that money to balance the coming year's budget.

Glendening, who announced the settlement Friday, said the deal also allows the state to fund an anti-smoking campaign and cancer research programs set up after the settlement was reached. Maryland has collected almost $500 million so far.

``This is good news in the battle against cancer. This is good news in the battle against tobacco,'' Glendening said.