Lilly Lawyer Accidentally Leaks Settlement Talks
16 CommentsBy Ed Silverman // February 5th, 2008 // 5:14 pm
Talk about comical. The news last week that the drugmaker is negotiating with federal and state prosecutors over improper marketing of Zyprexa was the result of an accident, according to Portfolio. But it was a big accident.
As it turns out, a lawyer at Pepper Hamilton, one of two high-priced law firms negotiating the deal with the government, mistakenly sent an e-mail containing a comprehensive and confidential document to a reporter at The New York Times. How could that have happened? The reporter, Alex Berenson, has the same last name as another lawyer who was supposed to have received the e-mail, Bradford Berenson, who works at Sidley Austin.
Of course, this is embarassing for the law firm, which is being paid who-knows-how-much to get Lilly the best deal possible, and keep quiet about the details until the package is wrapped and the bow is placed on top. And this is infuriating for Lilly, which wants to carefully manage the message sent to investors, doctors and a slew of others who will hinge on every word concerning any settlement.
But it’s great luck for Berenson - the reporter, that is - because he got a scoop (which amounts to a poke in the eye for Lilly, since he’s the same reporter who was leaked sealed court documents last year and called ‘reprehensible‘ by a federal judge).
Not surprisingly, Lilly assumed the leak came from someone on the government side, Portfolio writes. The US Attorney in Philadelphia, which is leading the talks, declined to comment to the mag, as did Berenson (the reporter). Lilly would only say Pepper Hamilton is still retained. There was no word on how often the unnamed lawyer who caused this gaffe had communicated previously with Berenson - the reporter, not the lawyer.
[AboveTheLaw says they're cousins. In any event, correctly identify which Berenson is which and win a free subscription to Pharmalot. As a personal aside, we look forward to drugmakers hiring attorneys named Silverman.]
Hat tip to Starkman blog
Philip Dawdy
alex is the guy in the turtleneck. funny story! ok where’s my free subscription?
ol cranky
Oh man, I’m sure we’ve all made the mistake of not double checking the auto-complete when we send an email but you’d think an attorney would be extra careful if he knew a reporter was in his contacts list!
pg
Great personal aside, fingers crossed for you :-)
Laurie
“As a personal aside, we look forward to drugmakers hiring attorneys named Silverman.”
roflmao!!! We can only hope!!
CuriousGeorge
The big question: Will Lilly now sue Pepper Hamilton?
Justice in Michigan
Definitely not. This is clearly the kind of case that calls for an expert panel of computer engineers who understand what sending an email actually entails. We don’t want a bunch of runaway yahoos making judgments on matters of this complexity.
Laurie
Touche Justice!!
pg
:-)
shade
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Shawn
Losers hiring losers. Funny how that happens.
Warrior
I love it Shawn. Great statement. Well, if you harm others it will bite you in the ass if even buy your own hand. And Shade, me to HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHA! Yes there is justice!
Constance
Too bad the story wasn’t true:
http://druganddevicelaw.blogspot.com/2008/02/it-wasnt-peppers-fault-berenson.html
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BlueyBlogger
There are NO accidents!! There are only events caused by Laziness or Stupidity…or both combined!! People who use the word “accident” in any speech or writing to describe a bad situation, are always in the “stupid and lazy” category. If a lawyer, attorney, or media person, uses a word such as “accident” to categorize an event which turns out wrong, it means they are directed by their superiors to use that word….because the Truth is NEVER permitted in their writing or speech, nor is it permitted in any claims in court…..so they take the easy way out of ALL situations!
Have a nice day!!