Atlanta law firm King & Spalding LLP has won a $700 million judgment for Chevron Corp. in an arbitration between the energy giant and the government of Ecuador.

An international tribunal ruled that Ecuador must pay damages for delaying court rulings on commercial disputes with Chevron subsidiary Texaco Petroleum Co. for more than a decade.

The ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague resolves some Texaco claims against the Ecuador government dating as far back as 1991.

The court determined that by refusing to rule on Texaco's claims, Ecuador violated international law by breaching an investment treaty with the United States.

The $700 million in damages includes principal and interest dating to Dec. 22, 2006, when Chevron and Texaco initially filed the arbitration. Further hearings will determine whether Ecuador owes more for taxes, interest and costs.

Chevron and other energy companies have additional arbitration actions pending against the Ecuador government. 

The Lovells law firm plans to close its Chicago office by the end of October, sending 22 lawyers and 25 other employees scrambling to find work.

The London firm is set to merge with Washington-based Hogan & Hartson on May 1, creating one of the world's largest law firms with $1.8 billion in revenue and 2,500 lawyers in 40 offices. But the new firm, to be called Hogan Lovells, will not have a presence in Chicago.
Lovells said it decided to exit the city after 15 years because the performance of the Chicago office has declined in recent years.

In a statement Tuesday, David Harris, Lovells managing partner, said: "[The reinsurance market] is an area which has seen changes in work patterns and the office has been affected by a number of significant conflict situations. Despite the best efforts of partners in Chicago and elsewhere, this has had an impact on the office's overall performance in recent years and the position is not expected to change."

Conflicts and deteriorating performance had contributed to departures from the Chicago office in recent months. The office used to have more than 30 lawyers.

Yet, legal observers in Chicago said they thought the merger with Hogan would save the office. The decision to shut down was made independent of the merger, Harris said.

The McLane Law Firm — with offices in Manchester, Portsmouth and Concord as well as Woburn, Mass. — announced the firm has absorbed the Colucci Norman Law Firm, of Beverly, Mass.

John Colucci, William Norman, Larry Plavnik, all corporate lawyers and Andrew Botti, a litigator, join McLane's business-focused firm of more than 90 attorneys, 44 of whom actively serve Massachusetts businesses in some capacity.

"Bringing the Colucci Norman team onboard delivers an opportunity for McLane to establish an immediate and trusted presence within the North Shore business community, a strategic goal we have been working towards for years," said Steven Burke, managing director of the firm's Woburn office.

The addition of these attorneys and associate support staff to McLane's Woburn, Massachusetts office necessitates the second office space expansion within a year at the TradeCenter.

"In a time when most Massachusetts firms are retracting, we're happy to be bucking the trend. McLane has seen a revenue increase of more than 40 percent over the past five years," Burke said. "It goes to show that the breadth and depth of McLane's legal expertise and the fee structure we offer is really taking hold."

The law firm Krugliak, Wilkins, Griffiths & Dougherty Co. has opened an office in downtown Akron, the firm’s first in Summit County.

The firm has offices in Jackson Township, Alliance, New Philadelphia and Sugarcreek.

Managing Director Terry A. Moore said the firm’s clients in and around Summit County have asked for a location in Akron, and it appeared the timing was right.

In the Akron Centre at 50 S. Main St., Suite 501, the office will be managed by attorney Edward V. Buehrle, who recently joined Krugliak as a shareholder and director.

Buehrle’s practice is focused on real estate and financial and business-related transactions. He received his bachelor’s degree from Hillsdale College and a master’s of business administration and law degree from the University of Akron.

The law firm was founded in 1958. For more information, visit www.kwgd.com.

A Philadelphia jury has found Rockwell Automation Inc., sued as successor to Allen-Bradley Company, liable for the asbestos-related death of Navy electrician's mate, David Lanpher. The liability finding is the first-ever asbestos-exposure verdict against Rockwell.

The case was tried as a reverse bifurcated proceeding - a multi-phase trial that requires the jury to determine first if the plaintiff's mesothelioma was caused by asbestos exposure, and if so, what amount of damages is reasonable to compensate for pain, suffering, loss of consortium, and other circumstances related to the plaintiff's illness. In Phase I, defendants remain unknown to the jury, and plaintiff's counsel is not permitted to discuss or make recommendations about the scope or amount of the award.

Phase II, the liability hearing , occurs if the jury finds that the plaintiff's illness was indeed caused by asbestos exposure. In Phase II, the jury hears evidence about the asbestos-containing products identified by the plaintiff, and determines which - if any - manufacturers are responsible for the plaintiff's illness. This in turn, directs how many manufacturers are apportioned a share of the damages awarded in Phase I.

In Lanpher vs. Alfa Laval, Inc., the jury found Rockwell - the lone defendant at verdict - to be one of eight manufacturers responsible for Mr. Lanpher's asbestos exposure and subsequent mesothelioma. As such, Rockwell is responsible for one-eighth, or 12.5 percent, of the $6.5 million awarded to the Lanpher family.

Phase I concluded on February 19, 2010. The final verdict was delivered on March 5, 2010, at the end of Phase II.

Mr. Lanpher, an active and gainfully employed 71-year-old husband, father and grandfather, had reportedly been in perfect health prior to his diagnosis of malignant pleural mesothelioma in August 2007. He died on July 13, 2008 - less than one year later, and just one day after completing the video deposition in which he sharply recalled the types, names and brands of the asbestos-containing products that caused his illness and cut short his life.

Via video deposition, Mr. Lanpher recounted enlisting in the U.S. Navy in 1954. During his 20-year career as an electrician's mate, he worked in the engineering spaces of the USS Chemung, USS Randolph,  USS Remey, USS Brough, USS Dashell, USS Benewah, and USS Wright. His assignments required him to handle various engine parts and components, including asbestos-containing insulating boards and motor control units. He recalled cutting and filing parts, including asbestos-containing motor control units manufactured and sold by Allen-Bradley, and the dust that he regularly breathed in tight quarters. He was honorably discharged in 1973, and worked as an electrician in Phoenix, Arizona, until he became too ill to work in 2007.

Mr. Lanpher's wife, Pauline, and daughter and son-in-law, Nancy and Terry Perkins, traveled from Phoenix for the trial. The family was present during both Phase I and Phase II verdicts, and were relieved and satisfied with the trial's outcome.