Insurance Law

Trailer Lawyer News, April 29:

By David Rossmiller

The Trailer Lawyers have been promising a devastating response to State Farm's motion to disqualify them in the False Claims Act case, Ex rel. Rigsby.  They filed two briefs yesterday in opposition, one by Chip Robertson's firm, loaded with euphemisms and which studiously avoids the word "trailer," and another by Todd Graves' firm. In the Robertson brief, here's the description of a Trailer Summit:    

The meeting was held in a temporary housing unit due to the damage caused to so many structures by Katrina.

Temporary housing unit? How about "prefabricated improvisational dwelling"? What of "non-self-propelled mobile abode"? "Non-permanent omni-directional quarters"?  The new brief goes to extreme and silly lengths to avoid calling things by their right names. How devastating can a response be when it's afraid of the word "trailer"?

Look at this statement in the Robertson brief: 

These are the facts: After the Rigsby’s completed the document protection exercise, they immediately informed State Farm that they had accessed the State Farm database and downloaded documents. They did not try to keep their actions secret. What is also true is that while the Rigsbys had access to the databases, they never improperly accessed or exceeded their access to these systems. Their counsel never used their computers or accessed their data base.

Let's take a look at this stuff.

"Immediately informed State Farm." it says. "Immediately" in this context does not refer to, as you might expect, immediately, but instead means "some months after they admittedly had begun engaging in covert spying on behalf of Dickie Scruggs." As the November 20, 2007 deposition of Kerri Rigsby shows (page 140), the sisters fessed up only after they were ready to quit, after they realized that State Farm had just about figured out they were covertly funneling documents to Scruggs, and they did this only after they did a final frenzied "data dump" over the weekend, inviting some friends over to help them copy thousands of pages of claims files.

"Document protection exercise." The Rigsbys agreed in testimony that they illicitly took the documents. Is it any use to try to come up with some Newspeak label?  Question: when someone doesn't dare call a trailer what it is, why should anyone buy this characterization of the Rigsbys' secret taking of documents?

"They did not try to keep their actions secret." Except up until the time they were going to be caught and then they took thousands of more pages secretly, staged a walk-out, and went over to Scruggs to be paid $150,000 a year.

"[T]hey never improperly accessed or exceeded their access to these systems." Notice the word "access." If you give me a key to your house to feed your fish while you're on vacation and I go in and take your TV, did I exceed my access? Technically, no.  

Let's apply this style to a familiar story, that of the Three Little Pigs, told by the wolf:  

I politely asked to be allowed entry, as I conveyed information that extreme wind conditions were expected momentarily.  Sudden violent gusts destroyed two semi-permanent structures. I paused briefly only to take nourishment to sustain me as I hurried to warn the occupant of a nearby permanent clay-based dwelling unit.  Regrettably, my warning was ignored, and as I tried to access via a vertical entrance to contact said occupant, I was attacked with heated liquids.

Apparently, though, we finally know who Trailer Todd is: Graves admits to being in the trailer, although the Trailer Lawyer filing denies they met with the Rigsbys in the temporary housing unit in March 2007.  The Trailer Lawyers say it was April.  This looks like it contradicts the testimony of their own clients, although it is possible both Rigsby sisters were messed up on dates, basic facts, when stuff happened, what they did, what other people did, etc.  You know, the whole story.  Odd that they were both were wrong the same way, though, isn't it?      

Here's a few more things filed by the other Trailer Lawyers: Trailer Chip, Trailer Tony and Trailer Mary. 

Robertson declaration.

DeWitt declaration.

Winter declaration.

All of this seems to say they didn't "instruct or encourage" the Rigsbys to do what they did.  Why, according to the Trailer Lawyers, they know nothing at all! (Lack of awareness -- not exactly the trait one looks for in a lawyer). They just happened to be passing through and sought shelter in the trailer, er mobile home, I mean, semi-stationary vehicular habitat, I mean, temporary housing unit -- well, you know what I mean -- because it was time for Days of Our Lives and they hoped to find a TV, a bag of Doritos and a six-pack of Schlitz for refreshment!  

Full post as published by Insurance Coverage Law Blog on April 29, 2008 (boomark / email).