Stanley M. Chesley

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Stanley M. Chesley (b. March 26, 1936) is a wealthy Ohio trial lawyer and Democratic Party fund-raiser and the husband of federal judge Susan Dlott.

Chesley, the son of Ukranian immigrants, graduated from University of Cincinnati and University of Cincinnati Law School. He first came to fame as a plaintiffs' lawyer in litigation arising from the 1977 Beverly Hills Supper Club fire, which killed 165 people. Rather than merely sue the nightclub, Chesley sued the entire aluminum electrical wire industry, blaming them for the fire. The aggressive and unprecedented tactic of seeking enterprise liability for an entire industry worked, and he won $49 million in verdicts and settlements; individual defendants settled for about a million dollars in the face of Chesley waving gruesome photos of fire victims rather than risk going to trial and losing much more, though those who did defend themselves often won.^[1]

Chesley won billions of dollars more in other mass torts, contributing to bankrupting Pan Am over the Lockerbie terrorist attack and helping to bankrupt Dow Corning in controversial breast implant litigation.^[2] Chesley was one of the "inner circle" of the plaintiffs' bar that negotiated the controversial $246 billion tobacco settlement on behalf of state governments, and went on to be one of the largest fund-raisers for Bill Clinton and Al Gore's presidential campaigns.

[edit] Controversy

Chesley is currently embroiled in a scandal over a settlement of fen-phen litigation in Kentucky; former clients have sued Chesley and three other plaintiffs' attorneys of breaching their duties in a "spectacular and unparalleled way" by diverting most of a $200 million settlement fund to themselves with only one third to the plaintiffs.^[3] Judge Joseph F. Bamberger approved the settlement, but resigned when it was revealed that he was paid $5000 a month as a director of a charitable entity funded by the settlement and directed by the attorneys.^[4][3] Chesley, who collected a $20.5 million fee for his role in the settlement, claims he had no idea that his co-counsels in the $200 million Kentucky fen-phen settlement five years ago were deceiving their clients, and that he owes no duty to the 440 plaintiffs.^[2]

[edit] Trivia

Chesley's home, a French chateau on 5.3 acres in Indian Hill, with 27,000 square feet of living space, six bedrooms, seven full bathrooms, two four-car garages, custom chandeliers and a wine cellar, was the most expensive single-family home ever purchased in Cincinnati when Chesley purchased it for $11.9 million in 2004.^[5][6]

In a 1998 book on the tobacco litigation, journalist Peter Pringle wrote that Chesley was "one of the least liked leading members of the plaintiffs inner circle, mainly because of his seemingly uncontrolled vanity and relentless name dropping."^[2]

[edit] References