Walter Nixon Jr., a former federal judge and director at a pharmaceutical company, has resolved his legal dispute with the prominent national plaintiffs’ law firm Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro. Nixon had accused the firm of failing to pay him his rightful share of attorney fees from a class action settlement with Wyeth, a pharmaceutical giant.
Nixon, who served as a judge on the Southern District of Mississippi from 1968 until his removal for alleged misconduct two decades later, filed a lawsuit against the Seattle-based firm in November. He claimed that Hagens Berman did not honor an agreement to pay him a portion of the $13 million legal fee award resulting from a settlement over accusations that Wyeth engaged in price-fixing for its antidepressant, Effexor XR.
According to court documents, the matter has now been settled, with Nixon filing a statement on Friday confirming the resolution of his claims. Specific terms of the settlement remain confidential, and no further comment has been provided by Nixon’s legal team.
Tom Sobol, a partner at Hagens Berman and a key figure in the litigation against Wyeth, commented that the terms of the agreement with Nixon are private.
The legal dispute stems from Nixon’s involvement in the class action lawsuit against Wyeth, which was filed in 2010. Nixon was enlisted by Hagens Berman and another firm to help represent the plaintiff, Professional Drug, a Biloxi-based pharmaceutical wholesaler. The suit accused Wyeth, now a subsidiary of Pfizer, of conspiring to fix the price of its popular antidepressant, Effexor XR. The case culminated in a $39 million settlement in April, with Hagens Berman receiving a share of the legal fees.
However, Nixon claimed that he had not been compensated as agreed for his role in the case, despite the settlement. Nixon was seeking at least $1 million in damages for what he argued was a breach of the fee agreement.
In 2020, Professional Drug voluntarily dismissed its lawsuit against Wyeth, although the reasons for this move were not made clear.
Nixon, a 1951 graduate of Tulane Law School, had a long legal career, including work as an attorney for Professional Drug. His tenure as a federal judge in Mississippi ended in controversy, with Nixon being removed from the bench due to allegations of misconduct.
The case, Walter L. Nixon v. Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro et al, was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi (Case No. 1:24-cv-00363-TBM-RPM). Nixon was represented by Christopher Van Cleave of Van Cleave Law.
This development closes a chapter in what had been a complex legal dispute involving multiple firms, a high-profile drug company, and an individual seeking compensation for his efforts in a significant price-fixing case.
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