The Guardian…
A law firm that helped defend Ghislaine Maxwell, the socialite convicted of helping the financier Jeffrey Epstein sexually abuse underage girls, has sued her, her brother and her husband, saying it was never paid more than $878,000 for its work.
In the lawsuit, filed in district court in Denver, Colorado, Haddon, Morgan and Foreman (HMF) calls itself “a small law firm based in Denver [which focuses on] defending clients in criminal matters and related civil litigation”.
Founded by former public defenders, HMF has represented high-profile clients including the NBA star Kobe Bryant and John Ramsey, the father of the murdered child beauty queen JonBenét Ramsey. According to the lawsuit, the firm began representing Maxwell in a 2015 lawsuit brought by Virginia Giuffre.
HMF-v.-Maxwell…/…
Two HMF lawyers – Laura Menninger and Jeffrey Pagliuca – were part of Maxwell’s legal team at trial in New York.
HMF alleges that after she was arrested, Maxwell put her brother Kevin Maxwell in charge of paying her legal fees, but that he only paid a fraction of what was owed.
The lawsuit says: “Based on developments during the first few weeks of the engagement, HMF developed concerns regarding the representation, including HMF’s role in the case and Ms Maxwell’s willingness and ability to meet her financial obligations.”
The firm tried to withdraw, the suit says, but Kevin Maxwell “strongly opposed” its withdrawal and “assured HMF he would facilitate revised terms for the engagement”.
The suit details a lengthy back-and-forth about fees and payments, saying: “To keep HMF from withdrawing, Mr Maxwell made a handful of sporadic payments. Despite his promises, however, he never brought Ms Maxwell’s account current.”
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https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/aug/24/ghislaine-maxwell-law-firm-lawsuit
