| $41
Million Class Action Settlement Approved
In June, Covington County Circuit Judge Ashley McKathan granted
approval to a class action settlement totaling more than $41 million.
The settlement resulted from a suit brought by the Covington County
Board of Education against the State of Alabama regarding the distribution
of Sixteenth Section Land and School Indemnity Land Trust Funds.
Wesley Laird of Laird, Baker & Blackstock, along with the
law firm of Albrittons, Clifton, Alverson,
Moody & Bowden served as class counsel on behalf of all city
school boards in the state of Alabama,. The Opp and Andalusia City
School Boards served as class representatives.
The settlement solves problems with the Sixteenth Section and
School Indemnity Land Trust
Funds regarding distribution of funds that go back more than fifty
years.
Congress set aside the Sixteenth Section of every township to be
held inviolate for the inhabitants of the township to support public
schools when Alabama became a state. Over time, township schools
no longer existed, but the trust language remained. Therefore, the
money from these lands started accumulating in the State Treasury
because no one knew who it belonged to.
The members of the Covington County, Opp, and Andalusia Boards
of Education deserve credit for having the guts to bring suit against
various state officials to resolve these issues for the entire state.
During the litigation, Wes Laird discovered in a deposition that
over $500,000 per year appropriated by the Legislature as Public
Endowment Interest to cover money lost on school lands when the
State Bank went under in the 1840's had not been distributed in
seven years. This money will now be distributed on a per pupil basis
throughout the state as part of this settlement.
“This is an historic settlement,” said Laird. “I
am proud that our law firm could play a vital role in correcting
many years of government mismanagement.”
Oil Rig Injuries
Over the past seventeen
years, we have represented injured oil rig employees against Penrod,
Zapatta, TransOcean, Diamond Offshore, Southwestern, Cliff’s
Drilling, Pride, Odeco, Shell Oil, and many others. One thing is
consistent. When a worker gets hurt, the company is interested in
one thing and that is taking care of the company’s bottom
line. Time and time again we have seen oil companies compromise
safety because production had to be increased.
This is especially true in today’s climate of high oil and
gasoline prices.
It is all too typical for the company to tape record a statement
from the injured worker under the guise of putting the worker back
to work. But when the worker has been back to work for a few days,
he oftentimes is terminated and must look elsewhere for employment.
This is just another reason why it is important to contact a lawyer
first and know your rights
before giving statements or signing on the bottom line. When we
represent injured workers, there is no fee unless we recover. And
there is no charge or obligation for an initial consultation. |
Complacency in City Elections
The incumbent mayor in Andalusia has adopted “just look
around” as his campaign slogan, pointing out some of the
improvements accomplished during his administration. As the August
24th city elections draw near, many citizens seem to be looking
around Opp to see what has been accomplished in the past four
years.
Opp seems to be home to the only McDonald’s that has locked
its doors. The mill has scaled back some 500 employees in the
past four years. Other businesses have closed.
As a result, it seems that many of our citizens are complacent
and seem unconcerned. But concern is exactly what we need in town.
We need to be concerned for the welfare of our community. And
we need to listen carefully to what the candidates in the city
elections have to offer and choose wisely.
Whether you are satisfied with the past four years in Opp or
you are looking for a change,
what is most important is that we take enough interest in our
community to go vote in the election on August 24th.
Remember, Isaiah said, “Without vision, people perish.”
AllState - Are You in Good Hands?
We are appalled at the commercials AllState is running on
television implying that everyone involved in an automobile
accident is just seeking compensation. Many innocent people
are fatally or otherwise seriously injured each year and it
is an insult for an insurance company to imply such falsehoods.
Through the years, we have come to know which insurance companies
are likely to pay
when they have a just claim and which ones are not. AllState
has been notorious through the years for not paying what they
owe without being sued. In fact, if statistics were kept on
how often insurance companies get their clients sued, AllState
would probably rank number one.
Don’t be fooled by slick television commercials or the
propaganda machines of big corporations.
Our Youth On Mission for God
Forty-one of our youth at First Baptist Church, under the leadership
of Jeremy Witt , recently returned from a mission trip to Charleston,
South Carolina. The youth spent an entire week in July ministering
to the needs of young children in low income areas. We are proud
of our youth and the stand they have taken for Christ.
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Trey
Burgess Firm’s Newest Lawyer
Earlier in the year, we reported that Charles “Trey”
Burgess was working for us and would be sitting for the February
Bar Exam. We are pleased to report that he passed the exam and is
officially a lawyer, having been admitted in a ceremony in Montgomery
in May. Trey has joined the firm as an Associate and will be working
mainly with Wesley Laird on personal injury and wrongful death cases
and other civil litigation.
Trey is the son of Dr. and Mrs. Charles Burgess. He is a graduate
of the University of
Alabama, where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in history and
a law degree. He is a member of
First Baptist Church of Opp and the Opp Rotary Club. We are glad
to have Trey on board.
Pilgrim’s Pride
Buys Conagra
Pilgrim’s Pride recently purchased ConAgra and now operates
the poultry processing plant in Enterprise.
You will remember how ConAgra lost a suit for more than $11 million
when poultry farmers were able to prove that they were tampering
with the scales.
Many people had hoped that the purchase by Pilgrim’s Pride
would be an improvement. But from all indications so far, they appear
to be a company concerned only with their bottom line, caring nothing
for people they injure.
In 2003, Pilgrim’s Pride’s sales were over $2.6 billion,
making them the second-largest poultry producer in the country.
This should not be welcome news for our area’s farmers. When
companies buy out other companies, it eliminates competition.
Welcome Mike Flowers
We are thankful for the work of our search committee in recommending
Mike Flowers as our new pastor at First Baptist. He and his wife,
Shirley, have moved into a home on Brookwood Drive. Welcome Mike
and Shirley.
FYI:
Our firm handles most areas of practice, including auto accidents,
personal injury, wrongful death, oil rig injuries, insurance fraud
and bad faith, divorce and custody, criminal matters, wills and
probate matters, bankruptcy, and real estate, including property
disputes and condemnation.
Laird Baker & Blackstock, LLC
Wesley L. Laird
David S. Baker
Thomas A. Blackstock, Jr.
Charles A. “Trey” Burgess, III
Opp
493-9716
- No consultation fee for bankruptcy or civil
cases.
-No recovery, no fee in civil cases.
No representation is made that
the quality of legal services to be performed is greater than
the quality of legal services performed by other lawyers.
www.laird-baker-blackstock.com
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