To the editors:
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While the Block segment was generally accurate, it unfortunately perpetuates a longstanding myth which was previously restricted to the legal community. At page 18, Jenkins writes, “Johnson (the defense attorney) and his client certainly didn’t want this case to go to trial. So, before trial, Johnson offered Corboy $9 million to settle the case.” That statement is blatantly untrue.
People familiar with the trial of this case recognize that the defendants offered that huge sum of money (then the largest offer ever made in an Illinois personal injury case) because they knew they were going to be on the receiving end of a huge jury verdict.
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Bill Johnson also made a troubling statement to me only yesterday (March 23) about Johnson’s settlement negotiations with Corboy. Johnson claims his client was actually willing to settle with the Blocks for as much as $12 million, but that such an offer never was put on the table because Corboy absolutely refused to negotiate–at any price. If that is true, Randy Block was ill served.
