Circle of Greed.

• Author: Mandell, David

Circle of Greed

By Patrick Dillon and Carl M. Cannon

"Greed is good for business." This cynical office joke enabled the law firm of Milberg, Weiss, Bershad, Hynes & Lerach to attain wealth unimaginable to most attorneys. A vicious circle of alleged corporate misconduct and the lucrative assault on it by the firm is the subject of Patrick Dillon's and Carl Cannon's revealing book, Circle of Greed.

Although numerous firms participate in class action securities litigation, none achieved the fame and fortune of Milberg Weiss. Mention the name of its San Diego based partner William Lerach, and corporate executives would rage and then open their checkbooks. Circle of Greed tells the story of how Milberg Weiss and its star partner William Lerach became the most feared lawyers in America, but fell with the targets they pursued. A tragic but revealing story, Circle of Greed shows how obsessive pursuit of a cause or a fee can destroy even the most successful professionals.

The rise and fall of Milberg Weiss has been reported in the financial and legal journals, but Dillon and Weiss had unconditional access to Lerach. They interviewed him extensively and Circle of Greed is the first inside account of the firm.

The story begins in Pittsburgh where the Lerach family lived. Press accounts of William Lerach routinely reported that he became a plaintiffs' securities lawyer because his father had been destroyed by corporate deceit in the stock market collapse of 1929. The authors found little substance to this tale. Lerach was raised in a middle class home and his father, while frugal, supported his family until his premature death. Educated in Pittsburgh, Lerach joined a prosperous local law firm, destined for a successful, but uneventful career.

The authors show how fate intervened. The firm represented a client in a complex multi-party trial in San Diego and assigned it to Lerach where he met the lead counsel, Melvyn Weiss of New York City. Impressed with the energetic young attorney, Weiss offered him a position with Milberg Weiss. Lerach agreed with a condition: He must be allowed to stay in San Diego. There would be no more Pittsburgh winters. Although he doubted he could sustain a California office, Weiss agreed. Over the next 30 years, William Lerach more than justified opening a San Diego branch. It prospered to the point where partners earned more than $16 million annually.

Circle of Greed should be required reading in legal ethics classes. The...