Chapter 74 Section 24

Bill Connolly couldn't bear it long ago: "Nonsense! You can accept $10 million, even if it is a major political case, and $6.6 million is just a mere casualty claim?" Jane stood up, shrugged, and walked out of the room without saying a word. Kevin knew that as long as Jane did not let go, the Woburn case would not be finished.As the door closed softly behind Jane, Kevin said, "If he decides he's going to go to court, I'm going to go to court with him. But I hope he doesn't. God, I really hope he doesn't." Put your hands together, face up to the sky, and make a prayer.

Back in Boston, Jane Hilleman began preparing for the "medical argument" for the second phase of the trial.More than 20,000 pages of various medical and scientific documents, reports, etc., tens of thousands of pages of personal medical records and medical examination results, more than a dozen plaintiffs, and more than 20 expert witnesses who will appear in court... In contrast, the first The trial of about four months in the first stage is just a classroom exercise in the law school. Jamon Gordon received threatening phone calls and letters from creditors every day.Yesterday, the power company sent someone to cut off the power.Zhan Meng hurriedly asked the secretary to entertain the guests with delicious food and drinks, and went out for a circle by himself.An hour later, a check was brought back from nowhere.Although the office's computer system is still there, everyone knows that creditors may come to the door at any time, so no matter what is done, it must be saved to a floppy disk immediately.The hardest sufferer is Kevin Conway, who has always been hard-working. Since he quit the cleaner, he has to smoke the floor every day after get off work before leaving.

Speaking of Kevin, there is another embarrassing thing.His family lives in the suburbs, but he has not driven for a long time, in order to save gas and parking fees.When Kevin came out of the house that morning, his wife gave him only one dollar and seventy-five cents, just enough for the train ticket to Boston.During these days, my wife has been in a bad mood, scolding this and that at home.Out of habit, Kevin bought a newspaper at the station, and when he got on the bus, he found that there was only one yuan and forty cents left in his pocket.He explained and apologized to the conductor red-faced, took out his business card, driver's license, etc., and repeatedly promised to double the repayment the next day.

These arrogant young lawyers who have never known what "lack of money" is has had enough of being shy, and the $6.6 million seems to be increasing in value every moment, and it is becoming more attractive.Finally one day, Jian En called his colleagues to his office and said that he hadn't slept all night, so he figured it out.Why don't you just admit it, why bother to force your brothers to suffer this crime with him?As the saying goes, take a step back and see the sea and the sky. Jane picked up the phone and dialed Albert Justi's special line. "Hello, Albert," Jane twisted his buttocks, turned the executive chair to the floor-to-ceiling windows, and left the backs for everyone. "I'm fine. I just want to know...yes...yes." Jane listened for a while, humming, "It seems that you are making good progress...you mean, you have withdrawn the offer?... …Of course, of course, you absolutely have the right to do that."

Jane put down the phone and spread his hands: "It's no use. He said that Mike Cayton made several trips to Woburn and found out that Lauren Gamazi had been drinking bottled water from the supermarket since 1974. And Jarrod Orfino, whose death was indeed typhoid." Two more patients were removed from W.R. Glass' compensation list. Flash forward to September 5, the day when Judge Walter Skinner summoned the lawyers.It's a Friday afternoon.Mike Ketton filed a new motion to reopen the first phase of W. R. Glass on various grounds.The judge and the defendant's lawyers fought with each other for more than three hours, and it was almost time to get off work.Judge Skinner said he would give the matter a second thought and try to make a decision within the next week.Then he turned to the plaintiff's seat and asked Jane Hilleman what he wanted to say.

"I have a new piece of evidence here that I need to ask you to look at." Jane took out a document issued by W. R. Glass headquarters to the Food Machinery Factory in 1975, prohibiting the factory from continuing to use TCE. "Documents say TCE causes cancer." "Carcinogenic?" the judge asked. "Yes, Your Honor, so they expressly prohibit further use." "But so far, all medical conclusions are only from animal experiments, and there is no direct evidence that TCE can cause cancer in humans." "But at least W. R. Glass HQ thinks TCE can cause cancer in humans, otherwise they wouldn't have issued such a document, what do you think, Your Honor? Look at this paragraph, 'Carcinogen will cause cancer... '"

This should have been a question to be proved in the second phase of the trial, and it was also a question that W. R. Glass thought was impossible for the plaintiffs to prove, but they themselves had admitted more than a decade ago. A few days later, Albert Justi telegraphed Jane that the W. R. Glass Company would pay $1 million to each plaintiff family in Woburn, for a total of $8 million, on condition that no part of the payment The amount is made public. Jane talked with Albert on the phone for a long time, and after putting down the phone, he told Kevin and Jamon that it sounded like W. R. Glass was unwilling to continue the lawsuit, as if they were also worried about something.

Later, Mike Ketton explained to Jian En privately about the condition of "confidentiality", what Albert meant, such a "huge" compensation is equivalent to admitting his mistakes in public, and a big man like W. R. Glass The company can't afford to lose face.The last jury verdict caused W.R. Glass's stock to drop three points. If the $8 million in damages gets out, it may be more than three points.The second was the fear that as long as this precedent was set, other lawyers would go to Woburn to instigate other leukemia patients and their families to fight endlessly with W. R. Glass & Company.

Jane Hilleman used to say, "Once the money is on the table, things start to get ugly." Jane invited his clients from Woburn to the firm to discuss the specific method of payment.At this time, the luxury and magnificence of a year ago are gone, and the dilapidated and shabby office is shocking.The furniture and carpets have already been taken away by creditors, and lawyers can only work on the floor or on chairs.