Attorney General outlines reduced litigation fund request; LBA audit flags YDC settlement processes

Attorney General John Formella told the Fiscal Committee on Oct. 17 that his office is seeking supplemental litigation funding for the fiscal year but has reduced the request compared with prior years by cutting expenses and spreading work inside the office.

Formella said the collective request before the committee was roughly $4.3 million in addition to an initial $350,000 budgeted amount. He described about $2.6 million in civil-bureau projected expenses, with about $1.5 million of that tied to YDC-related litigation, roughly $1 million for criminal-bureau costs, and approximately $600,000 for other civil matters.

Committee members pressed Formella about a cluster of YDC claims and how prior settlement administrator awards were handled after the statute changed. Formella said the office did not accept approximately 20% of awards in some sets of claims (specifically those involving counsel identified publicly in pleadings) and that in other cases the office negotiated lower amounts; overall he said the majority of awards were accepted or resolved. He…