Two huge names in the celebrity Blogosphere, Perez Hilton and Samantha Ronson along with Lindsay Lohan join together with lesser known attorney Martin Garbus to again demonstrate the ubiquitous nature of legal malpractice. We are betting that most readers will know the facts of this case. Disputes break out in every sphere, lawyers are called in, and often, legal malpractice complaints follow. Here is a celebrity legal malpractice story:
From the LA Times:
"At the bottom of the failed libel suit and the pending malpractice action is a one-car crash: Lohan’s Mercedes-Benz versus some shrubs in Beverly Hills on May 26, 2007. Police reported finding a small amount of cocaine in her car. The actress eventually entered rehab and pleaded guilty to driving under the influence.
About a week later, according to the libel suit, Hilton, whose real name is Mario Lavandeira, posted an item on his blog linking to a juicy story on an another blog called Celebrity Babylon. Citing unnamed sources, Celebrity Babylon reported the cocaine belonged to Ronson. Additionally, according to the suit, the story said Ronson "has accumulated a substantial side income taking her pal in front of paparazzi cameras for money."
"With friends like Samantha Ronson, Lindsay doesn’t need enemies," Hilton blogged. Two weeks later, he posted a picture of himself on perezhilton.com wearing a sweatshirt emblazoned with "Blame Samantha" and referred to her as a "lezbot dj", according to the libel suit.
Ronson was irate, and on the recommendation of a friend, turned to Garbus. Then 72, he had a vaunted reputation — Fortune called him "one of the country’s most able 1st Amendment lawyers" last year — and a practice that included high-profile clients. At the time he met Ronson, he was representing Don Imus in a suit against CBS.
Difficulties emerged early on. In court papers in the malpractice suit, Garbus alleged that Ronson often didn’t return his calls or answer e-mails. She forgot meetings and kept him waiting. Garbus had represented many people whose fame was based on unquestionable achievement — Andrei Sakharov, Samuel Beckett, Andy Warhol, Allen Ginsberg, Spike Lee — but Ronson, whose celebrity was rooted in titillation and limited largely to consumers of pop culture, often didn’t pick up the phone when he called, he alleged.
Regardless, the defamation suit progressed. Celebrity Babylon agreed to issue a retraction and an apology in exchange for Ronson dropping her claim, according to court filings in the malpractice suit. But that deal didn’t interest Hilton, no stranger to defamation suits."