He Sued and Lost Big Time; California Businessman Out Millions

He was rich but wanted still more money. So J. Howard Marshall III (Howard Junior), of Pasadena, Ca., sued his younger brother, his family and his late father's estate. The move backfired. Instead of getting the millions he demanded, Howard Junior has been ordered by Houston Probate Judge Mike Wood to pay his brother, his family and the estate more than $10 million. Judge Wood issued his final judgment today.

"The man showed absolutely no remorse for bringing a lawsuit based on a fabricated lie," said attorney Jeffrey Chambers. Chambers' clients, the Bettye B. Marshall Trust and E. Pierce Marshall as trustee of that trust, will receive $10 million. "The money Howard Junior will have to pay will help ensure that his father's estate plan, including the charitable contributions, can be carried out," Chambers said.

"Howard Junor meant to hurt and to 'shakedown' his own family when he filed this frivolous litigation. He was not enough of a man to address and resolve these issues when our father was alive, so he waited until our father died to try to overturn our dad's clearly stated wishes for his estate. I think I can state without fear of contradiction that the plan backfired," said E. Pierce Marshall.

Howard Junior's bank account will be further lightened because he and former stripper Vickie Lynn Marshall (stage name Anna Nicole Smith) have been held jointly and severally liable on behalf of the late J. Howard Marshall, II's estate, which paid out $1.2 million to a temporary administrator appointed because of the litigation. "You shouldn't start a knife fight and then complain when you get cut," said attorney Lee Ware, who represented E. Pierce Marshall.

In addition, Judge Wood ruled that Howard Junior must repay almost $200,000 in sanctions Pierce Marshall and his attorneys were improperly forced to pay Howard Junior's attorneys and to Master Carolyn Clause Garcia by former Judge Jim Scanlan early in the case. "I did not receive a fair and impartial hearing in the matter until Judge Mike Wood entered the case in November 1998. Prior to that time, 'due process of law' was routinely ignored. I am very appreciative that Judge Wood righted this wrong," Pierce Marshall added.

Howard Junior and Vickie were also ordered to pay other unspecified court costs.

Blinded by false reports of the family's net worth, Howard Junior's horde of contingency fee attorneys lost out on what they obviously hoped would be a huge payday. According to testimony in the case, the contingency fees for his case would have amounted to a record two-thirds or more of any award given to Howard Junior. In addition, attorneys for Howard Junior testified they spent thousands of hours preparing for the case as well as almost six months in court, all resulting in a net loss for their client.

Howard Junior's "personal attorney" representing him in his defeat and his strategist from the beginning is Avi S. Peretz, formerly of Gabriel, Hermann & Peretz, L.L.P. of Los Angeles, along with Texas attorneys Jack and Diane Lawter of Lawter & Lawter, Houston; James Hartnett, Jr. and Will Ford Hartnett of The Hartnett Law Firm, Dallas; and Rancho Santa Fe, Ca., attorney Terry M. Giles. After losing the case, Howard Junior retained John Hill and Jeffrey Harris of the law firm of Locke, Liddell & Sapp, L.L.P. of Houston.

"My father left me with the responsibility of filing his will for probate," Pierce Marshall said. "His decisions concerning his estate were clearly stated in six wills and seven separate property trusts over 13 years prior to his death. The jury agreed with us that there was never any reason for Howard Junior to challenge our father's estate plan and that he did so with malice.

"While these rulings will not reimburse the full cost of nor make up for the six years this litigation has taken out of our lives, they will serve as a warning to all that they cannot disrupt our lives again with another baseless lawsuit without assuming substantial personal risk," Pierce Marshall said.

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