Langston, Balducci, Hood and Moore
A little over a year ago, then State Auditor Phil Bryant sent a demand letter to Joey Langston and the Langston Law Firm, where Tim Balducci used to practice, seeking recovery of the $14 million in attorneys fees improperly paid to Langston and Balducci in the MCI tax settlement case. Former Attorney General Mike Moore had represented MCI during the settlement.
Langston’s response to the demand for repayment was that Phil Bryant was merely posturing because he was in a Republican primary for Lt. Governor.
This past spring, Bryant sent a second demand letter for recovery of the funds. Mike Moore came to see Bryant to try to persuade him that he shouldn’t be doing that. It is unknown whether Moore was representing Langston, Balducci, or Attorney General Jim Hood. He said that he was not representing MCI for purposes of that visit.
This past summer, as Bryant steadily prepared his lawsuit to recover the funds, Langston and crew said it was because he was in a general election campaign for Lt. Governor. Then, in September, when the lawsuit was about to be filed, Hood sent to Moore and Langston a confidential communication he had received from Bryant tipping them off that Bryant was about to file the lawsuit.
Langston immediately sued Bryant and the State of Mississippi in New York Bankruptcy Court trying to block recovery of attorneys fees paid to him. Bryant has answered and defended that lawsuit. The State of Mississippi, whose lawyer is the Attorney General, has not.
REDBLUE
Clarion Ledger
1/13/8
Magnolia Tribune
