Parties in North Carolina Benzene Case Debate Attorneys' Fees

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- Ashland has defended its request for attorneys' fees in a benzene lawsuit, contending that the fees are justified because the plaintiff's counsel instructed the plaintiff to remain silent on questions relating to information a judge later found discoverable. Stromberg, et al. v. Ashland Inc., et al., No. 07-332 (M.D. N.C.).

In an Oct. 26 motion filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina, plaintiffs Donald and Holly Ann Stromberg objected to the amount of attorneys' fees requested by defendants Ashland Inc., Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., Fisher Scientific Co., and Fisher Scientific International …