By Daniel Lovering
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Feb 20 (Reuters) - Crime novelist Patricia
Cornwell and her spouse won nearly $51 million in a federal
lawsuit against their former accounting and business management
firm, their attorney said on Wednesday.
Cornwell and her spouse, Staci Gruber, a neuroscientist, who
live in Boston, filed the suit in 2009 against Anchin, Block &
Anchin, accusing the firm of negligence in performing
professional services, breach of fiduciary duty and other fiscal
shenanigans.
The New York-based firm had controlled Cornwell's business
affairs and investments, including check-writing, for more than
four years when she discovered in July 2009 that her net worth
was less than $10 million, despite having earned an amount in
the high eight figures during that period, according to court
records.
She and Gruber also learned the company had borrowed several
million dollars on their behalf in the form of mortgages for
property and a loan for the purchase of a helicopter, court
documents said.
During the jury trial, which began early last month in U.S.
District Court in Boston, the firm's attorneys argued that the
couple's losses were due to extravagant spending and the effects
of the economic downturn, according to local media reports.
But the jury agreed with Cornwell and Gruber on Tuesday,
awarding them about $50.9 million in compensatory and punitive
damages.
"We're extremely pleased with the outcome and think that the
process worked well," said Joan Lukey, the couple's attorney.
In a statement, Frank Schettino, managing partner of Anchin,
said the firm was disappointed with the outcome, but would
endure nonetheless.
"In the days ahead we will be exploring our legal options,"
including an appeal, he said.
Cornwell, 56, is known for her crime novels featuring Kay
Scarpetta, a fictitious medical examiner.
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