A Richmond Circuit Court judge has dismissed a $150 million malpractice lawsuit against embattled Richmond law firm LeClairRyan, which recently announced that it is going out of business.
On Thursday, Richmond Chief Circuit Court Judge Clarence Jenkins dismissed the 2017 lawsuit filed by former Health Diagnostic Laboratory (HDL) Inc. CEO Tonya Mallory, who had alleged that LeClairRyan provided poor legal advice that led to the bankruptcy and closure of her once-booming blood-testing business and an $111 million federal judgment against her and two other executives.
Mallory’s lawsuit alleged that LeClairRyan had “repeatedly advised” her that HDL’s practice of paying processing and handling fees to physicians who ordered its blood tests didn’t violate federal anti-kickbacks laws. LeClairRyan settled a similar malpractice complaint brought by HDL’s bankruptcy trustee for $20.3 million. Mallory herself paid a $10 million settlement to the liquidating trustee.
