Barnes' legal record scrutinized in gov race

ATLANTA - In the eight years since he was ousted as governor, Roy Barnes has taken on legal cases that kept him in the headlines and bolstered his personal wealth. They now are coming under scrutiny as the race for governor in Georgia heats up.

He's championed consumer rights, challenging companies that tacked fees on gift cards and urging judges to shut down lenders that burden borrowers with heavy finance charges.

But he's also defended the chairman of a power cooperative against a lawsuit filed by customers and helped fend off a lawsuit against a former federal agent convicted of leaking sensitive data.

The Republican Governors Association has launched an online attack ad depicting the Democrat as a greedy trial lawyer and claiming "there isn't a doctor Roy won't sue." The campaign of his Republican opponent, Nathan Deal, has even labeled Barnes "A Roy Named Sue."

Opponents used a similar strategy in the 1998 campaign for governor, which Barnes won, and his 2002 re-election bid, which he did not.

Barnes says one reason he likes politics and the law is that each has clear winners and losers.

"In a campaign you have an election and the people decide," he said. "And in a trial you have a verdict and the jury decides."

Sometimes Barnes has helped supporters, such as Superior Court Judge Brooks Blitch, who was accused of using his position to profit. He also challenged Georgia's voter ID law, which Democrats claimed could disenfranchise Georgia's poor and elderly voters.

In others, he crossed party lines to back former rivals in legal trouble.

Garland Pinholster, once a powerful Republican lawmaker who frequently sparred with Barnes, stepped down from the state Department of Transportation board in June 2008 after he was accused of making sexual comments to two employees. He said he received a surprising call from Barnes, who offered to represent him for free.

"I thought it was very big-league of him, since he wasn't a member of my party," said Pinholster, whose case was later settled when the state agreed to pay about $150,000 to the two employees. "I was truly grateful, and I am still grateful."

Yet leading Republicans are hoping Barnes' legal record will come back to haunt him.

"It's very clear that Roy Barnes did not intend to return to political life because if he had, he wouldn't have taken on such unsavory characters as clients," said Dan McLagan, a prominent GOP consultant working for the Republican Party of Georgia during the campaign.

Barnes' camp said the former governor uses his law degree in the noblest of ways - to fight for justice.

"Roy believes that being a lawyer is an honorable profession and that lawyers play an important role in protecting our constitutional rights and preserving the freedoms that make our country great," said Barnes spokesman Emil Runge.

Barnes began championing consumer-friendly litigation shortly after his election defeat, working a six-month pro bono stint for the Atlanta Legal Aid Society before starting a law practice with his daughter and son-in-law.

He filed a lawsuit claiming fees and expiration dates on mall gift cards amounted to "stealing by contract" because they lost value after a few months. He challenged the tactics of companies that he said tried to skirt Georgia's ban on "payday" lenders by finding new ways to tack on high fees.

He also championed less popular causes.

Among them was his decision to defend Cobb EMC chief executive Dwight Brown against angry customers who accused Brown of using the nonprofit cooperative's money to bolster a for-profit affiliate that he ran.

The lawsuit was settled in December 2008. Court records showed Barnes billed Brown 5.2 hours at $710 an hour.

He also took the case of former Department of Corrections commissioner Bobby Whitworth, who was convicted in 2003 of taking a $75,000 payoff to help a private probation company while he was a member of the state pardons board. Barnes sought first-offender status for Whitworth, to help clear his record.

Blitch, whose wife is a former Democratic state senator and a Barnes ally while he was governor, sought Barnes' help against the state Judicial Qualifications Commission, which accused him in November 2007 of doling out illegal payments and ordering the release of imprisoned felons.

The south Georgia judge stepped down in May 2008 and later pleaded guilty in federal court to separate corruption charges.

Barnes also helped defend Jonathan Randel, a former Drug Enforcement Administration agent who was sued for $1 million on charges that he illegally sold information about British businessman Michael Ashcroft to a newspaper. A judge later dismissed the lawsuit and both parties agreed to drop an appeal.

"For Roy Barnes, it's all about the money. For the right price, he'll go to bat for the worst of the worst," said Brian Robinson, a spokesman for Deal. "It's not a client list that Roy Barnes wants you to see."

Barnes' backers did not address individual cases. But his supporters point to the consumer-minded litigation he pursued. A review of Barnes' legal record also shows the former governor has taken a particular interest in representing Americans killed while working or serving in Iraq.

He was part of the team that sought millions of dollars in damages from Syria for the families of two American men kidnapped and decapitated while working as civilian contractors in Iraq. The families won a $412 million default judgment, but the ruling is under appeal.

He and several colleagues represented Lt. Col. Dominic Baragona's relatives who sued the Kuwait Gulf Link Transport Company over the soldier's 2003 death in a traffic accident.

A federal judge awarded the Baragona family a $4.9 million default judgment. The ruling was later set aside.

"I was pleased with how they handled it," said Baragona's father, also named Dominic. "And we're still hanging in there. We haven't given up the fight."

Every so often, Barnes' legal work has earned him a new supporter.

Andrew Wordes hired Barnes to represent him in his battle with the city of Roswell over whether he should be allowed to raise chickens and roosters in his backyard. The 52-year-old unemployed wildlife exterminator said he didn't have to worry about paying Barnes thousands of dollars in legal fees.

"He just told me to drop off a dozen eggs, farm fresh organic eggs," he said. "And now I am one of the few Republicans in north Fulton County that is supporting him."