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Aug 18 (Reuters) - Law firm Alston & Bird has resolved a lawsuit in U.S. federal court alleging it provided bad legal advice to a client on the labeling of imports of hand-sanitizing wipes at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Wet Wipes Cover
Ohio-based Mark One Wipes sued Alston over more than $1 million in damages last year in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Helmick dismissed the case after the two sides said they had resolved their dispute.
Atlanta-based Alston, which employs more than 800 lawyers, and Mark One did not reveal any details about how the dispute was worked out.
The law firm last year filed counterclaims alleging Mark One had not paid more than $143,000 in legal fees.
A spokesperson for Alston on Friday declined to comment.
Lawyers for Mark One and a company representative did not immediately respond to similar requests.
Mark One formed at the start of the pandemic with the intent to produce and sell hand-sanitizing wipes.
It said it wanted to meet a demand for personal protective equipment and sanitizers, and had orders from medical centers, schools, universities and other buyers.
Mark One, according to its complaint, looked at firms' websites for a team with FDA compliance expertise, and it said it was "sufficiently impressed" with Alston's "purported experience."
Alston's Kevin Minoli, head of the firm's environment, land use and natural resources team, was the lead partner on the work. Minoli was billing at $875 hourly in 2020, court records show.
Minoli did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The lawsuit alleged Alston provided Mark One with a "flagrant misstatement of law." The firm allegedly advised Mark One to use the term "handwashing" on its labels. But Mark One was importing a wipe, which is a "handrubbing" product.
The complaint claimed the firm's "blunder" on the "wrong word" carried consequences. Customs officials detained "multiple containers" at ports in Ohio and California, the lawsuit said.
The U.S. was treating Mark One's product as a new drug that needed other regulatory approval, according to the complaint.
In its counterclaim, Alston said it "fully and skillfully performed all legal services" for Mark One.
The firm sued for breach of contract, saying that its $143,000 tab for work between October 2020 and July 2021 had not been paid.
The case is Mark One Wipes v. Alston & Bird, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio, No. 3:22-cv-00258-JJH.
For plaintiff: Stuart Scott and Kevin Hulick of Spangenberg Shibley & Liber
For defendant: Reginald Jackson Jr and Adam Nightingale of Eastman & Smith
Reporting by Mike Scarcella; editing by Leigh Jones
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
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