Monday, October 27, 2003
The firm said it was owed more than $385,000.
By BOB JACKSON
VINDICATOR COURTHOUSE REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- A New York law firm that once represented former mob kingpin Lenny Strollo has dropped a lawsuit it filed against him.
Lipsitz, Green, Fahringer, Roll, Salisbury & amp; Cambria of Buffalo, N.Y., sued Strollo in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court in March 2001, seeking recovery of $386,890 it said Strollo owed in legal fees.
The matter had been set for trial this week, but was postponed. Atty. Robert S. Hartford Jr. of Youngstown said that's because the matter was settled. He would not disclose details of the settlement.
Hartford said an out-of-court agreement was reached some time ago, but was only recently reduced to writing and signed by all parties.
Guilty plea
Strollo, 71, has been a government witness since February 1999, when he pleaded guilty to racketeering charges. He has remained in prison since being indicted in December 1997, and has not yet been sentenced.
He won't be sentenced until the government no longer needs his testimony against others who were involved in mob activities. The Buffalo law firm represented him in his court appearances, but sued after saying he had not paid for their work.
The government originally sought to seize property from Strollo including $10 million in cash, his home on Leffingwell Road, his interest in Ace Fireworks Co. of Conneaut, Ohio, his interest in the Ramada Inn on Belmont Avenue, and his interest in proceeds from the sale of a hotel and casino in Puerto Rico, the suit says.
But in return for his plea of guilty, the government allowed Strollo to keep his property. Hartford has said that the law firm's work on behalf of Strollo is what allowed him to retain that property.
bjackson@vindy.com