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Monday, January 23, 2006

Ind. Court - Lobbyist linked to Abramoff quits Indianapolis firm

"Lobbyist linked to Abramoff quits Indianapolis firm" is the headline to an AP story posted this morning on the Indianapolis Star website. Some quotes:

FORT WAYNE, Ind. -- The Indianapolis-based law firm of Barnes & Thornburg has accepted the resignation of one of its Washington lobbyists implicated in the bribery and corruption scandal swirling around Jack Abramoff, a report Sunday said.

Neil Volz, one of three Barnes & Thornburg lobbyists with ties Abramoff or his Indian tribe clients, quit his job three days after Abramoff pleaded guilty earlier this month to bribery and tax evasion charges, The Journal Gazette reported Sunday.

Barnes & Thornburg's Washington office had hired the three one-time members of Abramoff's former firm, Greenberg Traurig, a year ago even as federal officials investigated Abramoff, who's accused of bilking Indian tribes of millions of dollars in lobbying fees they had paid him.

"There has never been a suggestion that any of the lobbying activities under investigation occurred at Barnes & Thornburg," the firm's managing partner, Alan Levin, said in a written statement Friday.

The two other former Abramoff associates, Kevin Ring and Edward Ayoob, remain members of Barnes & Thornburg, Levin said. The firm has more than 300 lawyers in offices in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, Elkhart, South Bend, Chicago, Washington and Grand Rapids, Mich.

The Fort Wayne Journal Gazette originated this lengthy story yesterday, via its Washington editor, Sylvia Smith. Some quotes:
Before hiring Volz, Ring and Ayoob, Barnes & Thornburg’s lobbying practice was a small operation – one or two lobbyists with modest revenues.

But when the three lobbyists joined Barnes & Thornburg, the Hoosier firm’s lobbying revenues tripled. According to reports the firm filed with the Senate, it received $1.2 million in lobbying fees for the first half of 2005, the most recent reports filed. During the same time in 2004, Barnes & Thornburg’s lobbying arm took in $400,000.

A major jump in the firm’s lobbying income was because of the clients that Volz and Ring brought with them, particularly a wealthy Indian tribe. The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, for instance, paid Barnes & Thornburg $200,000 for three months of work last year.

The Journal Gazette yesterday also carried this very long LA Times story about Ohio congressman Bob Ney.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on January 23, 2006 07:51 AM
Posted to Indiana Law