Quigley, Pfizer change views to serve own interests, tort victims attorneys claim

By Alice Popovici

New York, Sept. 25 - Quigley Co., Inc. and parent Pfizer, Inc. have changed their position on various issues in regard to prepetition settlement changes according to what is in their own interests, attorneys for the tort victims' committee argued Friday, the third day of Quigley's plan of reorganization confirmation hearing with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.

The explanation came in response to judge Stuart Bernstein's asking about the relevance of attorneys' line of questioning in their cross-examination of Sanford Berland, an attorney who was in charge of asbestos litigation for Pfizer's insurance group from 1990 to 2004.

James Stoll, tort victims' committee attorney with law firm Brown Rudnick, had asked Berland to comment on a Quigley disclosure statement filed in 2005.

"The relevance is that Pfizer is now taking the position that prepetition settlements made to date should be counted on their side of the ledger," Stoll said. "They haven't taken that position to date."

Tort victims' committee attorneys wanted "to show that Pfizer and Quigley take positions on [various] issues as it relates to what they think is in their best interest," said attorney Edward Weisfelner, also with Brown Rudnick. "Now Pfizer and Quigley take the position that Pfizer is making a contribution to the [shared] interest."

Earlier in the day Stoll asked Berland to comment on emails that he said suggested an urgency to the transfer of "drug lines" from Pfizer to Quigley.

What was happening in 2004, asked Stoll, which resulted in the transfer being put on the "front burner?"

"My impression is that it related to a revenue stream," Berland said, "but I wasn't involved in this aspect of the undertaking."

Tort victims and Pfizer attorneys touched on a number of other issues during the day-long hearing, including a settlement with AIG entered into in August 2004. They also questioned a second witness, Pfizer attorney Deborah Greenspan, regarding her work with criteria for claims to be submitted for settlement.

As previously reported, in March Quigley obtained court approval for its fifth-amended disclosure statement for its plan of reorganization.

The plan includes an asbestos personal injury fund that will be funded with assets of Pfizer and Quigley, as well as $50 million in cash.

Specifically, the trust will also be funded with $24 million in cash from a joint insurance trust account; $4.6 million in excess cash; $101.9 million of insurance that includes no restrictions of payment of asbestos personal injury claims and $191 million of insurance that does include restrictions of payment of asbestos personal injury claims; stock; a $405 million annuity and a $45.1 million annuity, both payable over 40 years; $23.8 million of receivables owed by insurance companies to Quigley, and dividends from Quigley's post-effective date business operations.

The confirmation hearing is scheduled to continue Oct. 13 through Oct. 16 and Oct. 26 through Oct. 29.

Quigley, a unit of Pfizer Inc., filed for bankruptcy on Sept. 3, 2004. Its Chapter 11 case number is 04-157-39.

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