-
With Balch’s Reputation Apparently in Shambles, will Balch Sports Exit Next?
[Originally posted on July 20, 2020, this post is more relevant today after two legacy partners have left Balch & Bingham. Sources at Balch and elsewhere have been making rumblings about Russ Campbell and Balch Sports. Critics say in whispers that Balch needs Campbell while Campbell doesn’t need Balch. With racial diversity and inclusion so important, will NFL and college coaches continue to utilize an alleged racist law firm tied to alleged deplorable and unsavory misconduct? What say you Russ?] Today marks the two-year anniversary of the criminal conviction of former Balch & Bingham partner Joel I. Gilbert, found guilty…
-
Obstruction Destruction! Another Balch Legacy Partner Exits
Jennifer Powell Decker, a seasoned Balch & Bingham partner and one of the top-ranking women at the embattled firm, has dumped Balch after 15 dedicated years. The announcement follows the abrupt and suprising departure of long-time Balch legacy partner Rob Fowler who appears to have taken a step downward, becoming inside counsel for a coal company currently not operating due to the lack of permits. Powell Decker is now “of counsel” at Baker Donelson in Birmingham according to news reports. Last week, we learned from high-level sources that an alleged federal probe is looking at possible obstruction of justice. Allegedly…
-
The Matrix Meltdown, the Feds, and the Money Trail
Balch & Bingham and their sister-wife Alabama Power have relied on the obscure services of Matrix, the political consulting firm that dropped the mailing during the North Birmingham Bribery Scandal that reprehensibly discouraged African-Americans from having their toxic and contaminated property tested by the EPA. Matrix has a legendary (if not mythical) reputation of being a “dirty tricks” outfit that allegedly engages in AstroTurf efforts and smear campaigns. Joe Perkins, the head of Matrix, is in a two-state legal battle with former protégé Jeff Pitts. The Matrix Meltdown has provoked a probe from federal investigators, sources claim, and an avalanche…
-
Mississippi Disgrace: Balch Disburses Less than a Third of Federal Rental Assistance
Demonstrating that contractual cronyism appears to harm the public, Balch & Bingham, the Pimps of Mississippi, who received a multi-million dollar, no-bid contract to help disburse $186 million in rental assistance has only disbursed 32 percent according to new data published by the U.S. Department of Treasury. In comparison, Harrison County in Mississippi has disbursed 98 percent of all resources as of October 31, 2021. What a disgrace! Balch, which evicted a Habitat for Humanity Resident at the height of the pandemic, is known to represent apartment landlords and boasts of their collection practices on their website. A national investigative…
-
CNN: EPA Probing Alabama Power
Posted yesterday, CNN’s bombshell visual and interactive story on polluting ash ponds outlines potential environmental disasters and the “money-making” schemes surrounding those foolish decisions. Alabama Power’s Barry Plant (and toxic ash pond) near Mobile, Alabama is a central figure of the investigative story and highlights the controversy surrounding the future of these contaminated ash ponds. But the real explosive grenade was confirmation that the EPA is probing Alabama Power. CNN reports: While state regulators approved Alabama Power’s plans for the Barry pond in July, EPA Administrator Regan told CNN last month that his agency is “actively investigating (…) the Plant Barry situation.” “We…
-
Drummond, Newsome Conspiracy Case, North Birmingham Bribery Case, Southern Company, Spotlight on Balch & Bingham
Did Balch Intentionally Screw Gilbert? Former Top Partner Now Mowing the Lawn in Prison
Ex-Balch & Bingham partner Joel I. Gilbert has been assigned gardening responsibilities at the Federal Prison Camp located at the Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery. Now that legacy Balch partner Rob Fowler dumped the once-prestigious firm for a job at a coal facility that currently is not operating, insiders are curious what internal strife is happening at Balch to cause Fowler to run to the emergency exit. Sources tell us that Gilbert may have been intentionally screwed by his own law firm, just like ex-Drummond executive David Roberson appeared to be screwed as the “fall guy” by Drummond. The…
-
Turkey Carcass! Is Balch Choking on Eggnog?
The stunning news of legacy partner Rob Fowler’s unannounced departure from embattled law firm Balch & Bingham has set the legal community ablaze. What could cause a long-time veteran of environmental law to depart abruptly? Sources claim Fowler has left allegedly to become inside counsel at Bluestone, the controversial coal operator in Jefferson County that was shut down recently. If true, that would be an enormous step down. Other sources say possible ongoing federal investigations, Alabama Power’s upcoming troubles with the Miller Steam Plant, and an alleged severe drop in revenue may be hammering the once-prestigious, silk-stocking law firm. Last…
-
Death Spiral? Balch Legacy Partner Rob Fowler Leaves Embattled Firm
Sources close to Balch & Bingham report this afternoon that long-time environmental lawyer and Balch partner Rob Fowler has left the embattled firm after almost a quarter-century of service. His webpage at Balch has been eliminated. Regardless of his legal work on behalf of alleged unsavory clients, alleged racist quarry companies, and possible polluters, Fowler was a trusted, experienced, and knowledgeable lawyer of environmental law, and was one of maybe a dozen long-time legacy partners left at Balch. The firm has been seen a mass exodus of experienced and money-making partners in the last several years. The crew left behind…
-
Update: Balch Pimps Have Disbursed Only 17% of Federal Rental Assistance
Government-made millionaires Balch & Bingham, are still under fire after a national investigative report in The Washington Post in September showed that the embattled law firm had reaped millions in fees from the State of Mississippi while hardly disbursing resources to tenants in need. According to the Post, a mere 11 percent of a $186 million rental assistance fund was disbursed to those in need, while a similar program in Harrison County, Mississippi, run by housing advocates, had the opposite results: disbursement was at 89 percent. Now new data from the U.S. Department of Treasury shows that Balch stooges in…
-
Crosswhite Stands Nervously Silent as January 6th Inquiry Escalates
This morning Trump’s once top advisor Steve Bannon surrendered himself to law enforcement over his refusal to testify before the January 6th congressional inquiry. Two weeks ago, The Washington Post published an in-depth series on the insurrection. The spotlight on January 6th is escalating. And the behind-the-scenes decision makers are being exposed. In 2016 during a media interview, former Balch partner and now Alabama Power Chairman and CEO Mark A. Crosswhite boasted : For years I had been deeply involved in helping with the decision-making process, in offering recommendations, courses of action, but I was never involved in the final decision-making…
-
Inhumane! Balch Evicts Habitat for Humanity Resident at Height of Pandemic
Could Balch’s Mississippi Rental Assistance Debacle get any uglier? In September of 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and months away from the FDA approval of the first vaccine, Balch & Bingham attorneys in Mississippi evicted a resident from a Habitat for Humanity home. Even though a federal eviction moratorium was in place, Balch attorneys apparently tossed the alleged senior citizen out of the home! Called “The Pimps of Mississippi,” Balch, the evictor and collector, received millions in contractual cronyism to allegedly distribute federal rental assistance funds and to manage another federal program to prevent foreclosures, according to…
-
Balch Turmoil: Young Attorneys Depart while Alleged Racial Tokenism Continues
In August, after only two years at Balch & Bingham, Addison Watson departed to the private sector. This week, after four years as a Balch attorney, Katlyn S. Caldwell looks like she has left the embattled firm abruptly. With an ex-Balch attorney who allegedly solicited a child for sex online and another ex-Balch partner sitting in the federal penitentiary, young attorneys at Balch are exiting just like the exodus of legacy and money-making partners in the recent past. As the alleged racist law firm saw an African-American attorney depart after only eight short months, the embattled firm has hired three…
-
Drummond, Elderly Exploitation Scandal, Newsome Conspiracy Case, RICO, Southern Company, Spotlight on Balch & Bingham
A Year After Death, Balch & Bingham Still Lacks Sensible Leadership
The King of Balch & Bingham and dinosaur partner at the embattled law firm Schuyler Allen Baker, Jr. died one year ago today. Ironically in 2017, Baker vowed to fight the Newsome Conspiracy Case to the death. Baker, serving as General Counsel at Balch, made an enormously foolish decision. His fight to the death cost the firm millions, tarnished and damaged Balch’s once-respected reputation, made 18 of 18 D.C. lobbying clients dump the firm, and created the greatest exodus ever of money-making partners. The ghost of Balch’s past is sadly still present. Now with an alleged pedophile cover-up, an alleged…
-
Crosswhite Implodes as Balch & Bingham Calls the Shots
There was a time in Crosswhite’s life when he stopped playing with Hot Wheels, going to keg parties, and binging on The Godfather movies. [This post was originally published two years ago on October 28, 2019. Now with the Crosswhite Scandal growing and alleged secret indemnity agreements creating turmoil, this post was prophetic. Insiders allege that Balch is calling the shots because of alleged skeletons in Crosswhite’s walk-in closet.] Matthew Bowden, a former Balch & Bingham partner, was the Senior Vice President and General Counsel of Alabama Power (pictured left). He was allegedly a pillar of integrity, and respected and…
-
Newsome Conspiracy Case, North Birmingham Bribery Case, RICO, Southern Company, Spotlight on Balch & Bingham
Motion Denied! Gilbert Headed to Prison; Internal Convulsions at Alabama Power
The motion to delay reporting to prison by ex-Balch partner Joel I. Gilbert has been summarily denied, the court responding that the convicted felon had more than enough time to put his affairs in order. Gilbert is now obligated to report to federal prison tomorrow, Wednesday, October 27th. The last-minute move comes as Balch & Bingham’s sister-wife Alabama Power is allegedly suffering from internal convulsions. Ex-Balch partner and current Alabama Power CEO Mark A. Crosswhite is allegedly furious that unconfirmed news reports are circulating about the alleged pending and unannounced retirement of Tom Fanning, the CEO of parent company Southern…
