Verdict Reached in Sonnenschein Trial

The jury in the D.C. Superior Court trial of Douglas Rosenthal against his former firm, Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal, reached a verdict in favor of Rosenthal at about noon today. The decision came after a day and a half of deliberating.

Jurors determined that Rosenthal should have been compensated $500,000 a year for the years 2003 and 2004, instead of the more than $400,000 in compensation he received from Sonnenschein for those years. For 2005 and 2006, the jury determined that Rosenthal should have received $1,365,000 instead of the more than $1 million offered by Sonnenschein for those years. The award, however, is significantly less than the $8.2 million Rosenthal asked for.

Sonnenschein did succeed in its counterclaim that Rosenthal and his new firm Constantine Cannon interfered with clients when Rosenthal left for Constantine in 2005. The jury awarded $300,000 to Sonnenschein in that decision.