High-profile trial attorney Richard Scruggs, who gained prominence battling the insurance and tobacco industries, on Friday pleaded guilty to conspiring to bribe a judge.

The case which he pleaded guilty to in U.S. District Court in Oxford, Miss., involved a legal action in which the Scruggs law firm was suing an attorney in a dispute over $26.5 million in attorneys' fees from a Hurricane Katrina-related settlement with State Farm.

Mr. Scruggs was charged with five others, including his son David Zachary Scruggs, with a bribe plot involving $50,000.

He pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy and at sentencing faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Loss of his law license is expected.

Mr. Scruggs led a team of attorneys that brought a class action against State Farm companies over losses stemming from Hurricane Katrina in Mississippi. The dispute over attorneys' fees came from an $80 million settlement with State Farm Insurance.

Mr. Scruggs and the others were accused of attempting to bribe Circuit Judge Henry L. Lackey. The judge reported the incident to federal investigators, and subsequently worked undercover to amass evidence against Mr. Scruggs and the others.

Appearing in court on a day when pretrial motions were scheduled, the attorney, in a move that had not been expected, entered his plea. Mr. Scruggs in his elocution admitted he had a role in the plan to bribe the judge but said he had not originated the scheme.

Mr. Scruggs' son, Zachary, faces trial on March 31 and appears to be going to trial, according to several reports.

A call to the Oxford, Miss., U.S. Attorney's Office handling the case was not returned.

According to a Wall Street Journal report Mr. Scruggs could face further charges for attempts to influence another case.

Want to continue reading?
Become a Free PropertyCasualty360 Digital Reader

Your access to unlimited PropertyCasualty360 content isn’t changing.
Once you are an ALM digital member, you’ll receive:

  • Breaking insurance news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
  • Weekly Insurance Speak podcast featuring exclusive interviews with industry leaders
  • Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
  • Critical converage of the employee benefits and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, BenefitsPRO and ThinkAdvisor
NOT FOR REPRINT

© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.