Travis Scott has employed a well known Los Angeles lawyer in the wake of the fatal Astroworld Competition live performance and is giving to pay back funeral fees of all those who died at the Nov. 5 present in Houston.
Scott’s new legal professional, Daniel Petrocelli, on the working day before Thanksgiving emailed the offer to lawyers for the 10 victims who died mainly because of a crowd surge in the course of the rapper’s concert. Hundreds of other followers were injured.
Additional than three weeks immediately after the live performance at NRG Park, Scott and other defendants facial area some 120 civil wrongful death, particular personal injury and premises liability lawsuits. Petrocelli, 68, head of litigation for world company regulation firm O’Melveny & Myers, is acknowledged for representing higher-profile customers and reportedly expenses $1,500 an hour.
Petrocelli did not react to a ask for for an interview. But in the emailed offer, he explained Scott “is devastated by the tragedy” and grieves for the victims’ beloved ones.
In an email to Corpus Christi attorney Bob Hilliard, who signifies the family of Ezra Blount, a 9-yr-aged Dallas boy who died days immediately after he was crushed at the live performance, Petrocelli claimed the rapper does not want to intrude on the family’s privacy.
“Travis requested me to access out on his behalf to lengthen his deepest sympathies and condolences to Mr. Blount for the decline of his beloved son Ezra,” Petrocelli wrote.
“Travis is fully commited to executing his element to help the family members who have suffered and begin the extensive system of healing in the Houston local community,” Petrocelli wrote. “Toward that end, Travis would like to spend for the funeral expenditures for Mr. Blount’s son.”
Hilliard turned down the provide: “Your client’s supply is declined,” he explained in an electronic mail, incorporating that the rapper’s “journey ahead will be distressing.”
Petrocelli burst on to the countrywide scene in 1997, when he represented the father of Ron Goldman in a wrongful death lawsuit from O.J. Simpson. A jury awarded Fred Goldman $8.5 million.
In 2002, Dallas rocker Don Henley employed Petrocelli to correctly fend off wrongful firing expenses levied by Eagles’ guitarist Don Felder. Two several years later, Petrocelli defended previous Enron CEO Jeff Skilling in opposition to legal fraud and insider-trading rates. Skilling was convicted. In 2018, Petrocelli served as the guide demo law firm for Dallas-based mostly AT&T and Time Warner in the federal government’s unsuccessful antitrust lawsuit searching for to cease the merger of the two providers.
“Dan is an absolutely exceptional, elite demo law firm,” reported Rob Walters, a partner at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, who was co-counsel with Petrocelli in the AT&T situation. “Dan has an uncanny skill of establishing the ethical higher floor, which resonates effectively with reality-finders.”
“Dan and Neal will be a formidable team in court docket in this litigation,” reported Walters, referring to Susman Godfrey partner Neal Manne, who has been hired by Astroworld Pageant promoter Dwell Country.
More than 120 lawsuits identifying about 600 plaintiffs have been submitted in district courts in Harris County. Overall damages sought exceed $3 billion.
The complaints accuse Scott, Reside Country and extra than a dozen other defendants of gross carelessness by developing an surroundings that incited the crowd of 1000’s to surge ahead toward the stage, fundamentally squeezing the breath from concertgoers in entrance of them.
Scott also has hired Houston felony protection attorney Kent Schaffer. ASM Global, which manages the NRG venue for the Harris County Sports activities and Conference Corp., has employed Norton Rose Fulbright.
Other defendants involve Valle Safety Companies, which provided safety at the function, and tech large Apple, which livestreamed the present about the world. Valle Security and Apple did not respond to inquiries about the using the services of of outside the house counsel.
A lengthier edition of this post is at TexasLawbook.web.