Firm's free defense of Ryan sparks skirmish

Defense attorney Dan K. Webb said the firm of Winston & Strawn is footing the bill for Ryan's legal defense and that the former governor is paying his large legal team nothing.

"The truth is that he hasn't paid us a nickel," Webb told Judge Rebecca R. Pallmeyer.

Federal prosecutors claimed that Ryan's legal defense fund had paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to the firm, which is headed by former Gov. James R. Thompson.

But Webb said the amount of money paid by the legal defense fund covered only a third of the expenses and none of the fees for professional services that his lawyers would have charged.

Prosecutors said that in any case jurors should not be told anything on the subject of Ryan's wealth -- or lack of it -- or the free services that Winston & Strawn is providing.

Pallmeyer said she would consider the defense request but would not rule immediately.

Ryan, 71, and his longtime lobbyist friend Larry Warner, 67, are charged in a 22-count federal indictment with racketeering, mail fraud and other offenses.

Prosecutors say that as secretary of state Ryan steered big-money state contracts and leases to an elite circle of friends including Warner and in turn received free vacations and gifts.

Attorneys for Ryan and Warner have challenged many of the claims prosecutors have made and said that in any case the two men did nothing wrong.

The cost of Ryan's legal defense was estimated in published reports Monday at $10 million. Webb told reporters over the lunch hour that he was skeptical about the $10 million estimate.

"That's beyond any figure that I've heard," he said.

Webb is one of the nation's top litigators, with such corporate clients as Philip Morris and the New York Stock Exchange eager to pay his $750-an-hour fee.

Although Thompson has been out of office for years, he remains politically influential in Illinois. A number of other Winston & Strawn lawyers have key political connections.

Webb, himself, was listed as a member of the transition team that Ryan appointed when he was first elected to the secretary of state's office in 1990 -- something jurors were not told.

Webb's name was redacted from the copy of the list that was admitted into evidence. He said he didn't remember taking part in any of the transition team's activities.

The trial is in its eighth week, and attorneys say it is moving so slowly that its on track to go well beyond the four months originally estimated.