The justices had suspended Chesley last June from appearing before the court and gave him 40 days to plead his case. Chesley,,one of the most foremost tort lawyers in the country, was disbarred in March by the Kentucky Supreme Court, which asserted that he accepted millions of dollars in fees in a class action case that should have gone to his clients.
Chesley was noted for being a major financial donor — mostly to Democrats. Chesley , 77, became famous nationally after he represented the victims of a major fire in 1977 at the Beverly Hills Supper Club in Kentucky. Chesley won $49 million in verdicts and settlements in the case.
Since 2009, Chesley has donated $4,800 to the campaign of Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio. He gave $1,000 to Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, in 2008, and $1,000 in 2008 to House Speaker John Boehner, R-West Chester.
Since 2007, Chesley also contributed $55,400 to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.
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