One might have thought that on learning of Quinta’s…
““One might have thought that on learning of Quinta’s death—this woman the company doctors had professed was not going to die—the United States Radium Corporation might, at last, have softened. But one would be wrong. Berry did manage to win a settlement of $8,000 ($113,541) for Mae Canfield in the new year, but the company had a straitjacket clause attached. The only way they would pay his client any money, they said, was if Berry himself was incorporated into the deal. He was far too knowledgeable about their activities—and becoming far too skilled in court—to be left off a leash. And so Raymond Berry, legal champion, the pioneering attorney who had been the only lawyer to answer Grace’s call for help, found himself forced into signing his name to the following statement: “I agree not to be connected with, directly or indirectly, any other cases against the United States Radium Corporation, nor to render assistance to any persons in any actions against said Company, nor to furnish data or information to any such persons in matters against said Company.”37 Berry was gone. He had been a serious fighter against the firm, an irksome thorn in their side. But now, with surgical precision, they had plucked him out and banished him. They were two settlements down, but the United States Radium Corporation was winning the war.””
About This Quote
This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.
A powerful corporation silences a tenacious lawyer through restrictive clauses, illustrating corporate control over justice.
In simple terms: Corporations can suppress dissent via legal tactics.
Stay vigilant against corporate overreach.
Themes
Mood
Type
When to use this quote
- courtroom battles
- settlement negotiations
- regulatory hearings
- activist campaigns
Key Concepts
Questions to Reflect On
- What safeguards can protect lawyers from corporate intimidation?
- How can individuals resist corporate legal pressure?
Legal clauses may not fully prevent influence.