Scruggs Plead Guilty In Bribery Case

One of the best-known plaintiffs’ lawyers in the country, Richard Scruggs, unexpectedly agreed to plead guilty on Friday to a criminal charge of conspiracy in the attempted bribery of a judge.

Mr. Scruggs was accused of an effort to obtain a favorable ruling in a lawsuit brought by a rival over legal fees in litigation related to hurricane Katrina. Sidney Backstrom, a lawyer charged along with Mr. Scruggs, also pleaded guilty. Their pleas came in federal court in Jackson, Miss.

The single charge — five others were dismissed under the agreement — carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, according to the agreement.

Mr. Scruggs’s son, Zachary, who was also named in an indictment handed up in November, did not plead and so is expected to go to trial beginning March 31.