Most think Davis should have disclosed plane deal, survey finds

CHARLESTON – More than four out of five West Virginia voters surveyed said they think state Supreme Court Justice Robin Jean Davis should have publicly disclosed her husband's sale of an airplane to another attorney appearing before the Court.

In a survey conducted for West Virginia Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse, 82 percent of those asked disagreed with Davis not disclosing the sale of a LearJet to Mississippi-based McHugh Fuller Law Firm from her husband Scott Segal's Charleston law firm.

“West Virginians overwhelmingly agree that Justice Robin Davis should have disclosed that she and her husband sold a LearJet for over $1 million to a lawyer who was representing a case before the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia," WV CALA Executive Director Roman Stauffer said. "This was a case where she served as Chief Justice and wrote the Court’s majority opinion that resulted in the lawyer making seventeen million dollars."

Stauffer said WV CALA believes many questions remain unanswered about the sale of a private jet by Davis’ husband to a personal injury lawyer who later appeared before her to defend a $90 million jury verdict.

“Unfortunately, the ethical questions that surround this transaction between a judge’s spouse and a personal injury lawyer who then appeared before the judge remain unanswered,” Stauffer said.

The survey, whic was conducted for WV CALA by MBE Research, questioned 609 registered West Virginia voters Jan. 5-6 about several topics related to the state's legal climate. The survey had a margin of error is +/- 3.96 percent at a 95 percent confidence level.