Dick Scruggs

Dick Scruggs became known in the 1990s for his role in developing the novel legal strategy of litigating against the tobacco industry to recover state Medicaid costs for treating sick smokers. The strategy broke from the longtime use of personal injury cases against the industry.

Scruggs was named Mississippi Citizen of the Year in 1997 and is also known for giving a gift of $25 million to Ole Miss. Earlier in his career, Scruggs won approximately $300 million in pay-outs for asbestos plaintiffs, and in the process earned $25 million in fees. More recently, he filed nearly 50 lawsuits against more than 350 non-profit hospitals alleging that they are violating their IRS tax exemption by failing to provide appropriately-priced services to poor customers.