A long-running, behind-the-scenes battle between Susman Godfrey and a litigious oil driller over close to $50 million in contingency fees has burst into public view, just as it nears an end.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit on Thursday affirmed a lower court judge’s decision denying a bid by Grynberg Production Corporation to stay enforcement of a judgment in the case. The two sides have been fighting over the fees since 1998, five years after Susman Godfrey helped the company land a multi-million dollar settlement with British Gas. The litigation has unfolded under seal until now.

“I’m thrilled this is finally coming to an end,” said Stephen Susman of Susman Godfrey.

Grynberg Production’s founder, Denver oil tycoon Jack Grynberg, is a well-known in litigation circles for bringing qui tam and mineral concessions cases against various oil companies. His companies have had scrapes with other law firms too, notably Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, which Gynberg’s RSM Production Corp. sued for racketeering in 2010. (Grynberg Production general counsel Roger Jatko did not respond to a request for comment.)

In 1992, Grynberg Productions hired Susman Godfrey to sue British Gas after getting in a dispute over oil and gas reserve rights in Kazakhstan. The fee agreement provided for a 30 percent contingency fee, capped at $50 million, if the case settled within a year of its filing.

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