In response to Philadelphia lawyer Bruce Chasan's suit seeking attorney fees, litigator John Pierce has argued that he never agreed to pay Chasan $160,000 for his work on a mutual client's case against a video game maker.

Pierce filed a motion to dismiss Tuesday in response to Chasan's suit, which relates to both lawyers' representation of former pro footballer and wrestler Lenwood Hamilton. Pierce acknowledged that his firm, Pierce Bainbridge Beck Price & Hecht, engaged in settlement negotiations with Chasan for seven months, but contends they never reached an enforceable settlement agreement.

“The entire character of the exchanges between the parties was one of unfinished negotiation, and the parties never acted as if an agreement had been reached,” Pierce's motion said. “Because the informal exchange of drafts cannot rise to the level of contractual obligation, none of the proposed, unexecuted drafts created a contract.”

Chasan filed his complaint last month against Pierce and his firm in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

According to the complaint, Hamilton engaged Chasan's firm in December 2016 to represent him in a lawsuit against Epic Games, Lester Speight and Microsoft. Hamilton had alleged that his likeness and voice were used in the video game “Gears of War,” bringing right-of-publicity and other claims. That case is ongoing.

Chasan's representation of Hamilton was intended to be on a contingent fee basis, the complaint said, except that Hamilton would be required to pay Chasan $450 per hour if he terminated the representation before the underlying litigation resolved.

Pierce originally became involved in the litigation because Chasan was seeking third-party funding, the complaint said. But about a week after Chasan, Hamilton and Pierce met to discuss joint representation, Hamilton terminated Chasan as his lawyer and retained Pierce instead.

Chasan emailed Pierce to say Hamilton was liable for $320,000 in attorney fees, the complaint said, and Pierce responded weeks later that Hamilton was planning to sue Chasan for malpractice. The parties negotiated a potential settlement for several months.

According to Chasan's suit, he accepted a $160,000 settlement offer via email in September. But in late October, the complaint said, Pierce Bainbridge sent back a settlement agreement with a new condition: Hamilton would not be releasing Chasan or his firm from future claims.

After that, Chasan revised the agreement to remove Hamilton as a party. But Pierce and his firm did not accept that agreement, both Chasan's complaint and Pierce's motion said.

“Because each settlement proposal was explicitly conditioned on Mr. Hamilton's approval, and such approval was never obtained, no offer can be considered a binding offer, and plaintiffs' claims for specific performance and breach of contract must fail,” Pierce's motion said.

Pierce, a former partner at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, Latham & Watkins and K&L Gates, founded Pierce Sergenian in early 2017 with David Sergenian, who has since left. Despite a couple of departures and name changes in quick succession, the firm has grown quickly. Pierce has said he expects that within the next five to seven years, “we're going to replace Quinn Emanuel as the next dominant global litigation firm, no question.”

Timothy Driscoll and Jessica Loesing of Drinker Biddle & Reath are representing Pierce and Pierce Bainbridge.

Chasan, reached Wednesday, said he plans to file a response to Pierce's motion, but declined to comment further.