Law firm loses malpractice suit

Houston-based Vinson & Elkins, one of the nation's largest law firms, was slapped with a $17.7 million malpractice verdict in a case involving the estate of Texas oil magnate William T. Moran, Houston newspapers reported yesterday.

A Houston jury found that Vinson & Elkins knowingly engaged in "unconscionable action" in representing the estate, which was valued at $60 million at Mr. Moran's death in 1983, by hiding conflicts of interest, failing to maximize estate income, and overcharging $5 million in legal fees, the papers said.