A confidential settlement has been reached, in the suit filed by convicted murderer Barbara Ann Roberts against Rome attorney Steve Lanier.

The trial got underway Monday with Roberts taking the stand Tuesday morning and Lanier testifying later in the day.

Roberts – represented by Montgomery-based attorney Jerry Blevins – contended that Lanier had failed to inform her that he didn’t possess a license to practice law in Alabama, and that she would have to hire someone with those qualifications – which would ultimately require her to pay additional fees beyond the $50,000 promised to Lanier.

According to testimony she later paid Centre attorney Rodney Stallings a total of $35,000 to represent her in the capital murder case she was facing in Cherokee County.

She also later learned, that a non-refundable retainer fee clause in her contract with Lanier, was not enforceable.

That suit also alleged that Lanier had also taken additional money from Roberts’ Edward D. Jones accounts without her knowledge or permission.

Lanier’s attorney, Roy McCord from Gadsden, later got Roberts to admit, that even after she says she “fired him”, Lanier still provided other legal services, representing her in an arrest case in Georgia and in connection with an inheritance, after her mother’s death in Texas.

There was also debate over whether Lanier actually performed any service in regard to the capital murder case, working in conjunction with Rodney Stallings.

Testimony was scheduled to resume early Wednesday morning, however it was announced shortly after 9:00 that a “confidential settlement” had been reached, without any additional information being available.

Barbara Ann Roberts is lodged in the Cherokee County Detention Center awaiting transport back to Tutwiler Correctional Facility.