The basics of the case are as follows, as per the Boston Globe. Pfizer built a large research facility in New London, CT. A not-for-profit organization, New London Development Corporation (NLDC), planned to build a "sprawling waterfront complex of private housing, stores, restaurants, and businesses" nearby in the Fort Trumbull area.
[...]
The interaction between Pfizer, the New London Development Corporation, and the city of New London was more complex than more recent reports suggest. The NLDC, which dated back to the 1970's, was taken over by new leaders in 1997. One new board member was George Milne Jr, who also was a Pfizer vice-president. The new board president was Claire Gaudiani, President of Connecticut College, the wife of David Burnett, also a Pfizer vice-president. Milne visited the Fort Trumbull site several times, but claims he recused himself from NLDC board decisions about Fort Trumbull.