Ex-clients sue Winstead contending 'countless mistakes' on loan workout cost them $20M
A Texas bank and private investment group say they paid top dollar to have Winstead handle a realty company’s anticipated default on a $62 million interest-only loan.
However, for rates as high as $620 an hour, Highland Capital Management and NexBank say in a malpractice suit, they got not the expected expertise but “countless mistakes and misrepresentations” that prolonged the foreclosure workout case, increased legal fees and forced the bank to settle for less than it otherwise could have gotten, according to Courthouse News and the Dallas Business Journal.
The Dallas County District Court suit seeks $20 million in damages, alleging that the plaintiffs collected less on a $30 million deficiency concerning the Dallas office buildings secured by the loan and paid more in legal fees than they should have.
Don Campbell serves as general counsel for Winstead. He said the the law firm will vigorously defend the suit and expects to be vindicated “because we don”t believe our lawyers committed malpractice.”
The law firm settled a malpractice suit filed last year on confidential terms soon after it was initiated, he told the Dallas Business Journal and was “pleased with the resolution.”
