Troubled Thacher Proffitt to Advise Government on Bailout Plan
Troubled law firm Thacher Proffitt & Wood has nabbed a $500,000 government contract in the $200 billion Wall Street bailout.
The law firm will advise the government on buying up toxic securities from lenders under the bailout, the Am Law Daily reports. Thacher was one of three law firms bidding on the work out of seven asked to submit proposals, according to a press release.
Four law firms also declined to pursue work on another aspect of the bailout in an earlier request for proposals. Those declining the work included Davis Polk & Wardwell; Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz; and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton. Client conflicts were said to have played a role. Simpson Thacher won that job advising the government on acquiring ownership interest in banks.
Thacher Proffitt lost 100 lawyers the past year, many of them through layoffs, and is seeking to lease its New York headquarters in the World Financial Center. It is reportedly seeking a merger to avoid dissolution, according to Legal Times.
