Bankruptcy Law

Supreme Court to Ponder Juvenile Lifers, Government Cross and Dogfight Videos

The U.S. Supreme Court begins its new term Monday with a docket that includes two kinds of videos (one opposing Hillary Clinton and another featuring dogfights), a cross in the Mojave National Preserve, and life sentences for juveniles. More than half of the 45 cases already accepted for argument this…

Sep 29, 2009 8:02 PM CDT

Judge OKs $24M Settlement Against Chrysler in Car Accident Death

A bankruptcy judge in New York has approved a $24 million settlement over a Chrysler longshoreman killed in a California auto accident. A Los Angeles Superior Court jury originally awarded a little more than $55 million to the family of 38-year-old Richard Mraz, who died of head injuries after he…

Sep 24, 2009 11:22 PM CDT

No Quick Freedom for Ex-Lawyer Whose Phone Calls Revealed Missing Money

Massachusetts’ highest court is keeping a former lawyer behind bars for at least another 30 days so a lawyer who listened to his recorded jailhouse conversations to find missing money can persuade a judge that more cash is hidden overseas. The Supreme Judicial Court said Richard Birchall can be released…

Sep 24, 2009 3:07 PM CDT

Thelen Files for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, Claims Up to $100M in Liabilities

The dissolved law firm Thelen has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, saying its lender Citigroup is no longer willing to advance funds to wind down its operations or to fund a Chapter 11 reorganization. The petition for a complete liquidation says the firm has between $10 million and $50 million…

Sep 18, 2009 3:30 PM CDT

Judicial Pay Raises Still a Priority, Lawmakers Tell Judicial Conference

Although ongoing efforts are being made to keep the federal courts operating as efficiently as possible, congressional lawmakers still consider long-awaited judicial pay raises a priority. After a closed-door meeting today between the Judicial Conference of the United States and congressional leaders, Judge Anthony Scirica told reporters that, while “we…

Sep 15, 2009 11:49 PM CDT

Ex-Client’s Bankruptcy Trustee Seeks $25M from Former Powell Goldstein Lawyers

Reviving a malpractice claim against attorneys at the former Powell Goldstein that could potentially cost as much as $25 million to $30 million if it is successful, a federal district court judge decided last month that an ex-client of the firm had not had enough opportunity to present its side…

Sep 14, 2009 6:32 PM CDT

PI Law Firm Owes $1.5M for Phone Book Ads, Bankruptcy Petition Says

A Florida law firm with a name apparently designed for phone book advertising has filed for bankruptcy, listing $1.5 million in debt to companies that publish yellow pages directories. The personal injury firm, A Advocates & Attorneys, is an affiliate of the Kennedy Law Group in Tampa, whose president, Thomas…

Sep 10, 2009 2:53 PM CDT

Chapter 11 Filings By Wealthy Families Jump 73%; Real Estate Blamed

Chapter 11 bankruptcy filings by wealthy families jumped 73 percent in the second quarter of 2009, compared to a year earlier, and the dismal real estate market may be a big part of the reason why. Like their less well-to-do counterparts, those counted in the National Bankruptcy Research Center statistics…

Sep 9, 2009 10:34 PM CDT

Nadel Receiver Sues Holland & Knight, Alleges Failure to Root Out Fraud

Holland & Knight is facing a malpractice suit filed on behalf of the court-appointed receiver trying to recover assets for investors who lost money to alleged Ponzi schemer Arthur Nadel. Receiver Burton Wiand received court approval to sue the law firm last month, the Sarasota Herald-Tribune reports. The suit (PDF),…

Sep 1, 2009 7:38 PM CDT

Milbank Tweed Lures Restructuring Chief From Elite UK Firm

Known for its United States bankruptcy work, Milbank Tweed Hadley & McCloy is now launching a restructuring practice in London with the hire of the chief of the practice group from an elite United Kingdom-based law firm. Nick Angel will be leaving Ashurst this week to become the 14th partner…

Aug 26, 2009 8:48 PM CDT

Masry Estate Disputes Help Drive ‘Erin Brockovich’ Firm Into Chapter 11

A slew of expensive estate litigation following the death of founding partner Ed Masry in 2005 has helped drive the law firm that made its former paralegal, Erin Brockovich, a household name into voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization. A dozen lawsuits concerning Masry & Vititoe arose after Masry’s death from…

Aug 26, 2009 6:54 PM CDT

Five-Lawyer Greenberg Group Leaves BigLaw to Join Ariz.-Based Firm

Five lawyers have leapt from the Phoenix office of Greenberg Traurig to a 100-attorney Arizona-based law firm. Those headed to Gallagher and Kennedy include John Clemency, the only Greenberg Traurig partner in Phoenix a bankruptcy practice, reports the National Law Journal in an article reprinted in New York Lawyer (reg.…

Aug 21, 2009 9:20 PM CDT

Weil Seeks $100M in Lehman Case, Identifies Hardest Working Associate

Weil, Gotshal & Manges is seeking more than $100 million in legal fees and expenses for its work in the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy case. The law firm’s second fee application would put it over the $100 million mark in total billings, when hold back payments are included, the Am Law…

Aug 20, 2009 12:44 PM CDT

Heller Creditors Seek $24M in Pension, Argue Firm was in Red As Early As ‘07

Hoping to show that Heller Ehrman was insolvent as early as 2007, creditors of the dissolving law firm are arguing that some $24 million in pension contributions were fraudulent transfers they are entitled to claw back from the pension fund and/or firm partners. The firm’s dissolution committee has agreed to…

Aug 17, 2009 5:24 PM CDT

Bankruptcies Surge for 3rd Year, 1.3M Filings in 2008-2009

For the third year in a row, bankruptcy filings have surged. Total filings topped 1.3 million during the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2009, a 35 percent increase over the 967,831 filings for the previous 12-month period. Business filings rose 63 percent, as filings by individuals went up by…

Aug 13, 2009 8:04 PM CDT