Dewey, Skadden, Bingham, Cooley, McCarter: Business of Law

An effort by the official partners’ committee of Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP to compel appointment of an examiner was “for an improper purpose as a litigation tactic,” a bankruptcy judge said Oct. 9 in approving a $71.5 million settlement with former partners. Two days later, the firm filed papers asking the judge to disband the official partners’ committee.

In papers filed yesterday, Dewey said the original decision by the U.S. Trustee to appoint an official committee representing former partners “was a misstep that needs to be corrected.” The firm characterized the committee as not having “contributed in a productive way to this bankruptcy case.”