Dewey Fights U.S. Trustee for Right to its Advisers

Dewey and LeBoeuf are set for an intense Monday in which they tackle many of the thick grilling details of dissolving their law firm. Their Chapter 11 case is facing U.S. Trustee Tracy Hope Davis who is challenging the legitimacy of the firm’s use of 10 advisers. She squares against Albert Togut to dispute if using public relation firms — who represent Dewey’s unsecured creditors — is appropriate for bankruptcy.

Togut responded, as reported by AM Law, that Dewey “did not make these retention choices in a vacuum; it made them with serious creditor oversight.” He said holding these various advisors was not duplicative, and that the claims that it is so “ignore the obvious and are not mechanical, and not thoughtful….if efficiency and cost matter, on that basis alone, the objections should be overruled.”

Among those advisers currently retained are Proskauer Rose, Keightley & Ashner, and Sitrick & Company. Michael Sitrick is prepared to leave if the judge disputes his hiring, but has been helping Dewey announce its bankruptcy and corresponded with Dewey employees and landlords, and generally acted as a public relations advisor. Proskauer defended its role as an essential adviser to Dewey by noting the aid it gave as Dewey settling labor and employment concerns as the firm prepared for bankruptcy.

Some uncontested motions addressed Monday include requests to finance employee wages and taxes before their May 28 bankruptcy filing, and the use of their existing bank accounts.

Though covering many issues Monday, Dewey is still preparing another set of concerns for a second hearing on July 25.