According to The Am Law Daily, the former landlord for Dewey & LeBoeuf in New York issued some news to the firm. That news was that the firm could be liable for $45 million in relation to the lease for the firm’s office in midtown Manhattan. The former landlord also said that $71.5 million in liability waivers will not protect the firm either.
The lease came about in 1989 when the firm signed a 20-year lease with Tishman Speyer Trammell Crow, the company that owned 1301 Avenue of the Americas. Court documents show that there is a clause from the lease, which is 200 pages, saying “each of Dewey’s partners is jointly and severally liable to 1301 Properties for Dewey’s non-payment of its obligations.” That clause was effective until the termination of the lease on May 25. The former landlord claims that the firm was one month behind in its rent payments, which total $1.6 million.
The lease was terminated three days prior to the firm filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The current owners of 1301 Avenue of the Americas, Paramount Group Inc., claims that it is owed $45.45 million from the lease. The lease was not supposed to end until 2020.
Chadbourne & Parke has signed a lease with the owners of 1301 Avenue of the Americas that will last 20 years. The firm is taking over six floors when it can be redesigned to its liking.