In recent days, the law firm of Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP announced that five bank finance and high yield partners have joined its existing New York acquisition finance practice.

The partners include Ronan M. Wicks and Patrick J. Flanagan, formerly partners at Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP in New York, Bruce Czachor, formerly a partner at Shearman & Sterling LLP in New York, Julian S.H. Chung, formerly a partner at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP in New York, and Jason D. White, head of the leveraged and high grade finance and credit restructuring practices in the Americas for the legal department of Barclays Capital. 

The partners have joined Orrick’s acquisition finance practice group; Ronan Wicks will serve as global co-head.

Wicks, Flanagan, Czachor, Chung and White regularly represent a cross section of major investment banks in sophisticated financing and restructuring transactions involving financial sponsors, leveraged corporates and investment grade companies. Clients have included Barclays Capital, Goldman Sachs, Credit Suisse, Morgan Stanley, Citibank, and Bank of America.

Orrick’s client base of financial institutions accounts for over one-third of the firm’s total revenues.  With the addition of these partners, the firm has added significant acquisition finance capability to its leading financial institution practices in the areas of project finance, infrastructure finance, structured finance, public finance, capital markets, tax, and litigation. 

Ralph Baxter, Chairman and CEO of Orrick was quoted as saying in a press release at the firm’s website: “We are delighted to assemble this team of leading practitioners in the area of acquisition finance. This move adds another strong dimension to our representation of major investment banks and financial institutions, both in New York and globally.”

Ralph Baxter has held the position of Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP since 1990. Under his leadership, the firm has become known as an innovator, and has expanded, diversified and extended its geographic reach, as well as launched a variety of transformative initiatives, including the firm’s new talent and pricing models.

Recognized as one of America’s “100 Most Influential Lawyers” by The National Law Journal, Baxter speaks frequently on business leadership and the evolution of the legal profession. He is the founder of the Law Firm Leaders Forum, one of the most significant gatherings of law firm leaders annually examining critical issues facing the legal profession. 

A leading global law firm with offices spanning the United States, Europe and Asia, Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP has over 1,200 lawyers across 23 offices and 8 countries, and offers practices of the highest quality, including a mix of transactional, litigation and regulatory expertise. 

Chambers & Partners ranks Orrick’s lawyers and its practices among the world’s finest.  The 2011 Chambers Global profiles Orrick’s strengths across 37 practice areas and 11 markets, and names 60 Orrick lawyers as leading practitioners worldwide.  Law 360 recently named Orrick among its “Global 20,” a list of the most successful firms as measured by US and international expansion and results achieved for clients.  As well, The Financial Times includes Orrick on its list of the most innovative U.S.-origin law firms, recognizing the firm’s finance and litigation work.

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In response to ex-employees seeking damages under the federal WARN Act, the firm says it should be excused from its obligations because they were impossible to fulfill. Also, because the firm had been seeking capital to keep in business, informing employees would have jeopardized attempts to secure a loan.

Thelen told its employees in late October that it would cease doing business by December 1st. Citibank, the only secured creditor, seized the firm’s bank accounts and did not allow it to pay employees accrued vacation.

Steve Blum, who represents plaintiffs in the federal class action, said it’s a “cop out” to blame the banks. The partners should have ponied up the money for the employees, he said.

Latham & Watkins partner Wayne Flick, who filed the answer on behalf of Thelen, declined to comment.

Thelen owed Citibank $60 million when it dissolved. It has paid off about $25 million and is continuing to collect payments, according to bankruptcy partner Peter Gilhuly at Latham & Watkins.

Blum is also representing former Heller employees in a potential class action against that firm, which filed for bankruptcy in December.

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Houston lawyer Richard T. Howell Jr., whose firm was scammed out of $182,500 by a client who contacted and hired him through e-mail, says he is talking publicly about the situation so he can prevent other Texas lawyers from making the same mistakes.

“I’m a capital ‘D’ Dumbass,” says Howell, who has practiced law for 23 years and is a partner in Buckley, White, Castaneda & Howell.

In October 2008, Howell became the victim of a sophisticated, international version of a classic check-fraud scam…

Because he is responsible, Howell says, he did not ask his partners to help him cover the loss, which stemmed from collections work Howell did for a client who said he was a businessman in Japan. To reimburse his firm, Howell says, he had to borrow money on a home equity loan.

Howell’s firm sued Citibank… alleging the New York bank was negligent and engaged in negligent misrepresentation when it represented to Howell that a $367,000 check — that was supposed to be a payment to Howell’s client from a customer — had cleared when, in fact, it was a bogus check….

Howell says that with a 33.3 percent fee, the prospect of collecting $3.6 million in unpaid invoices for the client was a big lure. “To me, it sounded like it could be a potentially lucrative client from Japan,” Howell says.

“Sounded like?” Is that how lawyers are supposed to operate? If it sounded good, then it’s okay? Hey Howell, I’m a Nigerian prince. Please keep an eye out for my email.

Read the whole story.

• Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP Adds Five Partners to NY Acquisition Finance Practice
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Former Heller partner Peter Benvenutti said the firm filed not because it is out of money, but because its main two creditors, Bank of America and Citibank, have refused to renegotiate the terms of a $5.7 million debt.

Last week a judge ruled that the firm’s San Francisco landlord, 333 Bush Associates, was entitled to a $48 million writ of attachment. A portion of Heller’s assets were immediately frozen, and Bush Associates became a secured creditor, ahead of dozens of unsecured creditors waiting in line for their money.

Benvenutti says the firm is collecting money and expects to recover “tens of millions” in collections going forward. The firm has $3.7 million in cash, and expects to recover about $35 million in accounts receivable. The firm’s liabilities consist of the $5.7 million it owes to lenders, $10 million in other accounts payable and $4 million in taxes.

There are 54 employees left at Heller. The firm has no cash to pay them their regular salaries, and its main banks froze $6.5 million in the firm’s accounts upon learning that the firm might file for bankruptcy. The firm filed first-day motions with the court, asking to use cash collateral to pay the remaining employees, who have also been promised 100% retention bonuses in exchange for staying on.

The firm says it hopes to repay the bank lenders in the next three or four weeks.

Teams from Greenberg Traurig and Pachulski Stang Ziehl & Jones are bankruptcy co-counsel for Heller.

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