Dewey & LeBoeuf have been able to avoid Chapter 7 bankruptcy after the firms settlement plan passed $50m (£32m).
After weeks of negotiations an email was sent to ex-partners by chief restructuring officer Joff Mitchell of Zolfo Cooper stating that the necessary commitments had been received as of 2.45pm New York time.
The e-mail said the wind-down team could now take the plan to the bankruptcy court and creditors.
It is understood that the $60m (£38.2m) mark has since been reached, although the amount is still significantly off the $90.4m (£57.6m) the bankruptcy team is aiming for.
Former partners can still opt in to the settlement even if they missed yesterday’s deadline but will be forced to pay a 25 per cent premium on top of the amount they have already been asked to pay in.
UK ex-partners have been split over the deal after 17 of them took legal advice from a US bankruptcy specialist.
It is understood that Camille Abousleiman and Louise Roman Bernstein, who are both now at Dechert, have committed to participate, but finance partner Bruce Johnston of Morgan Lewis & Bockius, Fred Gander of KPMG and Willkie Farr & Gallagher’s Joseph Ferraro are thought to have snubbed the deal.
Former partners in Dubai and Italy have also participated following negotiations after initially taking a stance against the deal. The firm’s former Polish office has opted in, although many German ex-partners are understood to have refused.
A document leaked to US legal website Above the Law indicates that New York corporate partner Berge Setrakian was asked to pay in $3.5m (£2.2m), the upper limit, the only partner to hit the cap set by bankruptcy chiefs. His total income in 2011 and 2012 was $12,823,670.00, according to the document, but this can include deferred payments from previous years and other amounts aside from compensation.
Ralph Ferrara was the only other partner asked for more than $3m (£1.9m), with his 2011 and 2012 income coming to $12,350,606, resulting in a bill for $3,366,480 (£2.14m).
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