The Law firm for Rudy Giuliani, Tulsi Gabbard, Michael Avenatti, Carter Page, Don Lemon, Lenny Dykstra, Joan Dangerfield (Rodney Dangerfield’s widow) and a Russian Oligarch – Pierce Bainbridge Beck Price & Hecht LLP – reportedly racked up an “estimated $65 million debt” to Virage Capital Management in a year. Lack of ethics, lies under oath, misogyny from the top, discrimination, illicit financial activity, abuse of litigation finance, are just a sample of the accusations facing Pierce Bainbridge and the firm’s current and former partners.
Whistle blowing ex-partner Don Lewis has been insisting for over a year that Pierce is a “con man”; recent events appear to lend credence to Lewis’s claim. Some have opined that the firm’s high-profile clientele were suckered in by Pierce and others.
Lewis says after he blew the whistle on financial misconduct, the firm, with the assistance of some of his ex-partners and the firm’s legal representatives — Putney Twombly (Michael D. Yim) and Littler Mendelson (S. Jeanine Conley) — weaponized #MeToo to humiliate him and undermine his credibility. Interestingly, Conley’s counsel oddly claimed the Lewis litigation, not his client’s own documented conduct, was causing “no manner of trouble” with Conley’s application to the South Carolina Bar.
With news of the $65 million debt, questions arising about ex-United States Managing Partner Douglas Curran (BraunHagey & Borden), the debacle facing Bathee Dunne in the Southwest / Boeing matter, as well as Eric Creizman (Armstrong Teasedale) attacking LawFuel on Twitter, the visibility of the Pierce Bainbridge drama has heightened dramatically. (LawFuel provides a brief response to Creizman after the jump).
LawFuel will provide a multi-part “cast of characters” series. This is Part I: The “Name Partners Edition.”
Name: John Mark Pierce.
Title: “Global” Managing Partner (of a law firm with offices only in the U.S.) (Current.)
Related Position: Listed as “Chief Investment Officer” at Talon LF, LLC, a litigation fund incorporated in September 2018 reportedly seeking to raise over $100 million. Douglas Curran and ex-Acting Managing Partner Thomas D. Warren also appear on the Talon fundraising solicitation materials, which seemingly contain misleading representations.
Prior stations: Cohen Grigsby; Quinn Emmanuel; Latham Watkins; K&L Gates; Pierce Sergenian; and Pierce Burns.
Defendant: Individual defendant in at least six (6) lawsuits, all contain allegations of financial malfeasance; three (3) brought by cash advance lenders West Coast Business, Slate Advance LLC and Creative Capital Funding.
Past Firm Financial Obligation: Individually “liable for the full balance due to Pravati in the amount of $9,157,072.95” per a Pravati declared default by Pierce Bainbridge under a “funding agreement.”
Current Firm Financial Obligation: Reportedly personally guaranteed the entirety of the Virage “estimated $65 million” Virage debt. (Alleged around $1.5 million in tax liens and $21,000 Individually per month alimony obligation.)
General Issues: Brutalized by firm personnel for substance abuse, dishonesty and general instability. Accused of a “Billion Dollar Lie” to litigation funder Pravati Capital LLC, pilfering from firm accounts, reportedly allegedly mishandling funds in the sacred client trust account, and providing clients with unethical financial gifts. Publicly ridiculed for declaring Pierce Bainbridge attorneys must have “kevlar skin with titanium at times” and be willing to “swallow some risk.” A NYC lawyer warned Pierce in Fall 2018 of trying to grow too fast and “ending up in jail.”
Name: James D. Bainbridge.
Title: Co-Managing Partner. (Current.)
Current Station: Pierce Bainbridge.
Defendant: Individual defendant in at least (2) lawsuits.
Past PB Financial Obligation: Individually “liable for the full balance due to Pravati in the amount of $9,157,072.95” per a Pravati declared default by Pierce Bainbridge under a “funding agreement.”
Current PB Financial Obligation: Unclear.
General Issues: Little is known about his past. Named defendant in an action by the Federal Trade Commission in the mid-1990’s; pegged ringleader of an alleged $80 million scheme. “Closest friend,” Daniel A. Fingarette (aka William A. Burke), also named by FTC; matter settled with an $11 million payment and no admission of guilt. Fingarette, according to Pierce, is involved in Pierce Bainbridge finances, and appears on e-mails with the name-partners. (More on the mysterious Fingarette and Bainbridge duo here.)
Name: Carolynn K. Beck.
Title: General Counsel and Washington D.C. Office Managing Partner. (Former)
Prior Stations: Murchinson & Cumming, Margolis & Tinsman.
Current Station: Goldstein & McClintock
Defendant: “Individual defendant in at least three (3) lawsuits, all contain allegations of financial foul play.”
Past PB Financial Obligation Individual defendant in at least three (3) lawsuits, all contain allegations of financial malfeasance.: Unclear.
Current PB Financial Obligation: Unclear.
General Issues. A text message from the bookkeeper states Beck was aware Pierce was taking funds from firm accounts as early as October 2018. Alleged to have hired and conspired with her personal friend Michael D. Yim of Putney Twombly to railroad Lewis out of the firm. Accused of deleting, manipulating and burying evidence, including on her personal cell phone. Accused of involvement in a “Billion Dollar Lie” to litigation funder Pravati Capital LLC. Recipient of harsh criticism from other firm partners who have, among other items, referred to Beck as “like a cult member,” with a “mind that moves about as fast as pond water.”
Name: Maxim Price.
Title: Partner. (Former)
Prior Stations: Jones Day; Quinn Emanuel
Current Station: Unknown.
Defendant: Individual defendant in at least (2) lawsuits.
Past PB Financial Obligation. Unclear.
Current PB Financial Obligation. Unclear.
General Issues. Accused of “spying” on Lewis’s e-mails. Responsible for immediately locking Lewis out of his electronic firm communications, prior to a single conversation. Received several written communications from Lewis, as did all of Lewis’s former partners, raising concerns about issues at the firm both prior to and subsequent to what Lewis says was his “illegal termination.” Price apparently did nothing to investigate or correct the alleged illicit activity.
Name: David L. Hecht
Title: New York Office Managing Partner. (Former)
Prior Station: Jones Day; Quinn Emanuel; Steptoe Johnson.
Current Station: Hecht Partners.
Defendant: Individual defendant in at least three (3) lawsuits (one a proposed amendment), all contain allegations of financial malfeasance.
Past PB Financial Obligation: Individually “liable for the full balance due to Pravati in the amount of $9,157,072.95” per a Pravati declared default by Pierce Bainbridge under a “funding agreement.”
Current PB Financial Obligation: Unclear
General Issues: Called “like a cult” member by a partner. A different partner expressed concern about Hecht’s ability to lead cases. A reporter stated about a complaint filed on behalf of Tulsi Gabbard: “It’s laughable, and the lawyers who signed their names to it — Brian Dunne, Dan Terzian, and David Hecht, from Pierce Bainbridge — should be embarrassed.” Posted rap video on his LinkedIn and captioned it “THE GREATEST LAW FIRM TESTIMONIAL IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD!!!!!” (While the link was recently down, it appears to have been restored.)
More actors will be covered in the next edition of this Pierce Bainbridge “Who’s Who” Series. Here is the promised response to Eric Creizman.
************************************************
Addendum on Criticism from Creizman
Ex-Pierce Bainbridge, and current Armstrong Teasedale partner, Eric Creizman, recently attacked LawFuel on Twitter. We were surprised, primarily for three reasons.
First, Creizman was thrust very much into the pubic eye when Rudy Giuliani tweeted that he had retained Pierce Bainbridge, and specifically referenced Eric Creizman.
In addition, a press release for World Patent Marketing, refers to Creizman as a “Legendary New York Attorney.” Naturally, such lofty status invites heightened scrutiny, and one would hope thicker, even perhaps “kevlar” skin, to use a Pierce expression.
Second, Creizman expressed concerns in the past directly to LawFuel. In response, we printed his e-mail in full. Creizman’s e-mail is available towards the end of this link.
Third, our coverage of Creizman has primarily been based on issues supported by documentary evidence in the public record. As a representative example, we have reported on: (i) a pending “ineffective assistance of counsel” claim against Creizman on the public docket; we even posted only Creizman’s declaration related to the matter; (ii) Creizman appearing on a UCC filing concerning a $9.1 million default by Pravati Capital LLC, also a matter of public record. We posted a copy of the relevant UCC filing (red font added for clarity); (iii) Creizman’s role in connection with World Patent Marketing, based on a Washington Post report, a company that paid a $25 million or more settlement with no admission of guilt after the FTC accused WPM of fraud earlier in the same year Creizman joined Pierce Bainbridge; and (iv) Creizman speaking derisively of Caroline Polisi (his partner at Armstrong Teasedale, former partner at Pierce Bainbridge and former associate at Creizman LLC) and Christopher N. LaVigne (Withers Bergman). This information concerning LaVigne and Polisi comes directly from Creizman’s own e-mail, which was linked to in the relevant article.
For clarity, a screen shot of the self-aggrandizing email is below. As background, Creizman had not yet joined the firm, and Lewis proposed adding white-collar partners LaVigne and Polisi to a press release announcing Creizman and Melissa Madrigal joining Pierce Bainbridge.
Interestingly, the proposed press release contained a representation that Creizman joining the firm resulted in Pierce Bainbridge having the “most robust criminal defense practice in New York.” The firm’s two white-collar partners at the time, LaVigne and Polisi, had a different view. In writing, Polisi characterized this as “utterly laughable.” LaVigne – in writing – “It’s honestly crazy.”
In any event, Creizman took issue on Twitter with the representation that LaVigne reportedly told Lewis that Creizman was not interested in leaving the firm because his financial “deal was too good.” Creizman denied and disparaged LawFuel for it. Lewis re-confirmed “LaVigne absolutely, 100%, said that to me; perhaps Eric is calling Chris a liar.”
Be that as it may, we are happy to print Creizman’s denial (we just did!); however, based on the preceding, LawFuel respectfully submits that Creizman’s attack was misguided. We do, however, appreciate the feedback, and are always open to more.
Stay tuned for the next edition of the Pierce Bainbridge “Who’s Who” Series.
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The least shocking thing that I’ve heard all week is that the law firm connected with Giuliani is swimming in corruption. Every update that I read on this firm it gets worse. It appears there’s a genuine possibility that people end up disbarred and maybe prison it seems.
Jason, you are as big of an idiot as Dan Garner (A/K/A Don Lewis) is.