Piper Rudnick has opened early discussions with Gray Cary Ware & Freidenrich about a merger between the two firms, according to law firm consultant Peter Zeughauser. Although firm leaders won’t say whether they’re negotiating, the two firms — themselves both products of past mergers — have made no secret of their desire to grow. Such […]
Defense lawyers in the Walt Disney trial on Friday tried to undermine the credibility of a witness who testified that company directors neglected their oversight duties when they hired and later fired the president, Michael S. Ovitz. The witness, Prof. John J. Donohue III of Yale, concluded on Thursday that Disney could have saved $140
Greed and sexual desire drove Martin Frankel to mastermind one of the largest insurance frauds in U.S. history, a federal judge heard on Friday as she sentenced him to nearly 17 years in prison. Once the target of a worldwide manhunt, the Connecticut financier pleaded guilty in May 2002 to racketeering, conspiracy, wire fraud and
A federal judge has delayed for a week a decision on proposed bankruptcy financing for Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts Inc. so that shareholders can review the company’s finances. A New Jersey bankruptcy court hearing will now be held Jan. 11 to review an interim approval of the casino operator’s $100 million reorganization financing, according
San Francisco-based Pillsbury Winthrop and Washington DC’s Shaw Pittman have entered merger discussions, which – if successful – would gatecrash the top 20 US firms. Shaw Pittman has been hit by a number of partner departures in the US and in London and is specifically looking to increase its size in New York. The Big
Duane Morris has agreed to pay an undisclosed sum to settle a legal malpractice suit brought by a former corporate executive who claimed the firm hid a serious conflict of interest from him and that he was forced into bankruptcy, where he had to sell his home and his stock interests in the company that
A former executive at Boeing, Michael M. Sears, once in line to become chief executive, was sentenced on Friday to four months in prison for his role in illegally recruiting a former top Air Force official to work for the company. Mr. Sears, 57, stood before the court and said he was ashamed of his
Delivering a magisterial closing argument, Assistant U.S. Attorney William Johnson tied the various strands of the case against Bernard J. Ebbers tightly enough to likely secure a conviction, and offered a roadmap for making cases against CEOs in other instances, as well. Thursday, it will be up to the defense to argue that the road
Britain was expected to release eight terror suspects, regarded by the government as among the most dangerous in the country, as politicians continued to squabble on Friday over new terror legislation. A judge released one suspect, a 37-year-old Algerian referred to only as “A,” on bail late on Thursday and said he intended to free
Closing a difficult chapter, Time Warner Inc. said Monday it would pay $300 million and restate three years of financial results to settle civil fraud charges stemming from its accounting of online advertising revenues and subscriber counts at its AOL unit. The settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission also calls for the world’s largest
