With no objectors left standing, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Martin Glenn approved Dewey & LeBoeuf’s Chapter 11 liquidation plan Wednesday, clearing the way for the defunct firm’s creditors to begin collecting at least some of hundreds of millions of dollars they are owed and ensuring that Dewey’s unwinding will be among the swiftest and most orderly in the history of major law firm bankruptcies.
The plan approved by Glenn calls for Dewey’s secured creditors—a group that collectively holds nearly $262 million in claims—to be paid roughly 47 to 77 cents for each $1 they are owed. The defunct firm’s unsecured creditors—a group that has asserted hundreds of millions of dollars in additional claims—are in line to get roughly 5 to 14 cents per $1. Dewey’s current team of advisers will now hand the bankruptcy’s reins to a pair of trustees whose mission will be to maximize recoveries for those creditors.
