Enron a pot of gold for lawyers

The legal bill is estimated to be around $780m – surpassing the total set by WorldCom of $622m – and setting a new record in a bankruptcy case, reports The Telegraph. US Judge Arthur Gonzalez, who is overseeing the case, has been asked to approve the fees that would be split among dozens of the top law firms. At a hearing in New York to discuss the fees, Judge Gonzalez conceded that the amount requested by the lawyers was ‘significant’, but noted that ‘it\'s a very complex case’. Creditors should get 20 cents in the dollar for what they are owed once the wind-up of the company is complete. Shareholders don\'t get anything. Many of the law firms worked at cheaper rates than usual, sensitive to the emotions that Enron provokes. Ernst & Young says in court papers that the $37m it is requesting is $3m less than it would usually claim. Full report in The Telegraph