New Court Filings: FTX Racked Up $19.6 Million in Legal and Financial Advisor Fees in Just 51 Days – What's Going On?
Court documents have revealed the eye-watering costs behind the ongoing FTX bankruptcy saga. Sam Bankman-Fried paid nearly $20m in fees between November's collapse and the end of 2022.
The grandeur of this legal circus cannot be understated. On the defence team there are 151 staff members . This includes attorneys, accountants, and strategic advisors.
Work in the immediate aftermath of the seismic FTX implosion saw $10m billed at the end of November.
Sam Bankman-Fried has employed top firms for his defense. With legal work headed by Sullivan & Cromwell. Assisted by Landis Rath & Cobb alongside Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan.
Sullivan & Cromwell formed the biggest share of the ongoing legal tab. Charging a whopping $6.28m for their 6,500 hours of work between November 12 - 30. Up to half of this bill comprised work by senior partners in the firm charging extreme rates.
The biggest single item was a $40,000 invoice for one days' representation at the first FTX bankruptcy hearing.
Quinn Emanuel billed Sam Bankman-Fried $1.5m after deploying 12 lawyers to the case to a tune of $17,000 a day.
The staggering legal bill comes with the immense complexity around the case. With a huge web of 100 entities to work through at a transactional level in reference to accounting compliance.
Indeed, Alvarez and Marsal's advisory has seen 7925 hours invested in the case. This mostly comprises blockchain explorer work following the money trails. But also included interviewing key figures in the case such as Caroline Ellison (Alameda Research). A fair $6.28m invoice covered this.
Jaw-dropping legal bills are not uncommon in corporate bankruptcy cases. Lehman Brother's bankruptcy saga cost a sensational $2.56bn.
Yet, these fee statements show the
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