Jackson Walker Bankruptcy Fee Cases Reassigned After Judge Isgur’s Recusal

In the week since U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Marvin Isgur recused himself from all disputes involving Jackson Walker and the U.S. Trustee — related to the firm’s failure to disclose a former bankruptcy partner had a romantic relationship with a sitting bankruptcy judge — they have been officially reassigned to other bankruptcy judges sitting in the Southern District of Texas, court records show.

The U.S. Trustee has identified 34 cases in which former judge David Jones served as judge or mediator in which Jackson Walker and its former partner Elizabeth Freeman were awarded fees totaling about $18 million — fees that the U.S Trustee is attempting to claw back. Judge Isgur on Sept. 20 referred Jackson Walker for possible disciplinary proceedings for its failure to disclose the relationship between Freeman and Jones. Jones resigned from the bench in October when the secret relationship was publicly reported. Freeman was asked to leave the partnership in 2021 after confessing to the firm the relationship existed.