Jackson Walker, U.S. Trustee Move to Strike Each Other’s Experts in Bankruptcy Fee Case

Chief U.S. Bankruptcy Judge for the Southern District of Texas, Eduardo V. Rodriguez, has been told in three separate motions to strike expert reports filed by Jackson Walker and the U.S. Trustee in the litigation over whether more than $18 million in fees awarded to the law firm can be clawed back.  

The litigation stems from public reporting on a formerly secret romantic relationship between then-bankruptcy judge David Jones, who resigned in October 2023, and former Jackson Walker bankruptcy partner Elizabeth Freeman, who left Jackson Walker in December 2022 after admitting to the relationship. The U.S. Trustee has identified 33 cases in which former judge Jones served as judge or mediator and Jackson Walker and its former partner Freeman were awarded millions in fees.