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Bankruptcy tease

Led by Jones Day and Porter Hedges, J&J Brings Texas Two-Step to Houston

Johnson & Johnson, hoping the third time's a charm for solving its multibillion-dollar talc baby powder litigation fiasco, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Friday for its Red River Talc subsidiary in Houston. The case featuring the highly controversial Texas Two-Step procedure has been assigned to Southern District of Texas Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez. Two Texas lawyers expected to play key roles for the debtors in the case are Jones Day partner Gregory Gordon of Dallas and Porter Hedges partner John Higgins of Houston.

Mark Curriden

Judge Isgur Refers Jackson Walker for Possible Disciplinary Proceedings, Recuses in Bankruptcy Fee Case

In the two-page order, Judge Marvin Isgur also recused himself from all disputes “between the United States Trustee and Jackson Walker that relate to alleged non-disclosure issues by Jackson Walker.” The order was issued in the Chapter 11 bankruptcy case of Altera Infrastructure Project Services, in which former judge David Jones acted as a mediator and Jackson Walker represented a party.

Michelle Casady

Judge Schedules Deposition of Ex-Judge Jones, Sorts Out Discovery Dispute Between Jackson Walker, U.S. Trustee

During a hearing Tuesday Chief U.S. bankruptcy Judge Eduardo Rodriguez brushed aside scheduling concerns the parties raised and ordered that Albert Alonzo, who served as case manager to former Judge David Jones for more than a decade, be deposed on Sept. 18. Jones, who resigned his office after public revelations that he had a secret romantic relationship with a Jackson Walker bankruptcy partner, will be deposed in the same courtroom, under the supervision of Chief Judge Rodriguez, the following day.

Michelle Casady

Court: U.S. Trustee May Depose Former Bankruptcy Judge on Secret Romantic Relationship

Former Houston Bankruptcy Judge David Jones, who oversaw significant corporate bankruptcies over the past decade, can now be questioned under oath about his undisclosed personal relationship with Elizabeth Freeman, then a partner at Jackson Walker, which earned millions in legal fees from cases the judge presided over.

The ruling, made by U.S. Chief Bankruptcy Judge Eduardo Rodriguez over the weekend, allows the U.S. Trustee to depose both Jones and his former case manager, Albert Alonzo, regarding the details of this secret relationship. Additionally, they may be compelled to provide personal documents related to the relationship, but this process will occur under the direct supervision of the chief judge.

Mark Curriden

Jackson Walker Pushes for Dismissal from ‘Fiction’ ‘Labeled as a Complaint’ in Judge Jones-Related RICO Suit

On Wednesday, Jackson Walker ripped apart the racketeering and fraud lawsuit former Bouchard Transportation Company CEO Morton Bouchard III had lodged against it in February after the secret romance between former bankruptcy judge David Jones and former Jackson Walker bankruptcy partner Elizabeth Freeman came to light. “Mr. Bouchard’s response fails to solve the standing and pleading defects that plague the fiction his counsel has labeled as a complaint,” the firm told the court, doubling down on arguments it first made in May when it sought dismissal of the lawsuit.

Michelle Casady

Transcript of Show Cause Hearing Released in Judge Jones Case

On Wednesday morning, a redacted version of a transcript from a recent show cause hearing — in the litigation to determine whether Jackson Walker should be forced to return about $13 million in legal fees earned in bankruptcy cases before former Judge David Jones — was made publicly available.

Michelle Casady

Judge Slams Ex-Judge Jones but Dismisses Fraud Case in Houston Bankruptcy Romance Scandal

With “some consternation,” a federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by a former McDermott shareholder who claims that he was defrauded out of his ownership stake in the company through a conspiracy that included former Houston Bankruptcy Judge David Jones, his secret girlfriend Elizabeth Freeman, her former law firm Jackson Walker and mega-corporate law firm Kirkland & Ellis. “The Court takes no pleasure in this result. The Plaintiff’s allegations, if true, cast doubt on the integrity of numerous high-profile bankruptcy cases. Litigants should not have to wonder whether the judge overseeing their case stands to gain from ruling against them: but in Jones’s courtroom, they did.”

Mark Curriden

SDTX Chief Bankruptcy Judge Considering Contempt Proceedings, Sanctions Against Judge Jones, Jackson Walker

Chief Bankruptcy Judge Eduardo Rodriguez of Houston has ordered his former colleague, ex-bankruptcy Judge David Jones, and law firm Jackson Walker to appear in his court this Wednesday to explain why they apparently went behind his back and against his prior order to conduct a private interview regarding facts involving the judge’s secret romantic relationship with former Jackson Walker partner Elizabeth Freeman.

Chief Judge Rodriguez issued a show-case order Monday stating that the U.S. Trustee’s Office has informed the court that such an interview recently took place and demanded that Judge Jones and lawyers for Jackson Walker appear Wednesday at 8:30 a.m. to explain their reasons and face possible sanctions.

“Jackson Walker, its counsel and David R. Jones and his counsel must be prepared to explain to this court whether in fact the allegations raised in the U.S. Trustee’s notice regarding Jones’s interview by Jackson Walker’s counsel did in fact occur and if so explain to this court the details of such interview,” the chief judge wrote in a blistering three-page order.

At the same time, the plan administrator in the JC Penney bankruptcy is seeking to subpoena cell phone records of Judge Jones to see if he was secretly sending text messages to Freeman during court proceedings.

Mark Curriden

Deposition of Former Houston Bankruptcy Judge Put on Hold

The on-again, off-again deposition of former Houston Bankruptcy Judge David Jones is on hold again. Lawyers for Jackson Walker want to question Judge Jones about his secret relationship with one of its former partners while still handling corporate bankruptcy cases involving the lawyer and the law firm. But SDTX Chief Bankruptcy Judge Eduardo Rodriguez postponed the depo to determine which questions lawyers can force Judge Jones to answer.

Mark Curriden

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