Bankruptcy attorneys will have a very green Christmas if the judge in the Texas Rangers bankruptcy sale agrees to their fee requests.
The request, which includes a $5.4 million for one Dallas firm, will be sliced from the $593 million paid for the club by the group led by Chuck Greenberg and Nolan Ryan.
The Texas Rangers Partners, a Hicks Sports Group entity, Weil Gotshall & Manges, which represented the club’s bankrupt owner, have requested a $5.4 million for more than 8,800 hours billed at rates as high as $990 an hour in October as 6 bankruptcy attorneys have asked for fees ranging from $300,000 to $420,000.
Forshey & Prostok, a Fort Worth firm that replaced Weil Gotshall as the debtor’s attorney when conflicts of interest arose, has requested $540,000 and Perella Weinberg Partners, the New York firm originally hired by Hicks to find a buyer, requested $1.8 million for services and expenses for scouting the nation for potential bidders during the bankruptcy.
While William Snyder, the court-appointed chief restructuring officer who pushed for an auction over Greenberg-Ryan’s opposition, has requested $635,000 payment for his firm’s services and expenses.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge D. Michael Lynn, who himself earns $160,080 a year, will scrutinize the fee and expense claims from all the parties involved as he is the sole arbiter and can use his discretion to reduce or enlarge requests.
