London Whale Charges Dropped
Following four years of proceedings in the JPMorgan "London Whale" case involving billions in credit default swaps, a team led by Ed Little and Marc Weinstein convinced Federal prosecutors on July 21 and the SEC on Aug. 18 to drop all criminal and civil charges against two former JPMorgan traders, including HHR client Julien Grout. Grout was vindicated when Little destroyed the government's case by succeeding in deposing its key witness.
Win for NY Hedge Fund Adviser
A team led by Terence Healy and Roel Campos, which includes John Wood, won a significant victory for a New York-based hedge fund adviser and its manager on Aug. 16, when an SEC Administrative Law Judge granted summary disposition against the SEC on all claims related to valuation following a two-month trial on the merits.
More Jurisdiction Wins re Crimea
On July 4, the Permanent Court of Arbitration announced that a treaty arbitration team led by John Townsend, Marc-Olivier Langlois and James Boykin had won two more jurisdiction decisions, this time involving claims by two groups of Ukrainian oil and gas companies against Russia. Hughes Hubbard has now won five jurisdiction decisions — the first to find that a bilateral investment treaty applies to the actions of an occupying power in illegally occupied territory.
Two More Lehman Team Victories
On July 13, the Lehman team sustained the LBI Trustee's position when a U.S. Bankruptcy Judge granted the team summary judgment, ruling that previous agreements subordinated the claims of certain ex-Lehman executives and employees. On July 27, the Second Circuit rejected appeals by two former Lehman traders, agreeing with the Bankruptcy Court that nearly all of their claims were an attempt to get double payments of their bonuses. Jim Fitzpatrick argued both cases.
Firm Wins Mining Arbitration
Hughes Hubbard won a decisive victory on July 28 when the International Chamber of Commerce Court of Arbitration in Paris ruled unanimously in favor of Areva subsidiary CFMM in its dispute with a prominent Belgian group, which sought 150 million euros over a failed joint venture to mine uranium. Sena Agbayissah, head of the firm's Africa practice, led the team.
Overbilling Claims Resolved
On Aug. 15, Hughes Hubbard negotiated a favorable settlement on behalf of a government contractor when the DOJ agreed to a $9.2 million resolution of allegations against the client for alleged overbilling. John Wood led the team, which included Eric Parnes, Marc Weinstein and Michael Huneke.
Appellate Win for Palladyne
Derek Adler and Ned Bassen scored another victory for Dutch hedge fund Palladyne International Asset Management BV and its British PR firm Milltown Partners on Sept.12, when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit upheld the dismissal of a defamation suit brought by a former employee. The court rejected a challenge to the constitutionality of Connecticut's long arm statute's exclusion of jurisdiction over extraterritorial defamation claims.
Firm Leads Portigon to Victory
Chris Paparella, Meaghan Gragg and Brett Collings obtained summary judgment in New York Supreme Court on July 11, for Portigon subsidiary MFC Real Estate in a case seeking to foreclose on a property securing nearly $10 million in debt.
Arbitrators Recognized
John Fellas, Steven Hammond and John Townsend were named among the top legal practitioners in commercial arbitration by the Legal Media Group's 2017 edition of the Best of the Best USA.
HHR Wins Global Legal Awards
Hughes Hubbard was among the winners of The American Lawyer's 2017 Global Legal Awards for its work on the $7.3 billion Nortel dispute. The award for the "Global Dispute of the Year: Transnational Litigation" category was shared with English and Canadian firms who worked with HHR on the matter. Derek Adler led the team, which included Bill Maguire and Neil Oxford.
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