The Lehman Bros. bankruptcy wiped out shareholders and left creditors and employees with anguishing losses, but it's been a godsend for an army of lawyers and consultants.The Wall Street Journal reports (subscription required) :Turnaround firm Alvarez & Marsal earned more than $30 million for less than three months of work for Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., a fraction of what could ultimately be paid to advisers, experts say."
Lawyers on the case are earning as much as $950 per hour, and a law professor told the Journal that fees could be as high $800 million by the time things are over.
2008 was a tough year for law firms, but the winding down of massive corporate failures like Lehman and Bear Stearns combined with the litigation associated with managerial screw-ups like Citigroup (NYSE: C) should provide a steady stream of work for corporate lawyers for the next decade or so.
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