On July 3, New York-based law firm McDermott Will & Emery filed a request for compensation of $5.1 million from the creditors of bankrupt crypto brokerage firm Voyager Digital. The law firm billed the fees for legal services provided between March 1 and May 13, 2023, to the “Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors.”
The court filing revealed that McDermott Will & Emery charged an hourly rate of $1,026.76 for its services during that period. The firm listed various legal services it provided to Voyager, including advising the committee on its powers and duties under bankruptcy rules, attending meetings, negotiating with the debtors’ representatives and other involved parties, and preparing necessary motions, applications, orders, and other legal documents.
This was the law firm’s third and final bill, bringing the total compensation to $16.48 million between July 5, 2022, and May 19, 2023. Of this amount, $8.97 million has already been paid by the creditors. However, McDermott Will & Emery is not the only legal service provider working with Voyager. On June 28, legal adviser Kirkland & Ellis also billed Voyager $1.1 million in legal fees for the month of April.
Voyager filed for bankruptcy in July 2022 due to a crypto lending crisis that caused market turmoil and the collapse of several established crypto firms, including Celsius and BlockFi. At the time of the bankruptcy filing, Voyager disclosed liabilities ranging from $1 billion to $10 billion.
Other crypto firms, such as Celsius and FTX, have also incurred substantial legal fees during lengthy bankruptcy proceedings. FTX, for example, was billed over $120 million in financial and legal advisory fees between February 1 and April 30, 2023.
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