The long-standing professional relationship between Holland & Knight and JetBlue Airways Corp is witnessing a decline as Joanna Geraghty, spouse of the law firm’s litigation head and the airline’s new CEO, steps in.
In recent times, JetBlue, which had to pay a substantial termination fee of $69 million to Spirit Airlines Inc after a federal judge stopped its $3.8 billion bid for the low-cost carrier, remains a client of Holland & Knight, but the partnership appears to be winding down.
It has been verified that the work Holland & Knight has delivered for JetBlue has been in a declining trajectory for the last decade. This trend is so pronounced that it no longer warrants a common conflict of interest disclosure. Despite this, both parties maintain their commitment to circumventing conflicts.
Under U.S. security rules, publicly traded companies must detail certain transactions relating to related parties – for instance, if a business partner or vendor is related to a board member or senior executive of the company. However, corporations and their boards do have substantial leeway in what they consider important information that shareholders must be made aware of.
Interestingly, JetBlue initiated disclosure of what it paid Holland & Knight only in fiscal 2018, which is incidentally the first year in which Geraghty was listed among its six highest-paid executives. The most recent proxy statement filed in March, however, does not include what Holland & Knight earned from JetBlue in legal fees during fiscal 2023.
From 2018 to 2022, Holland & Knight’s revenue resulting from JetBlue work ranged between .0025% to .18%. These figures roughly translate to several million dollars. In 2020, Holland & Knight’s gross revenue breached the $1 billion mark and neared $2 billion the following year, according to The American Lawyer.
JetBlue’s relationship with Holland & Knight can be traced back to a time before Geraghty came on board in 2005. The airline company stated in its 2022 proxy that Geraghty’s spouse, litigation section leader Christopher Kelly, and others had provided “various legal services for many years.”
Looking forward, Geraghty’s role at the helm of JetBlue might potentially lead to further decline in the volume of work handled for JetBlue by Holland & Knight. Despite this evolving business dynamic, all top executives of JetBlue, including Geraghty, witnessed an increase in their compensation in 2023.