Kirkland & Ellis LLP, a prominent heavyweight in the international legal market, has moved to dismiss allegations arising from a lawsuit that presents the firm as concealing a romantic affair involving a distinguished Texas bankruptcy judge and a local attorney.
In its Tuesday filing, the firm steadfastly distanced itself from the secrecy swirling around the affair, stating clearly that “That relationship has nothing to do with Kirkland”. The legal proceedings took place in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas.
The initial lawsuit was brought against Kirkland & Ellis LLP by the former CEO of Bouchard Transportation Co. Inc., a petroleum barge company. Pointedly, the lawsuit accuses the legal behemoth of intentionally making misleading court submissions designed to obscure an intimate relationship between bankruptcy Judge David R. Jones and erstwhile Jackson Walker legal counsel, Elizabeth Freeman.
According to claims, Kirkland & Ellis LLP and Jackson Walker frequently collaborated on substantial case files.