Alston & Bird’s California dreams haven’t been for naught. The Atlanta law firm has been tapped as co-lead counsel on the liquidation of a California company that had been one of the biggest American mortgage lenders.
On Wednesday, Alston managing partner Richard Hays [left]
announced the acquisition of 83-lawyer firm Weston Benshoof Rochefort Rubalcava & MacCuish of Los Angeles. The same day, Alston acquired the 11-lawyer Silicon Valley office of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld.
Now comes news of a big California assignment for Alston. Alston is serving as co-lead counsel on IndyMac Bancorp Inc.’s bankruptcy liquidation. IndyMac filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection on Thursday in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California.
Alston partner John C. “Kit” Weitnauer in Atlanta is listed as IndyMac’s co-lead counsel, along with Weston Benshoof partner Dean G. Rallis Jr. in Los Angeles. Orrick, Harrington & Sutcliffe litigation partner Edwin V. Woodsome Jr. in Los Angeles is also listed as IndyMac’s counsel.
It had previously been reported that Alston banking partner Dwight C. Smith III in Washington was advising IndyMac on certain matters. Smith is a former deputy chief counsel at the U.S. Office of Thrift Supervision. Smith declined to elaborate to Deal Watch Blog on his work for IndyMac.
IndyMac, headquartered in Pasadena, Calif., had been the second-largest independent mortgage lender in the U.S. But IndyMac was hammered by the subprime mortgage meltdown, which led to a run on the bank. The Office of Thrift Supervision closed IndyMac on July 11, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. on July 14 seized IndyMac’s assets.
Although banks are not allowed to file for bankruptcy, bank holding companies are, The Deal’s Dealscape column said.