Harold “Ed” Patricoff, Peter Levitt, Kristin Drecktrah Paz, Aleksey Shtivelman, Marcela Lozano and Kristina Candido

Shutts & Bowen

In a whirlwind case, the Shutts & Bowen team recovered more than $45 million from the government of Angola for Jacksonville-based APR Energy after the country skipped payment for power generation services and output provided at two sites near the capital city Luanda.

After demand letters and promised payments generated little cash, the company sued the Angolan government under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida.

Under threat of a prejudgment seizure of targeted assets in the United States, Angola's finance ministry executed a settlement agreement requiring payment by June 30 to avoid a judgment for the full debt plus legal fees — resolving the lawsuit in under 40 days.

The legal team included:

  • Partner Harold “Ed” Patricoff, chair of of the firm's international arbitration and litigation practice group, who developed and managed the litigation and collection strategy.
  • Partner Peter Levitt, a member of the creditors' rights/bankruptcy practice group, who advised on creditors' rights and identification of assets, drafted pleadings and interpreted relevant laws.
  • Associate Kristin Drecktrah Paz in the international arbitration and litigation practice group, who helped draft the complaint and pleadings on a pre-judgment writ of attachment and helped with legal research.
  • Associate Marcela Lozano in the international arbitration and litigation practice group, who analyzed forfeiture and asset seizure to identify Angolan government property subject to seizure and the procedures for seizing them.
  • Associate Aleksey Shtivelman in the international arbitration and litigation practice group, who consulted with outside experts to help identify strategic Angolan assets and accounts.
  • Partner Kristina Candido in the international arbitration and litigation practice group, who helped develop the litigation strategy and provided client support.