Administrators of Dewey & LeBoeuf's UK limited liability partnership (LLP) have proposed moving the business, which comprises the defunct US law firm's London and Paris arms, from administration into liquidation as many unsecured creditors, owed a total of £5.2m, look set to lose out.

BDO's statement of administrator's proposals, filed on Companies House last week (27 July), shows the LLP has received £4.2m in unsecured creditor claims, with its associated services arm receiving claims totalling £1m.

Once the costs of the firm's administration and settlement of any preferential claims, which could include claims for accrued holiday pay by UK employees as well as claims from French employees who were unpaid in April and May, administrators Mark Shaw and Shay Bannon expect there will be around £600,000 to distribute to unsecured creditors.

Creditors have until 6 August this year to call a meeting to discuss the proposals. The report provides a breakdown of outstanding creditors, with Lebanese firm Abousleiman & Partners the largest creditor, owed £187,570, while former Paris Dewey partner Christophe Salamon is owed £177,526.57.

The next largest creditors are Eaton Search and Melton Legal Search, each owed £112,800 and £69,600, respectively.

Other details included in the proposals show former Dewey partners Mark Fennessy and Hazel Miller, together with Richard Slade of Richard Slade and Company were a total of £67,845.80 between the period of 28 May to 16 July 2012 in their capacity as Solicitor Managers.

BDO also included its current hourly charge out rates in the filings, with an adviser deemed "partner one" charging £658 an hour, while a "partner two" and director cost £530 and £455 respectively. At the time the document was filed time spent on the administration totalled 487 hours at an average hourly rate of £375 for the UK LLP, with an additional 101 hours at £278 per hour on the services business.   The breakdown also includes BDO's administrator fees for the period 28 May to 16 July 2012, which have totalled £182,982.43 for the UK LLP and £28,414.45 for the services company.

The news comes after a new Dewey bankruptcy filing has confirmed the identities of six potential merger partners that reviewed the firm's audited financial reports ahead of its collapse it emerged today (30 July).

That list shows that Baker & McKenzie, Greenberg Traurig, Patton Boggs, Reed Smith, SNR Denton and Winston & Strawn were among those that "signed confidentiality agreements and received due diligence packages during potential merger discussions."