Bankruptcy Estate Moves to Jettison Dewey Leases

The Dewey & LeBoeuf estate hopes to void two dozen leases on office space the now-bankrupt firm occupied around the world before it ceased practicing law last month, according to a filing made June 20 in Manhattan bankruptcy court. Bankruptcy law allows for the so-called lease rejections, which require court approval and are likely to encounter opposition from some of the firm’s landlords.

In its motion, Dewey argues that with the exception of a subleased portion of its former Manhattan headquarters at 1301 Avenue of the Americas, it no longer needs the office space in question. The June 20 filing lists 14 domestic offices, including two in New York—1301 Avenue of the Americas and 125 W. 55th St. In addition, there are two in Washington, D.C., three in California, and one apiece in Austin, Boston, Chicago, Hartford, and Houston. The firm also seeks in its filing to shed its leases on international offices in Abu Dhabi, Beijing, Brussels, Paris, Hong Kong, London, Madrid, São Paulo and Saudi Arabia, though São Paulo was never listed as an official firm office in its marketing materials or earlier bankruptcy filings.