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| June 15, 2007 |
By: Daniel Ostrovsky |
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Harvey Freishtat
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hicago attorney William P. Smith says he’s very, very, very sorry for telling U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Laurel Myerson Isicoff she was “a few French fries short of a Happy Meal” during a May 7 court hearing in Miami.
The chairman of McDermott Will & Emery, the Chicago-based firm whose bankruptcy practice Smith heads, is ready to prostrate himself before the judge as well.
According to a recent motion filed by the law firm, Harvey Freishtat, who heads the 1,000-lawyer firm, plans to fly to Miami for a hearing on Smith’s comment. The motion states Freishtat will personally express “on behalf of the entire firm, to this court, to the other lawyers in this case, and to the other honorable judges of this District Court, [his firm’s] sincere and deepest apology for the words used by Mr. Smith.”
The hearing is scheduled to take place June 20 at 11 a.m. before Judge Isicoff.
On May 21, Isicoff issued a show cause order summoning Smith to explain why he should not be suspended from practicing before the court for his comment, and why his pro hac vice status as a visiting attorney should not be suspended.
In his motion responding to the order, Smith wrote he “expresses his heartfelt, sincere apologies to Judge Isicoff, this honorable Court and the parties present in the courtroom on May 7, 2007.” He said he “fully intends to present himself to the Court at the hearing on the order to show cause and at that time will personally express his apologies to all involved.”
Smith is represented by Paul J. Battista and Allison R. Day of Genovese Joblove & Battista in Miami.
“It is not Mr. Smith’s intention to offer any justification for his statements or argue that they should not be viewed as offensive to the Court,” Smith’s motion states. “Simply stated, he is truly sorry for what he said, understands that his statements were improper and regrets the inconvenience to the Court.”
Smith did not return a call for comment. Battista, his lawyer, declined to comment.
McDermott Will & Emery, through its Miami partner Steven E. Siff, filed its own motion seeking permission to participate in the hearing on the order to show cause. The firm’s motion states Smith’s “words were improper and do not conform to the standards of professionalism, civility, respect and courtesy to which MWE subscribes and which all of the Firm’s lawyers and other personnel are required to observe.”
Furthermore, according to the motion, chairman Freishtat will advise Isicoff of “remedial measures that have been taken and that will be taken by the Firm, separately and together with Mr. Smith, in light of this incident and to ensure that conduct of this nature is not repeated.”
Judge Isicoff granted both Smith’s motion to expedite the hearing on the show cause order — which was originally scheduled to take place June 25 — and the law firm’s motion to participate in that hearing.
Soon after the show cause order, the client, Mount Sinai Medical Center & Miami Heart Institute in Miami Beach, which was contesting the sale of South Beach Community Hospital in a Chapter 11 bankruptcy case, retained a new law firm. The hospital hired Francis Carter, who is of counsel at Akerman Senterfitt in Miami.
Mindy Mora, a partner in the bankruptcy group at Bilzin Sumberg Baena Price & Axelrod in Miami who is not involved in the case, said it’s critically important for Smith’s practice to convince Judge Isicoff not to take away his pro hac vice license to practice in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Florida.
She said it would be difficult for Smith to maintain a nationwide bankruptcy practice if Isicoff pulls his license here, because that has to be disclosed every time he seeks pro hac vice admission elsewhere.
Mora also said Smith’s motion to move up the hearing on the show cause order may have been motivated by his and his firm’s desire to “reduce the size of the audience” for that hearing.
Smith’s comments have been widely discussed by legal blogs around the country.
Daniel Ostrovsky can be reached at dostrovsky@alm.com or at (305) 347-6648.
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