DEL RIO, Texas — A Texas federal judge expressed strong concerns on Thursday about a former bankruptcy judge’s decision not to recuse himself from an engineering company’s Chapter 11 proceedings due to a secret relationship with a then-partner at Jackson Walker LLP. However, the judge appeared uncertain about the viability of a lawsuit brought by a former shareholder over the concealed relationship.
Chief U.S. District Judge Alia Moses repeatedly questioned the fairness of keeping the relationship between former U.S. Bankruptcy Judge David R. Jones and attorney Elizabeth Freeman undisclosed during the McDermott International Inc. bankruptcy case. “How does anybody think that it’s fair to keep this quiet?” she asked during the 4½-hour hearing.
Plaintiff Michael D. Van Deelen alleges that Jones, Freeman, Jackson Walker, and Kirkland & Ellis LLP conspired to push through a prepackaged bankruptcy plan for McDermott in 2020. Judge Moses examined Title 28 of the U.S. Code, which outlines judicial disqualification requirements, focusing on whether Jones should have disqualified himself from the case.
