Voyager to pay $1.1 million in legal fees incurred in April
Crypto brokerage, Voyager Digital is obligated to pay $1.1 million to its legal advisor, Kirkland & Ellis, for fees and expenses associated with their involvement in the bankruptcy proceedings of the former brokerage firm in April.
According to the available documents, it is indicated that Kirkland & Ellis law firm implemented a blended hourly billing rate of $1,313.18 for the provision of various services throughout the entirety of the month. The cumulative fees assessed for the legal services rendered by both attorneys and paralegals amounted to a figure surpassing $1.4 million.
Notably, within this context, certain members holding high positions within the firm charged an hourly rate exceeding $2,000 for their professional services.
Kirkland & Ellis is recognized for its representation of several cryptocurrency companies undergoing bankruptcy proceedings and among its esteemed clientele are entities such as BlockFi and Celcius.
Voyager’s bankruptcy plan was approved by the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York on May 17, 2023. The third bankruptcy plan was proposed on May 5 after Binance.US backed out of plans to buy $1 billion worth of Voyager assets on April 25.
In July 2022, Voyager initiated the process of filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection due to the substantial impact of the crypto credit crisis, which caused severe repercussions across numerous lenders and brokers within the industry. Under the previous leadership of Steve Ehrlich, Voyager had previously been a publicly traded company in Canada.
At the time of its bankruptcy filing, Voyager disclosed liabilities ranging from $1 billion to $10 billion, signifying the extent of its financial obligations and the circumstances that led to the decision to seek bankruptcy protection.
Related: Voyager app set to reopen for customer withdrawals as soon as June 20
Voyager isn’t alone in having to pay hefty fees as it navigates its bankruptcy process. FTX, another company embroiled in a similar bankruptcy process, accrued an extensive sum surpassing $120 million in financial and legal advisory fees during the period spanning from February 1 to April 30.
Cointelegraph reached out to Voyager and Kirkland & Ellis law firm for more information but didn’t receive feedback at the time of this publication.
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