Jones Day bills $18.5m on Chrysler bankruptcy

In late November the embattled car manufacturer paid Jones Day $1m (£660,000) to establish a retainer, and according to the US firm's application to be Chrysler's lead counsel, around $5.8m (£3.8m) remains in the retainer, meaning the firm has drawn down more than $13m (£8.6m) so far.

Corrine Ball, the lead bankruptcy partner advising Chrysler, is billing $900 (£600) per hour, while partner John Cornell is advising Chrysler on employee benefits and executive compensation to the tune of $950 (£630) per hour.

According to the law firm's engagement letter from November, Jones Day was advising General Motors in its talks with Cerberus Capital Management on a possible GM-Chrysler mega-merger. Should those talks reopen - a move which now looks unlikely - Jones Day would still advise GM and build a wall between its GM and Chrysler teams.

The only other firm application so far is that of New York's Togut Segal & Segal, which will serve as conflicts counsel for Chrysler and advise on any matters that present a conflict for Jones Day. Togut partners will bill $760-$890 (£500-£590) per hour, while associate and counsel rates will range from $295 (£195) to $680 (£450).

Since 2005, Togut has served as bankruptcy conflicts counsel for several leading auto suppliers, including Tower Automotive, Dura Corporation and Delphi.

The Am Law Daily is the website of The American Lawyer, Legal Week's US sister title.

Sign up for legalweek.com job alerts