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Lawyers and consulting firms helping cryptocurrency exchange FTX through its bankruptcy filing will receive a total of $103 million during the first quarter.
In March, five firms — Sullivan & Cromwell, Alvarez & Marshal, AlixPartners, Quinn Emmanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, and Landis Rath & Cobb — billed FTX totaling $36.4 million, according to multiple court documents between April 28 and May 2 .
March invoices were slightly higher than January and February at $34.2 million and $32.5 million, respectively.
New York-based law firm Sullivan & Cromwell took the biggest paycheck again, billing $14.1 million in fees and expenses for March, up $44.4 million for the first quarter total.
The firm’s partners were getting home $2,165 an hour, while paralegals and legal analysts were getting $425 and $595 an hour for their contributions.
Consulting firm Alvarez & Marsal was next, billing more than $13.8 million in March for tens of thousands of hours it collectively devoted to tax avoidance, financial analysis and accounting procedures.
It was the third straight bill of more than $10 million for the firm, which has acted as FTX’s restructuring advisor since Sam Bankman-Freed’s former empire filed for bankruptcy on Nov. 11.
Law firms Quinn Emmanuel Urquhart & Sullivan and Landis Rath & Cobb billed FTX $3.19 million and $644,000 respectively in March for a total of $7.3 million and $1.9 million for the first quarter, respectively.
Because Landis Rath & Cobb serves as FTX’s special counsel, the firm spends most of its time in the courtroom, attending court hearings and participating in litigation.
Over 180 lawyers from Sullivan & Cromwell, Quinn Emmanuel Urquhart & Sullivan and Landis Rath & Cobb were assigned to work on the FTX case.
Read also: Sam Bankman-Fried’s holding company files for bankruptcy
In March, forensics consulting firm AlixPartners billed the largest bill of $4.51 million, for a total of $10.2 million for the quarter, for the firm’s work analyzing decentralized financial products and tokens held in ownership of FTX.
Despite six months of serious problems, FTX has yet to put a nail in the coffin.
With a $7.3 billion asset recovery, FTX’s legal team is considering a potential reboot of the trading platform as early as April 2024.