Legal News

Pellicano defendant's firm weathers the storm

By Jason Siegel

Christensen Glaser just bagged a new client in one of the most high-profile cases in town: its own managing partner, Terry Christensen.

Christensen goes to trial in a couple of months on claims that he allegedly paid celebrity sleuth Anthony Pellicano more than $100,000 to wiretap the phones of Lisa Bonder Kerkorian, the ex-wife of billionaire Kirk Kerkorian, during a paternity dispute in 2002. Last month, he replaced his lead counsel with Patricia Glaser, a name partner at his 100-lawyer Los Angeles-based firm.

The trial could be the final test in how the firm has weathered Christensen's indictment, returned two years ago. In the past year, Christensen Glaser, while losing some of its lawyers, has remained busy in litigation and real estate work. One of its largest and most loyal clients, Kerkorian, majority owner of casino operator MGM Mirage, is embarking on one of the largest real estate projects in Las Vegas.

Last month, Christensen Glaser set up shop there to launch its second office.

"We have a core group of people who've been practicing together for many years," Glaser said. As a result, she said, "our law firm is doing fabulously. That doesn't mean we aren't very cognizant of the pain that Terry is going through."

Christensen's case presents a new challenge for Glaser, the head of the firm's litigation department, who has no criminal experience. As a result, she anticipates relying on Christensen's other lawyers, Terree Bowers and Mary Carter Andrues, both white-collar criminal defense partners in the Los Angeles office of Washington's Howrey. Also joining her on the case will be Christensen partners Kevin J. Leichter and Sean Riley.

So far, Christensen's case has had little impact on the firm's clients. "It's irrelevant," said Stephen J. Cloobeck, chairman and chief executive of Diamond Resorts International, which retained the firm two years ago to handle a myriad of legal work. "It has nothing to do with the work they're doing for us."

- Amanda Bronstad

Full post as published by Legal Pad | LA on March 04, 2008 (boomark / email).